Overview
- The Flanders Festival in Ghent canceled the Münchner Philharmoniker’s Sept. 18 concert, saying Lahav Shani had not shown sufficient clarity about his stance toward what it called a “genocidal regime in Tel Aviv.”
- Shani issued a public statement calling the decision regrettable, accusing organizers of yielding to political pressure to make him issue a political declaration, and urging an end to the war as he voiced empathy for civilians and recalled the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks.
- Musikfest Berlin hosted a short-notice replacement concert at the Konzerthaus, where Shani and the orchestra received prolonged applause and standing ovations in a widely publicized show of solidarity.
- German leaders condemned the Ghent move as antisemitic, with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Chancellor Friedrich Merz denouncing the decision and Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer framing Berlin’s invitation as a stand for artistic freedom.
- The Bundestag’s culture committee said it will examine antisemitism in the cultural sector and invited Shani to speak, while Belgium’s Prime Minister Bart De Wever distanced himself from the festival’s action and the Ghent festival chief reportedly offered to resign, an offer the board declined.