The Symphony Concert in Nazi Germany: An Oasis of Civility?
- £15
- 05 Jun 25
- Arundells, 59 Cathedral Close, Salisbury
- 14:30
In his account of his 1937 tour of Germany Edward Heath referred repeatedly to his attendance at concerts, describing these as the redoubt of those civilised German values that the Nazis were busy corrupting. His story fits with what many Germans wanted to believe after 1945 – that the symphony concert hall had been a place of retreat from the vicious politics of the Nazi regime. But was this the case? Drawing on hitherto unknown sources from orchestras up and down Germany Neil Gregor shows, rather, how German orchestras became thoroughly incorporated into the political, ideological and cultural universe of Nazi Germany, and at a terrible price.
Neil Gregor
Neil Gregor is Professor of Modern European History and Director of the Parkes Institute at the University of Southampton. His newest book, The Symphony Concert in Nazi Germany, is published in May 2025 by the University of Chicago Press.
Date: Thursday 5 June
Time: Talk begins at 2.30pm
Where: The Studio, Arundells, Cathedral Close, Salisbury.
Tickets: £15
