We must be soldiers for Art!

Mstislav Rostropovich told our choral director, pounding the table with his fist for emphasis, “We must be soldiers for Art!” Rostropovich famously stood up to a repressive totalitarian regime, so it is worth paying attention to his thoughts on the arts. 

Now as we face our own regime that may become repressive and totalitarian, it is important to think about the role that art plays in our lives. Art is many things: it is great beauty, it is innovation, and many times it is a challenge to empathize with groups we had not thought about before or a challenge to rethink whether standard social concepts are benefiting us or not.

Here are my thoughts on my encounters with Art.