Saturday, May 12, 2018

CULTURAL BAKLAVA

A friend, in a conversation about cultural appropriation, offered a musical piece as an example of the benevolence of that practice. No, it wasn't something from Madam Butterfly or Elvis Presley. He's too intelligent and sensible for that kind of glib density, and in fact there are a great many euphonious examples all up and down the scale.
What he chose was, however, bound to trigger some sensitive souls.
Who would be immeasurably offended by it.
And can get stuffed.


"An Israeli oud player of Syrian Jewish origin, performing a classical Turkish composition written by an Armenian."


The following video is not worth watching (because the pictures don't move) but it makes for extremely enjoyable listening.
Which I invite you to do.


VICTOR AND ARIEL PLAY 'TATYOS EFFENDI'


[SOURCE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1msnGcPhxng&feature=youtu.be.]


Myself, I don't get my panties in a twist about cultural appropriation.
All metropolitan societies do it. It's like pizza.

I once ate pizza in a Palestinian-owned grillroom in Amsterdam, prepared by a blond guy with dreadlocks. Thank heavens they had sambal, because Dutch pizza is NOT like we do in New York, Chicago, or North Beach.

It needed help.


By the way: Toilet paper was invented by the Chinese.
I bet you are glad that we learned about it.
Such a splendid cultural artifact.



AFTERWORD

I have sambal or its equivalent with almost everything I eat, in case you were wondering. Sambal is mothers milk to a Dutchman, though invented by Indonesians, who took the idea from Ceylonese cooking, using an ingredient first cultivated by Mexicans.


By Takeaway - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=35381626
[SOURCE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chili_pepper.]
Bird's eye, Madame Jeanette, & Cayenne

Hot chilies. Fortune's gift to Holland.
Like ketchup, for Americans.


Blond dreads are an abomination.
The world does not need that.




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