Prejudice

We all hate being proven wrong—especially when we’ve already said our opinion out loud. Musicians and critics are no exception.

During the famous rivalry between the singers Henriette Sontag and Maria Malibran, Sontag had one problem before she even opened her mouth: she was German. Malibran’s fans insisted that *real* singing belonged only to Italians, or to the Italian school—so, by definition, a German couldn’t possibly sing well.

The prejudice ran so deep that Frederick the Great, when invited to hear the celebrated singer Mara, snapped: “A German singer? I’d as soon take pleasure in the neighing of my horse!”

An Italian critic—who had never heard Sontag—was eventually persuaded to attend one of her performances. After listening for only a short time, he stood up and prepared to leave.

“Leaving already?” his friend asked. “Stay a little longer and you’ll be convinced that a German can sing.”

“I know it,” the critic replied. “That’s exactly why I’m going.”