The Coming Storm

More fabulous news on the Arts front – from the daily updates from organizations around the U.S. that suddenly they’re looking at multi-million dollar deficits due to the worsening economy (muchas gracias, Señor Bush!) to the wonderful news that even the government of that bastion of Liberalism – Australia – has lost it’s collective mind.  One wonders if you should start building the bomb shelter.

The article  that really worries me is this one about ANAM – a training system unique to Australia that functions somewhat like a scholastic New World Symphony.  Leave it to the Aussies to have developed a system like this to nurture their young musicians.  There are many things to be envied about ANAM, but the one that should stick in the mind of Americans is that this program is government funded.  To say that it would be an anachronism to have something like that happen in this country would be an understatement of near biblical proportions.  And you can’t blame Bush for this one.  You’ve got to blame Reagan.

I had a hilarious moment a few weeks ago in a BS session @ the ESO.  It came out that there is, for all intents and purposes, not a single orchestra in the USA that gets anything resembling major funding from a government agency, be it local, regional, or Federal.  The looks of shock on the faces of my Canadian colleagues was something to behold.  This is exactly what worries me.  The Empire – and by this I mean those places where the Sun Never Sets on the whole Rule Brittania thang – is about to undergo a transition.

Think back to the 1970s if you dare.  Disco, Oil at some ridiculous price, Blaxploitation movies, La Choy makes Chinese food … taste American!  And, of course, the NEA.  Grants to artists, interest in local Arts organizations, Arts funding through government councils, etc.  Then Reagan, Helms, and the rest of them got into office with the “Just look at those stupid, silly Artists making their Godless Art!  Why are we wasting money on them?  Those poor Rich people are suffering so much that they need a tax cut” ideology and…. voilá!….. Arts funding in this country took a nose dive.  Ironically, in trying to “wrest Art from it’s elitist ideals” the Reagan revolution firmly ensconced the artist into the back pocket of the rich and famous.  It’s the rich, after all, who have disposable income.  The average Joe (non-plumber) no longer had a stake in the Artist’s life because none of their tax dollars went in that direction.  So a vicious cycle was born.

This is exactly what is about to happen in the Empire, mainly Canada and Australia.  These vicious, short-sighted “conservative” governments have come into power.  The contempt with which they approach the Arts is palpable and they make no attempt to hide it.  Meanwhile Art institutions across both countries are blithely pretending that their funding will not remain constant, no, some actually budget for an increase! Anyone with at least one foot in reality should be able to project out 5 years, and what happens when suddenly that $1.5 million you’re getting from the city, province, & Feds becomes around 1/2 a million?  Amongst the orchestras there will be quite enough blame to go around – musicians, staff, and board alike.  The inability to change, after all, is one of the chief paradigms of Classical Music.

But the warning signs are clear.  Orchestras especially should be preparing for the coming storm.  Despite the global recession they should at the very least be trying to raise endowments and talk up corporate donors.  They should try everything they can to expand the scope and reach of the Board of Directors.  And, most importantly, the musicians should realize that if the orchestra goes down the tubes then perhaps that wouldn’t be so good for their fiscal future.  Us vs. Them doesn’t work so well when the whole damn boat is heading straight to the bottom.