A planned tribute to the victims of the 2016 Pulse Nightclub massacre by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra has fallen apart after blowback on social media. The reason: commenters attacked the Philharmonic for planning to play a piece by a straight white man.
The Philharmonic had originally announced it would play a piece by composer Lev Zhurbin, who goes by the professional moniker Ljova. Ljova, himself a Russian-American immigrant, composed the piece as a reaction to his own horror at the attack which claimed the lives of 49 people.
“I was just about to begin composing the piece then, and asked the orchestra if it would be OK for me to dedicate the new piece to the victims,” Ljova said in a statement. “It was my intention to bring attention and comfort to the families of the victims, and to use my opportunity as a composer with a commission to respond musically. I was writing a piece for the Orlando Philharmonic, and Orlando — and indeed the country — was in a state of mourning that I could not ignore.”
The Orlando Philharmonic accepted the unsolicited piece, and agreed to perform it this November as a tribute to the victims of the attack. Previous to Ljova submitting his work, the orchestra had not planned any special tribute commemorating the Pulse shootings. The orchestra also acquired a $6,000 grant from New Music USA to pay the musicians as the Philharmonic has had its finances devastated by COVID-19. Ljova would not have received any of the funds.
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Related: The Pulse massacre is remembered in Orlando through memorials to 49 victims
The Orlando Sentinal reports that the announcement of the new piece met with surprising backlash on Facebook, with commenters–most of whom are not even from Orlando–attacking the Philharmonic for cultural appropriation. Specifically, they attacked Ljova for being a straight man writing about an incident involving LGBTQ people, and the Philharmonic for accepting the piece from a white man. The night of the Pulse Massacre, the nightclub had hosted a “Latin night;” most of the victims of the attack were Latino.
“The fact that you then chose to go out of your way applying for a grant with this piece as a facade for ‘diversity’ and ‘inclusion’ truly shows that you don’t know what either of those mean,” Orlando resident Matthew Fackler wrote on Facebook. “I cannot believe that somewhere in the pipeline of your company, it wasn’t discovered that this is a horribly tone-deaf decision on your part.”
“Nothing against Lev but this is an unfortunate choice and missed opportunity on the Orlando Philharmonic’s part to not select and support a queer composer of color to represent and write about a tragic event that targeted that community,” said Isabel Castellvi, who is not an Orlando resident. “A shame you all didn’t catch that or decided it wasn’t important, especially in these times when folks are rising up for voices of color and queer voices to be heard.”
Ultimately, the social media backlash prompted the Orlando Philharmonic to cancel the Pulse tribute and return the $6,000 grant to New Music USA. The musicians who would have been paid to perform Ljova’s piece will receive nothing.
The Orlando Philharmonic released an apology to coincide with the announcement of the cancellation of the Pulse tribute. “It’s our immediate goal to take the time needed to have meaningful conversations in our community to create something that everyone can be proud of in the future,” the statement read in part. “We will get this right.”
News of the cancellation comes at a sensitive time regarding how to best represent communities in the arts, and amid charges that so-called “cancel culture” has gone too far.
astrogay 2020
well blackash totaly unjustified ,aparently some gays are starting to suffer from heterofobia
trsxyz
Yeah… Too bad the tribute has been squashed. It seems like everyone involved had the best of intentions.
Aaron
Heterophobia doesn’t exist. It gets flagged as a misspelled word when I type it in. I get a “No Replacement Found” pop-up.
bodie425
God, I hate people, sometimes. This is why I could never be a public relations representative because I would have cursed these people out. Talk about choosey beggers.
Creamsicle
Good grief. Fine, maybe we’ll just alienate our allies until we don’t have any. Then a neo-Anita Bryant can swoop in and demonize and criminalize us all over again.
We will always be a convenient scape goat. We need to value our allies, because all of our rapid social progress can be undone very rapidly.
Aaron
I think our allies will be fine. Relax. If they become homophobic because of this then they were always homophobic. I think some gays seek too much “straight approval”.
eireapparent
SJWs be making friends all over the place.
