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March 29, 2007

Music for All National Festival

It was very gratifying to see Music for All umbrellaing a national festival celebrating the best of music making by some of the finest students across the country. All the ensembles were unbelievable in their caliber. It was also the first time since our merger that the spirit underlying the premise of the merger really took on meaning.

One of the stunning moments for me personally was to watch the national honor orchestra from our Orchestra America program. This 80+ member orchestra was arguably the finest high school orchestra ever assembled.

See for yourself:

Congratulations to ALL of the ensembles that were participating and the more than 2000 young men and women who embodied the spirit of "Music for All." A special tip of the hat to the great Music for All staff for creating and managing such a world class event with such elegance, grace and commitment to the cause of Music for All!

Posted by musicforall at 12:41 PM | Comments (0)

March 22, 2007

Don't Be Silent!

This has been a very busy two months. I have had the distinct pleasure of traveling around the country from coast to coast, visiting with educators and parents, politicians, and policy makers – Senators and Governors, education leaders of all stripes, students and a few activist musicians along the way.

Two events during my recent travels have had an impact on my thinking. I recently had the honor to present the Keynote Address at the largest single gathering of music educators in the world, the 2007 Texas Music Educators Association Convention. This was followed shortly by my participation at the 2007 Arts Advocacy Day in Washington D.C. where I witnessed something remarkable.

In Texas, Sir Ken Robinson and I created a two-session double-header tag-team (I am running out of hyphenated metaphors) focusing on creativity and the change to our global economy and the connection to music and arts education every day in our classrooms. At the end of Sir Ken’s session we had the opportunity to hear the Texas Commissioner of Education, Dr. Shirley J. Neeley, speak about her vision for education in Texas as well as the challenges and opportunities for music and arts educators to advance the arts in our schools. She herself is an arts education advocate. She went on about the challenges of standardized testing but maintained a steadfast commitment to ensuring the state requirements would be enforced – requirements that include instruction in music and all of the arts.

She ended her remarks with this on emphatic, repeated statement:

Don’t Be Silent

Don’t Be Silent

Don’t Be Silent!

She knows what sometimes many of us forget: Out of Sight – Out of Mind. Or to modify this appropriately: Out of Hearing – Out of Mind.

The second event I participated in had a profound impact on me. It was at this year’s Arts Advocacy Day events in Washington D.C. Arts Advocacy is hosted each year by Americans for the Arts and sponsored by Music for All (along with 92 other national groups!) Each year hundreds of people converge on our nation’s capital to advocate for funding and policies impacting our cultural agencies and arts education.

To kick off Arts Advocacy Day a Congressional Arts Breakfast is organized to galvanize the “troops” gathered for the day’s activities tromping around Capital Hill for meetings with congressional leaders. This year’s breakfast featured a keynote address by none other than the great champion of music and arts education, Wynton Marsalis.

For twenty minutes, without a prepared text and no note cards, Wynton went on to deliver what I believe may become the most important speech in the last 100 years on the importance of music and art in our culture and the shaping of our democracy.

In a speech I have dubbed “Here Comes Homer,” Wynton applied the virtuosity usually reserved for his music to his words.

After leading the audience back and forth through an arch of history invoking the great artists Homer, Michaelangelo, August Wilson, William Butler Yates, Louis Armstrong and the caveman Wynton stated:

“Great art has the opportunity to speak across epics to the grandeur of a people. That is the value of the arts. Primarily as a tool of communication the arts are tools for survival.”

He then went on to say:

“We all are speaking in one language (the arts). And the value of knowing that language is that you gain the confidence that comes with understanding that you’re indeed a part of one long great progression. It is not about your race of people. It is not about your individual identity. It’s about the tremendous upward sweep in human consciousness that has been going steadily since we emerged on this planet.”

Wynton also discussed the arts’ role in shaping the civil rights movement, democracy, the Constitution as a cultural document, and made the case for the inclusion of the arts in the education of our young people. He then urged everyone to go forth to spread the word. I have brought together these two seemingly unrelated moments to help enlighten the importance of our work in advancing a free and civil society, in advancing our democracy, and the importance of raising our voice.

Shaping the World

Music and arts education plays an important role in shaping our culture, in shaping our country, in shaping our democracy and ultimately in shaping our world. Each interaction between a teacher and a student is an important part of what Wynton described as that “one long great progression” of humanity.

The work you do shapes the world we live in - making our efforts to ensure every child has the opportunity to be involved with music and the arts now more important than ever.

Advancing music and arts education at this moment in our history requires that everyone speak out. Everyone must be engaged. Everyone must add his or her voices to the chorus in every community, state and collectively across this nation.

I have repeated, in this space and elsewhere, that advocacy is not something that you do… it must be become a part of who you are. So, it is critical you look at your yearend activities and consider how advocacy may be imbedded in your work.

What Can You Do?

• Look for “Teachable Moments” - Include a list of “Did You Know” facts in your concert programs. Things like SAT scores, famous quotes, research outcomes, little tidbits that subtly, yet effectively, reinforce the importance of the work you do.

• Reach Out to Others - Ask a local business leader to be the Master of Ceremonies for your concert and provide him or her with talking points about the importance of music and any specific facts of interest regarding your own program. In Texas the compared the SAT scores of the all state honors groups with the averages for all Texas students and the nation. The All-state students were “off the charts.” What about your students? This could be a powerful fact to share with the community!

