Das Reichsorchester

[nokki62]

Wirklich ekelhaft, wie die alten Säcke alles abstreiten. Bloß kein "Nazi" sein. Dabei wurde die Kultur in keinem Regime so unterstützt wie im III Reich. Hitler war der größte Förderer. Heute ist die Kultur doch vor die Hunde gekommen und fristet ein Nischendasein im Subventionssumpf. Die alten Säcke sollten lieber stolz sein, in der Zeit gelebt zu haben. Es war eine große Zeit.

[Gruenkreuz100]

So sehe ich das auch. Wenn man Hitler und dem dritten Reich eines nicht vorwerfen kann, dann das die Kultur vernachlässigt wurde.

[valdengo1]

...Germany lost 6 million military and civilians in the war, Russia lost 400,000 invading Berlin, and came to rape and murder 3 million Russian women.....Russia lost 20 million in the war, really Russia won the war with allied help........the USA lost 410,000.....Russia did the heavy lifting, and exhausted the Germans at Stalingrad......with huge cost.....of the 110,000 German prisoners captured at Stalingrad, only 5,000 made it back to Germany.......

[volvo242tank]

they are patriots, forced to hang that swastika on themselves, forced to honor men who they'd sooner club to death if they thought their families would survive the reprisals, if they had the chance. they bow and genuflect, but it's by design. doubtless there are similar performances in north korea, as there were in russia and china. good for youtube. let's try to remember that these people were pouring their hearts into something that was far greater than anything a documentary can touch.

[volvo242tank]

To anyone out there with the 'courage' to condemn these people, ask yourself if you, at that time, would have had the courage to stand out and denounce the regime publicly, or if instead, like every member of the orchestra there assembled, you would have kept quiet, saving yourself a trip to a camp, telling yourself that a better day was somehow destined to arrive...

[jgrab1]

Previously *unknown* chapter? What are all those books and documentaries about???

[kandutery]

what a lot of hypocrisy.

[78timothy]

I have several interps of the 9th. One of them is Arturo Toscanini, and also for W. Furtwaengler from around 1948. Toscanini always took Beethoven a bit to fast for my taste. Even Ansermet takes Beethoven a little more relaxed.; but just as intense. Furtwaengler is right on the money as far as Tempi. Balance, Blending and voicing from the score is concerned. Als Nazi Orchester?? Ich bleibt es nicht! Was Sheissen!!

[japanesesweet]

This is a very fine,well balanced film and i was glad there wasn`t too much accusatory finger pointing from the benefit of hindsight and in our relative comfort.

[1401JSC]

Aller Menschen werden Brüder

except all the declared enemies and victims of Hitler: Jews, homosexuals, ethnic minorities, communists.

What hypocrisiy!

And of course citizens living next to camps with filthy malodourous black smoke didn't suspect anything about extermination.Orchestral musicians didn't see their Jewish and Ukranian colleagues sent away.

They never heard about book-burning or a list of "degenerate" artists and composers.

Hypocrisy!

Living under a musical bell jar indeed!

[peterbishop1968]

@1401JSC You really are totally brain washed by the zeigeist. The stories of gas chambers were always considered at the time to be allied war time propaganda. Yes there were concentration camps and no there were nt any gas chambers. As for Communists well your hero Joe Stalin killed many more millions of innocent Ukrainians than the Germans. Today if you dispute the existence of gas chambers you go to jail in Europe. Lies need laws to protect them.

[JSC1401]

Insults and disinformation are the chief works of trolls.

[iljajj]

Toscanini's interpretation of Beethoven's ninth isn't holy, FYI. In fact, this searing interpretation of the final chorus is quite unique for Furtwängler as well - I wouldn't term it 'militaristic', more 'desperate'.

[toyodafamily2008]

I cried.

This is the one of best Beethoven performance ever. No, not desperate, not at all.

Your eyes (ears) are too colored by history and politics.

Beethoven would love Furtwangler!

[mc0558]

Unfortunately, even the way Furtwangler interpreted Beethoven fitted perfectly into the spirit the Nazis wanted to instill in Germany. This strident, militaristic felling is not the way Toscanini interpreted Beethoven.

[uhartchristian]

you are completely right about the nazispirit of furtwaengler. the problem today in germany and austria this spirit of nazi interpretations is still alife. The musicians today there are mostly influenced by this nazi mentality; as also the old nazicriminals were well protected in these countries even after the war. Now they are all dead but their spirit is still influencing the people over there. I am Austrian and did go off for this reason and living in southwestfrance now.

[mc0558]

@uhartchristian Interesting! I had actually thought that Germany had moved on from all that. As you know, the German government is one of Israel's most stallwart defenders. I think Austria and southern Germany are a bit more hitleresque than northern Germany. Anyway, I am sure north or south Germany is fundamentally OK. I hope you find complete happiness and self-fulfilment in France.

[uhartchristian]

Yes I did find a normal life and a way of living where you can think free. I got a very good musical education in Paris and the basque country where I live since 10 years is a very good place to live. Surrounded by nature and nice people. But the most important is that I could learn a lot concerning art and music through people like Horowitz, Rubinstein, Ignaz Friedman, Joseph Lhevinne, Myra Hess and many others...

[alos69]

@uhartchristian Do you mean Norht Catalonia or North Baskenland?

[666fred313]

thanks so much for sharing this...