Raphaël Jérusalmy

Etrange que les Allemands soient mélomanes. La musique est éternelle approximation... (p64)

Un chrétien, c'est un juif qui délire (p134)

Tu vois Dieter ce geste un peu idiot, ce canular d'étudiant aura été mon seul acte de résistance. Je n'ai pas tué Hitler. Ni sauvé Mozart. J'ai pourtant le sentiment d'avoir accompli mon devoir. J'ai juste voulu empêcher qu'une voix soit tue. Une seule voix parmi des milliers d'autres mais qui, si elle avait été étouffée, aurait éteint la musique en moi. Et toute musique (p 142)… (mais)

This beautiful Europa Edition is a novel written largely as journal entries. Otto is an old man, a music critic confined to a sanitarium with tuberculosis. As 1939 bleeds into 1940, his desire to take revenge on the Third Reich - not for their many horrendous crimes against humans (of which he is only somewhat aware, along with the rest of the population of Salzburg), but for their crimes against music. Against art. Against freedom of artistic expression. I'll say no more in order to avoid spoilers but this was a terrific and worthwhile read.… (mais)

All credit to the author, Raphael Jerusalmy, for creating an unusual milieu in which to site his novella. A dying musician in a run-down Salzburg hospital in 1940 who confects his own protest at the degradations wrought on the great German composers by the Nazi machine. It is, at once, sad and triumphant, depressing and hilarious. Originally written in French, it shows no trace of translation (at least none I could detect). In a way it's a surprisingly sweet story, light and pleasing despite its context. At 124 pages it won't take you long to read either.… (mais)