{"id":296,"date":"2017-10-31T03:11:02","date_gmt":"2017-10-31T03:11:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gcornish.digitalscholar.rochester.edu\/MHS123_Fall2017\/?p=296"},"modified":"2017-10-31T03:11:02","modified_gmt":"2017-10-31T03:11:02","slug":"i-profeti","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gcornish.digitalscholar.rochester.edu\/MHS123_Fall2017\/assignments\/music-power-politics\/i-profeti\/","title":{"rendered":"I Profeti"},"content":{"rendered":"

https:\/\/uploads4.wikiart.org\/images\/marc-chagall\/prophet-jeremiah-1968.jpg<\/p>\n

The year is 1931.\u00a0 In the United States, the effects of the Great Depression are beginning to take a toll.\u00a0 In Europe, unease reigns supreme.\u00a0 The feeble peace brought by the treaty of Versailles still holds, but is beginning to crumble.\u00a0 Antisemitism is once more on the rise.\u00a0 As always when times are troubled, a scapegoat is found.\u00a0 In the lead up to the horrors of World War II, Europe brings back the traditional bogeyman of the Jew.\u00a0 While it is still years removed from the absolute evil of the Holocaust, Jewish life in Europe feels threatened.<\/p>\n

In Italy, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, a famed guitarist and composer of Jewish Heritage is approached by Jascha Heifetz with a request.\u00a0 Heifetz wishes have a concerto composed for him, to be premiered by himself and Arturo Toscanini.\u00a0 By 1931, Heifetz is already possessed of fame and glamour he will maintain for the rest of his life.\u00a0 He has also been a naturalized US citizen for six years.\u00a0 Castelnuovo-Tedesco accedes Heifetz’s request, and so Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s 2nd Violin Concerto, subtitled I Profeti,<\/em> is born.\u00a0 Into this work, Castelnuovo Tedesco channels all his pride in his Jewish Heritage, and all his fear and defiance towards the uncertain grim future.<\/p>\n

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I Profeti<\/em> is divided into three movements, each named after a prophet from the Torah (Old Testament).\u00a0 These movements are, in order:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Grave e meditative Isaiah<\/em><\/li>\n
  2. Espressivo e dolente Jeremiah<\/em><\/li>\n
  3. Fiero e impetuoso (ma sostenuto e ben marcato il ritmo) Elijah<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    While the concerto is generally in minor mode, the final movement Elijah<\/em> is a rather boisterous march in major.\u00a0 This, combined with the fireworks in the solo violin may signal Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s optimistic outlook towards the future.\u00a0 Another, darker interpretation, stems from the religious implications of Elijah’s return.\u00a0 According to Jewish liturgical lore, Elijah is set to return at the end of the world, at the age of ultimate redemption.\u00a0 [Side note – every Passover, Jewish Families set aside a cup of wine at Seder for Elijah, and leave a door open for him]\u00a0 Thus, the celebratory finale may also be seen as a sign of Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s readiness for the end of days.<\/p>\n

    While the social implications of such a work of art are clear, the political implications may be more obscured.\u00a0 Unfortunately, both in 1931 and now, Hate is political.\u00a0 To stand up to it then becomes a poltical gesture in itself.\u00a0 Castelnuovo-Tedesco was under no obligation to open himself up to further attacks by exposing his Jewishness in such a clear manner.\u00a0 Yet, he chose to remain true to himself and his heritage.\u00a0 Often, a work of art becomes more than the simple lines on canvas or sound waves in a concert hall – it becomes imbued with the politics and social standings of its creator.<\/p>\n

    While a work of art can reflect history, it can not change it.\u00a0 Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s valiant effort to change his world through his art failed, as history shows.\u00a0 Persecution of Jews in Italy only escalated.\u00a0 By the late 1930’s, works by Jewish composers were no longer permitted on the stage or the airwaves.\u00a0 Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s livelihood is at stake.\u00a0 In 1939, months before the beginning of World War II, he flees to the United States, where he rejoins Heifetz in California, which has become a hub of the artistic Jewish \u00c9migr\u00e9 community.\u00a0 He remains there for the rest of his life through his death in 1968, and rebuilds his reputation, composing soundtracks for over two hundred Hollywood films, as well as numerous works for guitar.<\/p>\n

    <\/p>\n

    (Castelnuovo-Tedesco with Igor Stravinsky – http:\/\/www.milkenarchive.org\/artists\/view\/mario-castelnuovo-tedesco\/)<\/a><\/p>\n

    To me, I Profeti <\/em>holds a special place in the pantheon of works for violin for the defiance that went into its composition.\u00a0 Castelnuovo-Tedesco refused to be cowed into submission by the forces of hatred.\u00a0 He chose to celebrate his Jewish Heritage rather than be terrified by the consequences of it.\u00a0 I Profeti<\/em> stands strong as a celebration of Jewish Culture and learning, and remains relevant today not just as a work of art, but as an act of political courage.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Sources:<\/p>\n

    Biography<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n