Reviews for Our Musical World: Music and Culture Appreciation for the Twenty-First Century

The average rating for Our Musical World: Music and Culture Appreciation for the Twenty-First Century based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2013-04-29 00:00:00 Christopher Cruz 5 stars, not so much for the writing, though it was good, but for the sheer persistence of the author, Martin Goldsmith to bare the roots and expose the branches of the tree that grew in his living room. This tree, which Goldsmith used metaphorically like families of alcoholics use the elephant plagued his childhood. I understand it. My mother lost her first husband in World War II. She married my father and never spoke much about her first love but I knew, just like Goldsmith knew, there was a story, one not told, that grew and grew and grew until it almost burst through the roof spewing its secrets over all. Martin's father and mother, Gunther and Rosemarie were Jews living in Hitler's Germany in the 30's. Their story of survival was one that Martin longed to know but was not talked about. He wondered how his parents came to America and he wondered about the families they left behind. Happenstance brought both he and his father to Germany in 1992. His father seemed proud to show Martin where he grew up, where his own father's store had been, etc. This small start was the beginning of Martin asking questions and his father telling the story. Inextinguishable Symphony is really three stories, three protagonists you might say. The first is the story of The Kulturbund, a cultural association that began in 1933 when Hitler was first Canceler; a ploy schemed to segregate the Jews but convince the world that these Jewish Germans were being treated well. Martin's father and mother, both fine musicians were chosen to play in this orchestra. Rosemarie was an accomplished violist and Gunther played the flute. The second story is the their love story; from their beginnings getting to know each other, then their marriage and early years as members of The Kulturbund, trying to take care of each other with the happenings around them and finally at last, their fortune to procure passports and passage to America. America, where Rosemarie would continue as a musician, where Gunther would give up his flute to support his family. America, free but not free from guilt as family members are not able to join them in their new homeland. The third character, one that cannot be ignored, is the music. The music that kept his parents and their friends alive throughout the Hitler regime. I know little about classical music but I found myself seeking out the pieces and composers mentioned. In the beginning days of The Kulturbund the assembly was only allowed to play for Jews and certain composers were forbidden As time went on, the list of composers they could not play grew and grew. Imagine being denied the right to play Beethoven, Bach, Schumann, Wagner, Brahms. And the list continued to grow. I have yet to hear the work that prompted the title of the book "THE INEXTINGUISHABLE SYMPHONY" which prominent piece, Resurrection Symphony #2, Mahler. Exquisite. Each story comes together to create the whole and though heart wrenching, there is beauty, peace and hope. The Inextinguishable Symphony lends itself well to book discussion. Questions arise as to paths taken, decisions made or those where there was little choice. One debatable point is the question of whether The Kulturbund was a blessing or a curse? Was it what kept many Jews alive or the vehicle that kept them from leaving Germany? For Goldsmith's parents it seemed what kept them alive. Some would disagree. Martin Goldsmith gives us yet another story from the Holocaust, an important one, worth reading and more important, worth remembering.

Review # 2 was written on 2020-04-13 00:00:00 Johan Lepamets A man's journey to uncover his parent's journey from Nazi Germany to the United States.