{"id":71780,"date":"2021-07-31T10:34:04","date_gmt":"2021-07-31T14:34:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=71780"},"modified":"2021-07-31T10:34:04","modified_gmt":"2021-07-31T14:34:04","slug":"interview-tso-timpanist-david-kent-on-running-for-the-ppc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2021\/07\/31\/interview-tso-timpanist-david-kent-on-running-for-the-ppc\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW | TSO Timpanist David Kent On Running For The PPC"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_71781\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-71781\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-71781\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/07\/David_Kent-PPC-Interview.jpg\" alt=\"David_Kent-PPC-Interview\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-71781\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">David_Kent-PPC-Interview<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Most people associate musicians with left-leaning politics. But, there may be more right-leaning musicians that we think. Some surprising examples include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Moe Tucker from The Velvet Underground is a proud Tea Party Republican;<\/li>\n<li>Johnny Ramone publicly supported the Republican Party;<\/li>\n<li>Kanye West publicly supported Donald Trump;<\/li>\n<li>Pop singer Gary Barlow was a fan of David Cameron and the Conservative party;<\/li>\n<li>Ian Curtis from Joy Division voted for Margaret Thatcher.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>David Kent<\/strong>, Principal Timpanist and Personnel Manager for the <strong>Toronto Symphony Orchestra<\/strong>, can be added to that list. Kent has announced his candidacy in the next federal election, running for the People&#8217;s Party of Canada. He\u2019ll be running in the University-Rosedale riding where he lives.<\/p>\n<p>What leads a career musician to run for office? \u201cAnother musician comes to mind \u2014 Anton Kuerti,\u201d Kent says. \u201cAt least it\u2019s not without some precedent.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s been a huge issue with the orchestra, that we should get out in the community,\u201d he continues. \u201cThe ironic part, is that playing music has been restricted, to put it mildly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But, that\u2019s not all there is to it. \u201cThe second is my general concern with my direction of this country.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Why the People\u2019s Party of Canada \u2014 a party whose chances for election, judging from past elections, are slim?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo me [&#8230;] politically speaking, I would say I respect what I call classical liberalism,\u201d he says. \u201cThe question for me is, what has happened to the country with respect to those values? And, is there a party that represents these values. The PPC was the only party that represented those values.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><strong>What is Classical Liberalism?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m a big history nut. [Their] platform struck me as centrist, common sense classical liberalism.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<strong>Classical liberalism<\/strong>\u201d is a philosophy generally accepted to have been founded in 18th century Europe by those who looked to free the public from the constraints of the aristocratic system, and strict religious conformity.<\/p>\n<p>How does \u201cclassical liberalism\u201d translate into policy? Specifically, the <strong>PPC\u2019s platform<\/strong> includes, among other policy points, reducing immigration by a minimum of about 55 percent, and up to 70 percent, along with healthcare reform that would dump responsibility on the provinces, and introduce \u201cthe more efficient and less costly mixed universal systems of other developed countries\u201d (aka a mixed public\/private system).<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to Canada&#8217;s <strong>First Nations<\/strong>, the PPC&#8217;s plan is to repeal the Indian Act, while asserting the federal government&#8217;s jurisdiction when it comes to First Nations and natural resources, and to actively promote individual property rights on reserves, the lack of which the party claims as being the root cause of social ills. There is no mention of residential schools or the horrifying legacy that is unfolding still.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe other parties have moved so far into the other spectrum, they&#8217;re all crowding each other, in my opinion, of course,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s also a fan of PPC\u2019s leader, <strong>Maxime Bernier<\/strong>. \u201cMax is obviously very experienced. He\u2019s been a cabinet minister,\u201d he says. \u201cHe\u2019s the one who has been espousing these values of classical liberalism, and frankly, being honest and consistent. And he\u2019s a hard worker.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bernier&#8217;s current pre-election tour of Western Canada was recently interrupted when he was <a href=\"https:\/\/winnipeg.ctvnews.ca\/maxime-bernier-s-court-case-pushed-back-in-manitoba-1.5525217\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">arrested in Manitoba<\/a> for failing to self-isolate in the province, and assembling in a large gathering in contravention of Public Health laws.<\/p>\n<p>Kent, who is running against popular Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance <strong>Chrystia Freeland<\/strong> in his riding, is realistic about his chances of a win.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Multiculturalism<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Part of the PPC\u2019s explicitly stated policy is to repeal the <strong>Canadian Multiculturalism Act<\/strong>. What exactly would that mean?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a good question,\u201d Kent says. \u201cHere\u2019s the thing, first of all, this riding, is arguably one of the most multicultural and diverse. The fact is that Canada is an established multicultural society. It\u2019s part of the Canadian fabric,\u201d he adds. \u201cOne of my hobbies, ironically, is studying Mandarin.