[Dixielandjazz] Giving it away! NYTimes 10-26-2013 Mike Vax and Ed Middleswart respond

[Norman Vickers]

To:  Musicians & jazzfans, DJML and Pensacola Mencken list

From:  Norman Vickers

 

This resonated with Mike Vax, professional trumpeter/bandleader/jazz
educator from Prescott, AZ ( when not traveling)

 

Ed Middleswart, consulting engineer of Pensacola responds.  But his point of
view was from that of amateur artist ( amo, amas= love) rather than
professional.  All of us will admit that's different.

 

 

I've collated responses for your convenience.  Thanks, both.

 

From: vaxtrpts at aol.com [mailto:vaxtrpts at aol.com] 
Sent: Sunday, October 27, 2013 3:07 PM
To: nvickers1 at cox.net
Subject: Re: Giving it away! NYTimes 10-26-2013

 

I LOVE this essay!!!
It is exactly what I have been preaching for nearly 50 years.
Where I live in North Central Arizona is one of the WORST places I have ever
seen for this mentality.  Everyone wants you to give away your music (art)
for "such and such a good cause."  And the problem with living in an area of
many retired people is that there are many retired musicians who will play
for free or practically nothing, and then brag about how many "jobs" they
are doing.  
I may have mentioned this before, but our City Fathers do not help the
situation.  From June through early September they have FIVE nights a week
of free entertainment in our city center.  They have created a whole cadre
of people who don't buy tickets to music events because they can get it for
"free" downtown.  They put on a Bluegrass Festival and a Christmastime
evening event where 5000 people crowd into downtown because it is FREE!  And
- they are proud of the fact that NONE of the musicians get paid.  There are
around 100 musicians who perform in all the downtown businesses and "donate"
their time.  Now right in front of every band, there is a tip jar.  NONE of
that money goes to the musicians.  It all goes to a local foundation who can
then look really great by donating that money to education.  But it is done
ON THE BACKS OF THE MUSICIANS!!
As part of the summer series, there is a "jazz" night every Tuesday evening.
I put "jazz" in quotation marks because in the last couple of years some of
that music is VERY "iffy............"  Why?  Because the City Fathers, in
their infinite wisdom decided that even though they had paid the musicians
for about 20 years, they would just stop doing that.  It was basically
presented by a new city employee who was trying to look good by saving
money, I think.  Well, when that happened, many of us said "no" to the
invitations of that employee to play for free and put out a tip jar.  A tip
jar at a city sponsored event????  Shouldn't that be a bit embarrassing to
both the city and the musicians?
And then there is the local restauranteur, who is basically a good guy and
loves jazz, who decided that he would pay his friends to play these Tuesday
night concerts, but not "spread the wealth" to other musicians.  And this
person even had the gaul to tell me that I wasn't "dedicated enough" to
supporting the local arts scene because I spoke out against what was
happening with the Tuesday Night Jazz Series.  (So let's see - putting on a
jazz festival for 13 years, playing free concerts for over 3000 students in
schools in the past three years, and many more such things - mean that I am
not a good guy for not playing for free on Tuesday nights???  Whew!)
Well, I could on on even more, but I think you get my "drift."

 

 

Mike Vax
Friends of Big Band Jazz, Prescott Jazz Summit, 
Stan Kenton Alumni Band
www.mikevax.net
www.bigbandjazz.net
www.prescottjazz.com
www.getzen.com

 

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Ed Middleswart wrote:

 

Norman.... 

To me art has always meant something one does first out of a love or joy of
uniting with a form of expression.  A writer creates a poem or the words of
a song or a painter his painting first out of a love for the medium and the
desire to share this with others. 

 

This is obviously not the same as hauling brick or drilling teeth. 

 

So I don't think it is reasonable to equate art with work and thus the
writer's comments (and yours re musicians playing for free) miss the boat.
But I agree that when art morphs to a way of making money the love offering
bit might get old fast and seem unreasonable.  Ed

 

ps.. I have heard some damn good street musicians playing without any
donation boxes or buckets and seemingly doing it joyfully. 

 

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