ARTS

Wagner in Israel?: Israeli Jews who survived the Holocaust are protesting plans by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra to drop a 50-year ban on music by Richard Wagner, who was admired by Adolf Hitler because of the controversial composer’s critical writings about Jews. A Philharmonic spokeswoman said Sunday that the orchestra’s musicians voted Friday to play works by the 19th-Century German composer at a Dec. 27 concert to be conducted by Daniel Barenboim in Tel Aviv. Israeli Parliament Speaker Dov Shilansky has appealed to the orchestra to change its plans. A Tel Aviv news conference on the matter is scheduled for today.