Most scholars since World War Two have assumed that composer Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809-1847) maintained a strong attachment to Judaism throughout his lifetime. As these commentators have rightly noted, Mendelssohn was born Jewish and did not convert to Protestantism until age seven, his grandfather was the famous Jewish reformer and philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, and his music was banned by the Nazis, who clearly viewed him as a Jew. Such facts tell only part of the story, however. Through a mix of cultural ...
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Most scholars since World War Two have assumed that composer Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809-1847) maintained a strong attachment to Judaism throughout his lifetime. As these commentators have rightly noted, Mendelssohn was born Jewish and did not convert to Protestantism until age seven, his grandfather was the famous Jewish reformer and philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, and his music was banned by the Nazis, who clearly viewed him as a Jew. Such facts tell only part of the story, however. Through a mix of cultural analysis, biographical study, and a close examination of the libretto drafts of Mendelssohn's sacred works, The Price of Assimilation provides dramatic new answers to the so-called "Mendelssohn Jewish question." Sposato demonstrates how Mendelssohn's father, Abraham, worked to distance the family from its Jewish past, and how Mendelssohn's reputation as a composer of Christian sacred music was threatened by the reverence with which German Jews viewed his family name. In order to prove the sincerity of his Christian faith to both his father and his audiences, Mendelssohn aligned his early sacred works with a nineteenth-century anti-Semitic musical tradition, and did so more fervently than even his Christian collaborators required. With the death of Mendelssohn's father and the near simultaneous establishment of the composer's career in Leipzig in 1835, however, Mendelssohn's fear of his background began to dissipate, and he began to explore ways in which he could prove the sincerity of his faith without having to publicly disparage his Jewish heritage.
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Add this copy of The Price of Assimilation: Felix Mendelssohn and the to cart. $15.00, like new condition, Sold by Mainly Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Silverdale, PA, UNITED STATES, published 2006 by Oxford University Press.
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Fine in Very Good dust jacket. 0195149742. Hardcover with dustjacket, "offers a bold, revisionist account of composer Felix Mendelssohn Martholdy's relationist to his Jewish roots, " book is in excellent condition, no remarkable flaws, jacket has rubbing to the glossy surface, a professional (removable) mylar cover is included.
Add this copy of The Price of Assimilation: Felix Mendelssohn and the to cart. $18.81, good condition, Sold by HPB-Red rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2005 by Oxford University Press.
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Add this copy of The Price of Assimilation: Felix Mendelssohn and the to cart. $29.00, like new condition, Sold by Bingo Used Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Vancouver, WA, UNITED STATES, published 2005 by Cary, North Carolina, U.S.A. : Oxford Univ Pr.
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Add this copy of The Price of Assimilation to cart. $39.00, very good condition, Sold by Bay Used Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Sudbury, ON, CANADA, published 2006 by Oxford University Press.
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Very good. Felix Mendelssohn and the Nineteenth-Century Anti-Semitic Tradition. Good to Very good condition. Minor wear. Binding tight, pages clean. Former owner's name inside. Pictures available upon request. nd.
