From the ARCHIVE

After literary siblings Edith, Osbert, and Sacheverell Sitwell win £350 each in a libel case, The Strad muses on what the verdict might mean for arts critics in the future

The recent case, in which the three Sitwells were awarded damages against a newspaper on account of a criticism which they claimed to be libellous, suggests a possible extension to musical criticism. There is one school of thought which claims the right of a critic in any art to say what he likes within the bounds of public decency. There is much to be said in favour of this, though of course it would firstly be necessary that all criticism should be signed with the full name of the contributor to protect artists from frivolous or malicious attacks, and also so that the value of any particular opinion could be easily assessed having regard to the reputation of the writer. If criticism is not to be free, however, it is impossible to justify the present tendency to adopt quite different standards for performers and for creative artists, such as composers. The real opinion which critics have of certain performers may sometimes be heard in private conversation. Were these written down (in respectable language, of course) no publisher would dare print them, and if one were bold enough to do so, there would be a howl of indignant protest from the public, and a shower of libel actions from the players mentioned.

Where a composer is concerned there is a different attitude. If Mr. Smith, for instance (composers are regarded as young and somewhat childish until they reach the later sixties), after some years of effort brings a new symphony before the public, it surprises nobody if next morning we read that he knows nothing of the elements of musical composition, has no taste, and has stolen all his ideas from his recent predecessors. The public, especially that part of it which did not attend the concert, is left with the idea that Smith is either mentally deficient or else a scoundrel trying to impose upon credulous listeners. This attitude is not confined to unknown artists. The death of Ravel who, whatever his faults, was one of the most outstanding figures in contemporary European music, produced a crop of obituaries which gave the impression of a petty-minded trifler who would have been well advised not to have taken up music.

The Sitwells are the first who have had the courage and the means to hit back, and we hope that the shock may have the effect of reminding people that without the creative worker in any art, there would be no means of existence for either performers or artists.

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