• Empower Your Parents – Make sure you turn the passion of your parent support groups into effective action. This is only accomplished through organization, preparation, and consistency of message. Be sure they are fully aware of what is happening in your school with the schedule, budget, or any other item that may help, or hurt, your program. To help you get the Community Action Kit just released by NAMM to help (more about this at musicforall.org).

• Do a Good Job, then tell someone - Write a year end press release for your local newspaper showcasing the achievements of your program. It is important that you share with everyone including your parents, administrators and the press the accomplishments of the program during the year.

• Be Seen - Schedule a small ensemble to appear at the year-end board meeting. Be sure you have representatives attending EVERY board meeting. Sometimes being seen, consistently throughout the year, can have a great influence on a school boards support of your program.

• Give Thanks! - Send a “Thank You” note to the school board and administrators. Have your parents do the same thing. Not only is this a nice gesture… but also it will help remind these key decision makers of the support your program has in a very positive, non-confrontational way.

• In trouble? CALL US! - We will connect you to people and resources that may help you in the face of challenges!

Regardless of what you choose to do just remember one thing: Don’t Be Silent.

Posted by musicforall at 4:25 PM | Comments (0)

March 12, 2007

The Secretary of Education Says....

On the eve of Arts Advocacy Day Secertary of Education Margaret Spellings released the following statement:

STATEMENT BY EDUCATION SECRETARY MARGARET SPELLINGS ON 2007 ARTS ADVOCACY DAY

U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today made the following statement on the celebration of 2007 Arts Advocacy Day:

I am pleased to join the many artists, administrators, arts educators, parents, and others in celebrating 2007 Arts Advocacy Day.

The No Child Left Behind Act recognizes the important role that arts have in our schools for a well-rounded education.

The arts are a unique tool to stimulate and enrich learning. Not only do the arts encourage our children’s imagination and creativity, but they can also teach lessons of history, math, and other subjects in a more memorable and profound way. The arts also, as President George W. Bush has said, “…allow us to explore new worlds and to view life from another perspective,” a critically important skill for today’s global economy.

Our education system is improving because of the concerns and involvement of so many who advocate for the arts. Leaders in states and local communities can and should ensure that the arts remain part of every student’s education.

What does this mean? Stay tuned to this blog for further commentary on what this really means!

Posted by musicforall at 10:13 PM | Comments (0)

March 9, 2007

When a Deal is Not a Deal - New Jersey Arts Funding Gets Personal

Many of you may know that I have been working closely with the New Jersey State Council on the Arts on several arts education projects not the least of which is the New Jersey Arts Education Census Project. I have a great deal of respect for the work of our Council and their commitment to arts education.

Funding for the Council, not unlike other states, has always been a delicate dance. Four years ago our Governor at the time (who now thumping his book) proposed eliminating all funding for the state arts council. This lead to a massive and well orchestrated advocacy effort. One of the results of this effort was the creation of a dedicated funding stream for the arts council that would provide a minimum funding level. When budgets got tight last year the Corzine Administration cut the funding for te council below what everyone thought was the funding floor.

This year’s budget failed to restore the funding for the cultural agencies. At the same time news report of our Governor's "gifts" to a former girlfriend have started to make headlines. The collision of these issues is represented in the cartoon below. The editorial from the Newark Star Ledger follows.

Don't betray arts groups

Thursday, March 08, 2007, Newark Star-Ledger

Once a deal was a deal -- even in Trenton. Apparently, not anymore. It's a lesson members of the state's cultural community are learning, and it's costing them plenty.

Under Gov. Jon Corzine's proposed budget, the state Council on the Arts, the Historical Commission and the Cultural Trust get a $2.3 million increase from last year, bringing the total appropriation to $25.6 million.
Not bad except it's short of what the groups were promised or even what a reasonable reading of the law setting up dedicated funding would produce.

Four years ago, Gov. James McGreevey, facing a tight budget, eliminated all funding for the arts and cultural organizations. The resulting uproar led to a compromise that eventually restored much of the money. The groups then agreed to work for passage of a 5 percent tax on hotel and motel room rates, with a portion of the revenue dedicated to the arts.

The law says that in the first year, the arts and historical groups would get $16 million and be guaranteed more in following years, with $27.24 million being the minimum. It's all pretty clear until you read down three more paragraphs. Sophisticated bill writers slipped in a provision that says the minimum is what the 2004 budget allocated -- just $16 million. So the law has two definitions of the minimum.

By the second standard, Corzine is actually being generous.

The arts groups argue they're being shortchanged $1.64 million, and they're right. Using two competing sections of the law to create confusion and, in the end, justify reneging on a promise isn't the way to conduct business. Neither is letting the groups campaign for the hotel tax and then not giving them what they expected.

The arts groups can be faulted for being too trusting -- some might even call it naive. Imagine, they actually believed politicians would honor their promises. The legislators need to show that trust was not misplaced.

I can assure you that ArtPRIDE New Jersey (our statewide arts advocacy organization - of which I am a board member) and the other members of the arts community are not naive. We are optimists and hold out hope that our Governor and the members of our legislature will do the right thing. If any of our elected leaders are unsure of their position... all I can say is remember the spring of 2003, it's an election year, and the field has a great memory.

Posted by musicforall at 8:50 AM | Comments (0)