Going on the road

Singing the praises of UA’s Music75 initiative

If you’re looking for someone with “Arkansas ties,” look to the students and faculty in the music department of the University of Arkansas.

No, not for athletic director or coach. Sheesh, peopl e , there’s more to Arkansas than football.

What caught our eye the other day was the inspired initiative, called Music75, through which student musicians and faculty at UA in Fayetteville plan to perform recitals in all 75 counties in the state.

That may not sound like a big deal in Little Rock or Fayetteville, but in many of Arkansas’ more rural counties, it’s hard to find examples local residents can look to when it comes to the arts. By no means are we saying it’s Bumpkin City in all but a few places. But having skilled musicians coming into a community to perform is a treat, and some cities and schools just don’t get enough of classical, jazz or similar performances.

The first visits started back in February and 20 counties have been visited so far. The effort is the brainchild of Alan Gosman, associate chair of the music department, inspired by a meeting he had with UA Chancellor Joseph Steinmetz.

“One of the things we talked about was, we’re in the corner of the state. We want to have an impact, a good impact, throughout the state,” Gosman said.

We suspect the reaction in many places will mirror a comment from an educator in one of the earlier visits: “No one ever comes here,” a band director told one of the performers.

But students everywhere deserve a little inspiration, don’t they?

Educators across the nation are giddy about focused attention of resources on STEM education (science, technology, engineering and math), and there is little to dispute the need for such focus. Unfortunately, limited funding or time can mean attention in one area steals away resources from others. As important as STEM education is, it’s vital our education system support the development of students’ talents in areas that lift the spirit, too. Music, theater arts, literature and the like still matter, even if the current rage is to focus on needs perhaps more closely identified with corporate needs.

“You never know what student this is going to inspire,” said Julia Reynolds, executive secretary of the Arkansas School Band and Orchestra Association.

And education is as much about inspiration as it is about knowledge.

Students need to know that music isn’t limited to a subject they study in school then set aside when they graduate into the “real world.” That real world, after all, would be exceptionally boring if it wasn’t for music and other creative arts. And the arts certainly have an economic component in our communities — just think about the Walton Arts Center, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, the Arkansas Music Pavilion, TheatreSquared and the many performing groups the region’s is fortunate to have.

We commend the University of Arkansas music department, its faculty and, most of all, its students for their willingness to spread the message that music and music education matters. One never knows when the next Levon Helm, Glen Campbell, Kris Allen, Charlie Rich or Louis Jordan will recognize that there is opportunity in some God-given musical talent?