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Chapter 15 Thought Questions

1. What part did music play in the rebirth of the State of Israel?
   
2. Take the role of a music critic on the staff of the Jerusalem Post in 1949, and write an essay arguing that the new state should play an active role in promoting “Jewish music,” and recommending how it should go about doing that.
   
3. Write a newspaper article disagreeing with the preceding essay and rebutting both major points outlined there.
   
4. Why did some composers reject the arguments of the so-called “Eastern Mediterranean School?”  What did they do instead?  Who were the principal representatives of both points of view?
   
5. There is still a great deal of opposition in Israel to performing the music of Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss in the country.  What are the arguments pro and con in this debate?  Which side best represents your own feelings?  Why?