Walden Cabin: Observations typed on an old Underwood

Friday, October 03, 2003

A Quiet Hungarian Renaissance

In northwest Hungary near the border with Austria there’s a run-down country estate. It’s being renovated back to its original glory and inspiration, the palace at Versailles. Haydn composed and performed his most famous works here, in a small but guilded room that overlooks vast stretches of garden. From the stone terrace off the second floor music hall, the garden unfolds to the horizon in mazes of cedar hedges and limestone gravel paths. Those are being restored too.

Empress Maria Theresa of the Hapsburg dynasty used to drop by in the late 1700s, sometimes for a private Haydn audience and performance, and other times to welcome thousands of local serfs and peasants in elaborate costume balls. On those occasions, the huge glass doors of the performance hall would be flung open to the terrace to allow the music to waft out over the gardens. Throngs of musicians and peasants danced and sang, lit by the stars and thousands of paper lanterns.

The end of the 18th century was a magical time of prosperity and hope in south-central Europe. The vast Austro-Hungarian Empire was at its apex of power and cultural influence. Haydn’s compositions capture the buoyance of the age, but the music also conveys his deep-seated belief that the good fortune could not last. The Master could have expressed his musical talent in Vienna or Budapest or London, reaping the reward and exposure that only those venues could provide. Instead, he stayed at Esterhazy Estate as the court musician for 20 years, the prime creative years of his career. He is said to have made the decision because he wanted his music to give joy to common people. Haydn’s music reflects the impact a quiet country life and interaction with ordinary people had on him.

The Hapsburg Empire began to decline in the 1800s, with a devolution of power to a restless Hungary, and a shift of continental influence to France and England. The Empire collapsed with the First World War, and Esterhazy Estate was abandoned. The Russian army used Haydn’s studio as a munitions dump in the 1950s, and the grand mansion went into steep decline. The iron curtain separating the Soviet Empire from the West was just a few kilometres away, so even local people could no longer visit the estate.

Today, Esterhazy is experiencing a renaissance. The estate is shrouded in scaffolding; teams of masons and painters and carpenters are lovingly restoring its intricate facades. The studios and music halls are being cleared of debris, and Haydn’s music is once again wafting out over the garden on late summer evenings. Thousands are coming to the annual Haydn Esterhazy Festival to hear Haydn in the room where he composed and first performed his most famous works.

The age of empire is over, but the optimism of that era has returned. In 2004, the border between Austria and Hungary will once again disappear as Hungary joins the European Union. And Esterhazy Estate will retake its place as a hub of music and heritage on the road between Europe's most prolific and influencial musical capitals.

posted by Stuart Hickox | 2:18 PM

Thursday, October 02, 2003

It's so easy, being Green

I’ve had an epiphany, of sorts. It’s Green. And it’s good. I think I’ve finally found a political party that speaks to me and that shares my world-view. The Green Party. A few weeks ago I would have dismissed the Greens as a gaggle from the lefty fringe. They’re fringe, yes. But not for long.

The Green Party is a movement of ordinary people who think we should make healthy lives and a healthy planet more of a priority. Simple enough. This doesn’t mean we have to live in fibre houses and give up on ambient lighting. And the people who are preaching this are not the hemp-vested birkenstocked stereotype of your minds eye (I know this, because it’s what I pictured too). The Green platform focuses policy through an environmental prism. A healthy economy and society can be sustained only if we start to think long-term, and if we begin to support and reward innovation and conservation – not consumption and inefficiency. This all may sound idealistic, and therefore unrealistic, but if you think so, ask yourself why.

Why should Ontario’s power be generated by coal and other dirty producers when there are alternative options available that cost about the same or less and that cause much less damage?

A clean energy industry will create high-tech jobs and exportable world-class technology that will be in huge demand in this century. And as a real bonus, we’ll be able to breathe the air. So where’s the economic disadvantage here?

The Ontario Medical Association reported last year that smog causes over 1000 deaths and over one billion dollars in health care costs in Ontario each year. And we were worried about SARS. What else could we do with that cool billion?

How about additional public transit, community health care centres, bike paths and tax incentives for conservation (not consumption). If these things will make our communities healthier, safer and more prosperous, what are we waiting for?

As people realize that the old notions of left and right-wing politics are no longer relevant, and that the Green Party is a movement that is made up of people from all walks of life, from all political backgrounds, the days on the fringe will be over.

Green Party of Ontario

posted by Stuart Hickox | 1:15 PM