Sunday, May 27, 2007

All I Know is What I Read in the Paper

Musical America reports that the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is planning to eliminate music and art reviewers from its staff.

When classical music reviews and art reviews stop appearing in the newspaper (any newspaper), the people in the potential audience for music and for art will think that these forms of entertainment and cultural stimulation either longer exist in their communities, or are not worth bothering with. If music and art reviews are written by writers who do not know what they are talking about, the newspaper is doing almost as much damage to the overall state of the arts.

Please read this eloquent statement at Dial M for Musicology by Jonathan Bellman. I certainly hope that someone on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution board understands the extent of the damage that can be done to the musical life of a community by eliminating positions that report on the arts. I also hope that the decision-makers on the board might realize the large amount that they contribute to their community simply by reporting intelligently on what goes on in the arts.

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