Aaron
The term “SJW” is so early 2010s. So old.
kevininbuffalo
People need to stop paying attention to crap on social media.
Hdtex
Well, I mean, that’s the message these days so it should be no surprise it’s carried here. Next time, consider what you’re saying when you say only a gay person can act a gay part–and so on.
In this case, it cost a nice tribute. And maybe they’re right. Only a lesbian of color could truly appreciate the pain of…BWAHAHAHAHA!!!
Yeah, because suffering isn’t a general human constant.
(Waiting, once again, for Cam to crawl out of the forest, fearing any color lighter than beige, to scream “BIGOT!” before scuttling back into the darker tones that are the only thing he can tolerate).
Jussie_Racist_Clown
Cam is a catfish. He’s a Trump troll masquerading as a progressive gay. He’s angry, he’s ugly and he’s everywhere. Like a horror movie.
Heywood Jablowme
Lol – Cam the bully has mysteriously disappeared since our little “intervention” the other day.
See comments on “Weird video by self-hating gay Republicans claims Donald Trump is “the most pro-gay president ever” – 8/21/20
Cam
@Hdtex, @Jussie_Racist_Clown, @Heywood Jablowme
It is SO easy to spot you, and I mean “you” in the singular form. Because no matter what screenames you’re using, you are always obsessed and enraged with me for pointing out your obvious right wing trolling and defense of anti-LGBTQ bigots.
Here we have a topic, and you are so obsessed with me you made it all……..about…..me.
Thanks troll, nice to know if I want to vacation in a new area that I own that much space in your head.
Heywood Jablowme
@Cam: I am an ardent Democrat and Trump-HATER who’s never defended ANY anti-gay bigots, and I generally agree with you politically, except when you descend into batsh*t crazy paranoia about yourself, as you do here.
As I said last week, you are simply too goddamn LAZY to keep track of who anyone is here. And you’re mentally ill and have this insane idea that there are various “accounts” by one person attacking you. This is projection since you’ve apparently done the exact same thing yourself, DC Guy.
Your behavior is really quite Trumpian! I think “jussie” is making a stretch in calling you “a Trump troll masquerading as a progressive gay,” but maybe that explains it. You seem unaware that you’re damaging progressive causes by being such an a**hole here. You are a bully, and Queerty should ban you.
Cam
@Heywood Jablowme
Give it a rest troll. This is an article about a massacre at an LGBTQ establishment and yet supposedly, you, a non-troll just want to attack me. Funny, that’s what the troll account does in all of it’s screenames.
So here’s an idea. Comment on the post. If I say something you are more than welcome to point out where you disagree or point out where you think I’m wrong. But apparently you can’t do that.
But thanks for being obsessed with me.
Heywood Jablowme
@Cam: “So here’s an idea. Comment on the post.”
That advice is more appropriate for YOU than for anyone here.
You do tend to comment on the post, And I happen to agree with you 99% of the time. So I don’t say anything about your comment. But if anyone does disagree with you, in any way, you immediately switch into the paranoid mode and do the “troll” and “multiple accounts” stuff.
It’s not about you. Quit being abusive; stop damaging your own causes. Comment on the post.
Cam
@Heywood Jablowme
Except this is the second post in a few days where you didn’t comment on the Post, you simply lashed out at me, when I didn’t make a comment.
So you are doing exactly what you say you aren’t doing.
As for attacking people who “Disagree” with me, I”m sorry but when I see screenames that I recognize on here like Black Pegasus and ThingPlease commenting under posts supposedly put up by themselves, and they are saying “Someone stole this screename” and then their screenames go from posting pro-LGBTQ posts, to posts attacking the community and defending bigots, it isn’t a massive stretch to call those accounts trolls.
This is a post about the Pulse shooting and some ridiculous attacks that caused them to pull the tribute. This is now the second comment on this thread, as well as some on other threads where you refused to comment about the topic and just lashed out on me. You’re starting to make it sound like your screename got taken over too.
