Reconstruction

Most of Warsaw was destroyed during the war – much of it because of the war, but not a small amount out of the sheer nastiness of the Nazis – Hitler’s intention to wipe Warsaw from the map (or was it Poland?). Given that the country was under communism from the war’s conclusion (a spoil of war to Stalin) until the triumph of Solidarity in 1968, reconstruction wasn’t always a bargain: the standards of Soviet architecture were rather bleak. So although the concert hall in which we performed the fabulous concert last night looked magnificent from the outside, there was something a little pedestrian (proletariat?) about the inside – reminiscent of the sorry appearance (though not to the same degree) of the concert halls I saw in Bulgaria. A little more vulgarity (rhymes with Bulgarity) would be most welcome. Although one might not be overly proud of opulence, there is something to be said for gilding the lily a bit – demonstrating that you feel that a center of culture is something of a treasure.