Page "Igor Stravinsky" Paragraph 33

According to Robert Craft, Stravinsky remained a confirmed monarchist throughout his life and loathed the Bolsheviks from the very beginning.

In 1930, he remarked, " I don't believe that anyone venerates Mussolini more than I ...

I know many exalted personages, and my artist's mind does not shrink from political and social issues.

Well, after having seen so many events and so many more or less representative men, I have an overpowering urge to render homage to your Duce.

He is the saviour of Italy and – let us hope – Europe ".

Later, after a private audience with Mussolini, he added, " Unless my ears deceive me, the voice of Rome is the voice of Il Duce.

I told him that I felt like a fascist myself ...

In spite of being extremely busy, Mussolini did me the great honour of conversing with me for three-quarters of an hour.

We talked about music, art and politics ".

When the Nazis placed Stravinsky's works on the list of " Entartete Musik ", he lodged a formal appeal to establish his Russian genealogy and declared, " I loathe all communism, Marxism, the execrable Soviet monster, and also all liberalism, democratism, atheism, etc .." Towards the end of his life, at Craft's behest, Stravinsky made a return visit to his native country and composed a cantata in Hebrew, travelling to Israel for its performance.