Heywood Jablowme
@Cam: ooooh, new theory… maybe YOU’RE Black Pegasus and Think and jussie and Aries the Ram and o.codone and all of them!
Cam
@Heywood Jablowme
Still can’t post about the actual topic. Thanks for proving my point.
Aaron
Yeah, lots of right-wing trolls on Queerty. Either Queerty needs them (or is them) to get comment thread hits or it’s just bored self-hating trolls.
My2CentsWorth
I wonder how many of these complaints were by people who are actually of the far right. Just as some of the looters and rioters have been people who wanted to sabotage the protest movement.
Aaron
Nah, not convincing.
Jussie_Racist_Clown
The extremist left progressives are eating their own.
Cam
Unlike the right wing who just want us dead.
Kangol2
@JussieLoverInReality, the demands of some of these activists was extreme and the orchestra should either have ignored them or found a LGBTQ composer, even a BIPOC one, and held the concert nevertheless, but you seem to be glossing over the fact that the core of this story really is memorializing LGBTQ who were slaughtered. Maybe lighten up on the glib gloating and trolling about “extreme left progressives” and show some respect to the LGBTQ people whose brutal mass murder this story centers on.
Aaron
Their demands weren’t extreme. You’re reaction to their demands were.
Yooper
I am so disappointed the voices of the extremists carried enough weight to result in the OPO canceling the tribute concert, and felt especially maddened at the slap in the face to Lev Zhurbin’s gift of a composed piece. I visited the OPO website, there you can make a donation “In honor” of someone, I made a donation in honor of Lev and the OPO for their thoughtful gift to the community, even if the sound of music was drowned out by the shrill voices of the absurd LGBTQXYZ-fringe-nazis. I encourage anyone with similar thoughts to make a donation in recognition of the OPO”s good intent.
Aaron
They weren’t extreme and their not Nazi’s. Calm down grandpa, it’s time to take a nap from using the computer all day.
Cam
Hopefully they don’t cancel the tribute, get it together people, the overall event is larger than these petty squabbles.
Aaron
True
DarkZephyr
This is one of the most embarrassingly ridiculous things I have ever heard in my entire life. Straight people are not allowed to create tributes for us? Oh my God. The cringe factor is through the roof.
Aaron
Really, in your entire life? lol
Charlie in Charge
Looking a gift horse in the mouth? Straight people can’t make a tribute to us now?
Aaron
I’m laughing at the people angry about a straight White male being rejected. They’re like, “What?! You don’t like straight White males?! You hate White people!” lolol
johnnymcmxxx
Aaron, stop your rude ageism. Its your bigotry. We wouldn’t have any rights if it weren’t for those who fought for them. Many of us wouldn’t even be here. And you too will be old one day & then you may finally be less ignorant.
Yooper
You interpret the article and majority of comments as being about a straight white male being rejected? Hone up on your reading comprehension and critical thinking skills.
Brewster69
So let me get this straight (no pun intended). A straight white composer writes a piece of music as a tribute to the 49 gay latino victims involved in a shooting spree and people are offended that it wasn’t written by a gay latino? (I know, I’ve probably simplified this a bit) As a gay white male of a certain age, who grew up in a era where being gay was considered a mental illness, where being gay could mean being fired from your job, denied housing, or subjected to blackmail, I find it offensive that people have reacted in such a negative way. Does this mean that white people should not be at BLM rallies? That ONLY gay people can participate at Pride events? We did not get to where we are today in terms of marriage equality, job security,etc without the support of the straight community. So when a composer writes a piece of music as his reaction and horror to a senseless shooting spree where 49 innocent people lost their lives, it shouldn’t matter that he wasn’t a part of the community that was affected.
Pii
you are absolutely right in your response Brewster69. well said.
pvkalso
What if that straight man is a supporter of gay rights? The homophobic people who objected should be ashamed of themselves. I’m gay and live in a very small town, and have been supported here by many straight people. I thank God every day for their support. Too bad the Orlando Philharmonic doesn’t know how to follow their lead.