For too long, Western institutions, particularly in the classical music world, have hidden behind the notion that “art is above politics.” But art is never above politics when it is used as a tool of nationalism, repression, or propaganda. Valery Gergiev has been a willing participant in that machinery.

What began as a murmur of discontent towards Vice President J.D. Vance, swiftly crescendoed into a full-throated wall of Booing.

El Sistema’s entanglement with political agendas has only deepened the erosion of its founding values. What began as a movement of hope...