Gustavo Dudamel: ‘I understand why people are screaming’

In a Telegraph interview with Nicholas Kenyon, Dudamel easily evades the issue of whether he should be touring an orchestra that acts as an ambassador for an illegal regime.

Here are some quotes:

• Right now, with all the disinformation, with the super-politicised situation we are living through, I understand why people are screaming, I understand the cacophony. But I think we have to reflect and say that change is possible. I’m not just talking about the situation in my country: it is a very turbulent moment for humanity.
• I’m a result of the programme. I’m not the creator, I’m not a boss. I started as a child because my father started in the system. So I have had music in me since before I was born. You know nothing is perfect. El Sistema is still alive after 50 years, after nine governments, because there was one man [José Abreu] who had a vision of organising this in the best way possible. You know there are imperfections. Anyone who comes here and says everything goes perfectly – it is not true. There are some things that work, and some that don’t work.
• Everything is over-politicised in the world right now. I believe we can only do the right thing with the tools we have and the tool that I have is music. I have believed in the values of the Sistema my whole life, and its children deserve support and respect because of the horrible situation that our country is living through.

He’s getting to be quite good at this.

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