Wagner festival reinstates Holocaust memorial event after cancellation
To mark the Bayreuth Festival's 150th anniversary, a memorial event titled "Silenced Voices" ("Verstummte Stimmen") will take place on July 26, before the premiere of
To mark the Bayreuth Festival's 150th anniversary, a memorial event titled "Silenced Voices" ("Verstummte Stimmen") will take place on July 26, before the premiere of the opera "Rienzi." Works by Richard Wagner, Gustav Mahler and Jewish composer Pavel Haas, who died in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, will be performed at the event. Organizers also invited broadcaster, journalist and former deputy chair of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Michel Friedman — himself at one time a DW show host — to speak about Wagner's antisemitism and its legacy. The program aims to confront the festival's own history, while proceeds from the event are to fund scholarships for Israeli musicians. The Holocaust memorial concert came into the spotlight when it was suddenly canceled, with festival leadership citing security concerns. German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung first reported the decision on June 15. But following public outcry, the event was subsequently reinstated. Michel Friedman was suddenly ousted from Bayreuth before being reinstated Image: Bernd Wüstneck/dpa/picture alliance Why was it canceled? When the cancellation was first made public, interim managing director Heinz-Dieter Sense told German public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk that security services could not handle two high-level security operations at the festival venue in one day.
He pointed to the limited time between the morning event and the 4 p.m. opening performance of Wagner's "Rienzi." "Given the current global situation, everyone is being extremely cautious," Sense said. "If no one can guarantee that it's feasible, then I can't hold the event." Festival organizers said they would have needed the highest security level to protect Friedman. Germany has seen a rise in antisemitic violence in recent years. Friedman faced a previous cancellation of an appearance in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern last October. Police and city say they were not involved Questions remain over whether security concerns alone drove the cancellation. The festival declined interview requests from DW. Spokesperson Hubertus Herrmann only wrote in a statement that security authorities had not approved the original plan. However, both the regional police headquarters in the state of Upper Franconia and the city of Bayreuth informed DW that they had not been involved in the planning process. Michel Friedman had previously expressed deep anger in interviews with the Süddeutsche Zeitung and other media outlets. He said the cancellation of events for security reasons in a democracy amounted to capitulation to extremists, and described the move as "suicide." Friedman questions official explanation Amid the controversy, Friedman also expressed his doubts over the official security rationale.
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