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to a 2014 article in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thestar.com\/entertainment\/music\/2014\/10\/10\/tsos_david_kent_on_30_years_behind_the_kettledrums.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Toronto Star<\/em><\/a>, Kent studied with noted Indian percussionist <strong>Trichy Sankaran<\/strong>, at the time on the faculty at York University\u2019s Department of Music. As part of his Master\u2019s recital at UofT, Kent played a mridangam solo.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCanada is multiracial,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt\u2019s a little bit of an insult to all Canadians to think that they need this nanny state. I think Canadians are more sophisticated than that. We can stand on our own as a multicultural country, and we don\u2019t need government mandates.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As a point of fact, funding from <strong>Canadian Heritage<\/strong> officially designated for multiculturalism currently provides financial support for a wide range of projects, from the multiracial and multi-ethnic music festivals that are held at communities across the country, to events for <strong>Black History Month<\/strong> and <strong>Asian Heritage Month<\/strong>, and contributions to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, among others. Available funding has dropped by about 60 percent over the last decade.<\/p>\n<p>As Kent sees it, when the federal government provides funding, it also claims influence. \u201cThe piper calls the tune,\u201d he said. \u201cI could give you a lot of examples \u2014 the CBC for one. The CBC is an excellent example. It used to be a source of creative energy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Context<\/strong>: In 2012, the federal government <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/politics\/cbc-budget-cut-by-115m-over-3-years-1.1147096\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cut $115 million<\/a> from the CBC&#8217;s budget, an amount that was spread over three years. Funding has not kept pace with inflation for the last decade, as noted in a <a href=\"https:\/\/frpc.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Public-funding-of-CBC-operations-2020-4-February.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2020 financial review<\/a> of the organization, leading to attrition and contraction throughout the entire organization.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut, where is the money going?\u201d he asks.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cProgramming is done by committee, it\u2019s done by quota. The emphasis has shifted to expressing the government\u2019s agenda,\u201d he claims. \u201cThey have virtually no support of the classical industry,\u201d he added. \u201cI\u2019m disappointed in that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have to be very careful about government mandates in general, and certainly, in the cultural industry. Beethoven and Shostakovich \u2014 they were dissidents. Musicians have to hang on to that tradition.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Canadian Identity<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>In repealing the Multiculturalism Act, and in its immigration policies, the PPC&#8217;s platform is focused on the idea of <strong>Canadian identity<\/strong>. The specific wording reads: \u201cRepeal the Multiculturalism Act and eliminate all funding to promote multiculturalism. Emphasize instead the integration of immigrants into Canadian society.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The PPC website accuses both the Liberals and Conservatives of \u201cusing mass immigration as a political tool to buy votes among immigrant communities.\u201d Specifically, they advocate, \u201cOur immigration policy can benefit Canadians only if we welcome the right kind of immigrants. It should prioritize Canada\u2019s economic interests and be calibrated in a way that does not jeopardize Canadian values and the maintenance of our national identity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ironically, Canadian Heritage, in allocating funding under the Multiculturalism Act, lists among its criteria: increasing awareness of Canadian values, Canadian history and institutions, and increased respect for core democratic values, among other stipulations.<\/p>\n<p>Whose version of Canadian identity and values? Whose version of Canadian society?<\/p>\n<p>Those seem to be the fundamental questions at stake.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em><b>#LUDWIGVAN<\/b><\/em><\/h3>\n<p class=\"western\"><em>Get the daily arts news straight to your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em>Sign up for the Ludwig van Daily \u2014 classical music and opera in five minutes or less <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/ludwig-van.us9.list-manage.com\/subscribe?u=4f785cb3f9058f2393ccad035&amp;id=57cdb68eac\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>HERE<\/em><\/a>.<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>David Kent, Principal Timpanist and Personnel Manager for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, has announced his candidacy in the next federal election, running for the People&#8217;s Party of Canada.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":71781,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[38476,29,31,63],"tags":[39763,2680,5644],"yst_prominent_words":[7140,39449,6767,18416,13304],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/07\/David_Kent-PPC-Interview.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-iFK","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71780"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71780"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71780\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71783,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71780\/revisions\/71783"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71780"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71780"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71780"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=71780"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}