Barenboim: Israel should be more sensitive to Palestinians

Many foreign correspondents representing television stations around the world, as well as the Israeli press, attended a press conference held by by pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim at Jerusalem's Mishkenot Sha'ananim yesterday.

The backdrop was Barenboim's recent projects in the region: a concert of the West-East Diwan orchestra in Ramallah that he conducted, and which featured young people from Israel, Syria, Lebanon and the Palestinian Authority; an international chamber music festival now under way in Jerusalem at which Barenboim performed over the past three days; and Sunday's book-launching event marking the Hebrew publication of "Parallels and Paradoxes: Explorations in Music and Society," which Barenboim wrote with Edward Said, after which the conductor refused to be interviewed by a Army Radio reporter because she was in an army uniform.

Before the reporters besieged him with questions about the incident, Barenboim started talking about the chamber music festival and how important it is to hold it in Jerusalem: He stressed Jerusalem's status for him as a symbol of cultural and intellectual activity, mentioned that in his childhood, the city was suffused with these values, and noted the changes that have taken place there since then, including the religious fervor that sweeps through it. He described the festival as one of the events that could help restore the city's original character.

He called the Ramallah concert "historic," and said he encouraged all participants to recognize each other. "Perhaps one day it also will be possible to watch it on Israel TV and not just on the Arte channel," he added, referring to the near total lack of attention the concert received in most of the local media, compared to the huge swell of support it generated abroad: apart from the live television broadcast, the concert also made headlines in major newspapers around the world.

In response to questions regarding his problematic attitude toward Israel, reflected in his refusal to be interviewed by a female soldier in uniform, Barenboim said: "How can you say problematic? After all, I grew up here, and I learned many things in Israel, particularly that you can say what's on your mind freely here, with no holds barred." He added that he was pleased to see an Army Radio reporter present in the hall (he gave him an interview later on). He complimented the station, calling it good and objective, and said it provided interesting and precise information no less than other stations. But he added, "the sensitivity should be ours, as the possessor of a state, toward those who don't have a state."

He explained how many Palestinian guests at the book-launching event were offended by the presence of a female soldier in uniform. "For you, a soldier in uniform is a symbol of security and respect, and that's fine and good - but for the Palestinians, the symbolism is reversed, and we mustn't lose our sensitivity to this," he said. After being asked about those statements, Barenboim responded: "I have no sympathy for the sensitivity that springs from the feeling of being a victim, a feeling that in my eyes reflects a lack of appreciation for the State of Israel. We are not victims. We have our own state, and the time has come to realize what it means: our self-determination. The state has the opportunity to do great things, and we need to start doing that."

Barenboim said that today's musicians are starting to lose their connection to life itself: "Although it's impossible to describe music in words, that does not mean it's just a meaningless collection of tones," he said. He added that this loss of meaning, which is also related to the addiction to technology and marketing, which have no ties to the human spirit - is threatening the future of classical music.

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