Tony Greenstein | 15 March 2013 | Post Views:

Anti-Semitic
Jazzman Fails to even mention the Palestinians

Blowing his own trumpet at the expense of the Palestinians
Brighton picket of Batsheva
Habimah picket

If
there are any people left who believe that Atzmon is a genuine supporter of the
Palestinians, they should listen in to his appearance last week on the Strand
on the BBC World Service: The recording
has also been posted on Vimeo (presumably because Atzmon wants people to
hear it long after the BBC has taken it down from their website).

Brighton picket of Habimah
Like
a chameleon, Atzmon adapts himself to the BBC environment. He makes no
fundamental criticism of Israel. On the contrary, his contribution is more or
less a postcard to Israel, viz:

Zionist counter-demonstration outside the Royal Albert Hall didn’t prevent disruptions

–        During the first song, he admits that
he ‘liked the idea of’ giving one’s life for the motherland, ‘on the Jewish
altar’;
 –        He is so respectful of each of the 3
artists whose music he plays, especially the second band…….about whom he
talks glowingly about their efforts ‘to integrate the Arabic sound’ with
Israeli music. Apparently, he has no concerns about appropriation of the Arab and
Palestinian narratives;
Picket of the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra which activists disrupted

–        He flip-flops yet again over BDS,
stating unequivocally that ‘I’m really troubled by the idea of boycotting art
and academics’, asserting that ‘music can unite people’.
His attack on the
principle of a boycott is completely at odds with his observation last month
that “BDS could easily become a positive development if it could only tell the
difference between an academic and an avocado” 
The disruption of Habimah that Atzmon deplores
–        And during the last song, he waxes
lyrical about the ‘incredible amount of musical talent which comes out of
Israel’
and that this ‘music wasn’t at all political’ ie. it has nothing to do
with Hasbara and should not be boycotted.
Atzmon waxes lyrical at Gaby Weber’s German Conference
In
short, Atzmon exudes nothing but awe and admiration for Israel………on his
one opportunity, on the BBC World Service, to address a large international
audience and to make them sit up and take note……
Indeed,
Palestine and the Palestinians do not even get a mention.
Boycott Batsheva
 As
ever, Atzmon attacks the principles and personalities of the Palestinian
solidarity movement, whilst refraining from exacting Israelis to similar
scrutiny. Meanwhile, he spews forth articles every few days; not bad for
someone who can’t string two sentences together without committing basic
grammatical and spelling errors.
The
openly pro-Israel camp seem to have been going through the motions and no more,
in their comments on Atzmon’s BBC appearance:   They do have
a point about how the BBC could give a platform to someone who so determinedly
incites anti-Jewishness. That apart, they can have had no other qualms about his
adulatory remarks about his fellow Israeli musicians.
Atzmon
is the very thing he most attacks: an AZZ, a Zionist in anti-Zionist’s
clothing.
The
writer of the above article has chosen to remain anonymous but his comments are
extremely relevant

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Tony Greenstein

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