A sour note? The Haifa Symphony Orchestra is planning to break a long-standing taboo in Israel's cultural scene and perform works by antisemitic composer Richard Wagner, Channel 12 News reported Monday.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
According to Channel 12, the orchestra plans to perform two concerts of Wagners music and a few of his operatic compositions in Tel Aviv this coming September.
There have been past initiatives to perform Wagner's music in Israel, all of which were called off due to public outrage. The upcoming performance is the brainchild of German-Israeli conductor David Miller, whose father's entire family was murdered in the Holocaust.
Miller said he was aware of the outrage the concert would cause.
"For many people, this is a very sensitive issue," Miller told Channel 12 News, adding that he thought it was time for Wagner's music to be performed in Israel, as "part of western culture."
Miller pointed out that Israeli musicians performed music by composers "no less antisemitic" than Wagner, citing Strauss, Liszt, and Carl Orff as examples.
