I am Polish and therefore find Mazowsze more appealing than African drums; that seems natural.So – Starowieyski is a fan of Mazowsze, well, well. No need to read another line of him, then. (Would I want to find out that he likes Czerwone Gitary, too?)
More interesting is the mention of African drums: the subject of the salvo is thereby identified for us as a color-line racism, a most curious thing in Poland, a nation which has no Africans, and no contacts with Africa. Like my friends’ neighbor, Starowieyski therefore objects to... Africans in Paris (and Turks in Berlin). How very, very odd.
More interesting yet, Starowieyski mentions African drums but not -- Javanese Mahabharata ballet; nor Lady Murasaki; nor Chinese porcelain nor painting; nor the 400 Tang poems; nor Mamluk lusterware; nor Iznik tiles; nor Aruna Sairam; and why? The answer, i am afraid is -- the simple reason that he has not heard of any of them.
In other words, Starowieyski, pronouncing for us liberally on culture, is, I am sorry to say, in the modern globalized world -- an ignoramus. He literally has no idea what he is talking about: many Europeans fall in love with these things at first sight; and for those who do, it is hard to imagine anything more natural than that.
But Starowieyski simply does not know it.
I am not really surprised.
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