Artists need support from the communities they nourish so that they can flourish

Summerland jazz musician Larry Crawford at a recent community centre concert event

A guest blog by Susan Norie
Another in our “Little Town of Summerland” series

Following a discussion covering the topic of Aging in the Arts at the Ryga Arts Festival (see Ken’s earlier blog) a broad spectrum of issues was covered at that discussion. Lots of different experiences, yet so many similar issues!

Most attendees were performers, primarily actors. Ken and I represented a smaller quotient of musicians, so my writing here looks through that lens.

Before I say more, as a quick introduction, I’m retired from health care and currently split much of my time between activities with my husband, playing music, and being involved as a Director at the Summerland Community Centre.

And so, how do I support the arts? I’m a saxophonist in the Penticton Concert Band and in the Thursday Night Jazz Band. I have seldom personally earned any money for the performances I’ve been involved in, and most of the performances are fundraisers. Actually, being in the bands costs me membership money, so I literally pay to play. But I and many others do it because it’s a passion! The same applies to my volunteer work at the Centre, where I book and coordinate music and some other events.

I think I can safely say that I’d be preaching to the converted by reiterating that artists of all kinds contribute in a major way to our culture at all levels. For without the arts, what would our culture be, and what would our communities be like to live in? Pretty darned dull, I’d say. Kind of like lacking part of your soul, or having no heartbeat! Yet we’ve all heard of, or perhaps experienced being the proverbial starving artist. A fortunate few make it big-time – the Brubecks, Batemans, and Baldwins of the world. Others with near equal talent may never make it out of our own communities.

Artists need support from the communities they nourish so that they can flourish.

I have had the honour and privilege of playing with accomplished professionals. Several of my very respected elders have experienced that with increasing age, the inverse is true for the number of gigs they are asked to do. This is according to my elder musician friends’ lived experiences. Also, despite their many years of experience, they are also facing personal complicating factors, like vision and hearing problems. And let me not forget: memory.

Another thing is that it’s harder for us older folks to keep up to current music. In part, I think it’s because we often simply feel comfortable with what we might call “our music.” Research has shown that most people find that their own favourite music harks back to a period from about puberty until mid-twenties. After that point, life usually tends to get more complicated. As a consequence, the ability to keep up with new music generally begins to trail off.

If you’re a career musician, you must keep up to keep going! Or perhaps a change of career comes out of life’s sheer necessities? (I’ve seen that happen.) Musical tastes do tend to become somewhat ingrained. My very capable friends in their 70’s and 80’s find it very difficult to impossible to fit into playing newer genres. Like, what the heck is rap music, anyways?!? So consider, too, that styles and repertoire change over time, and audience taste determines the response to the type of music on offer.

Being a Director at the Summerland Community Centre, an allied topic that I had brought up at the discussion, was the importance of the venues that support the arts. Not only do people in the arts age, so do the buildings that support them! Like ours, I think most buildings that support the arts, unless owned by the local government, are run by nonprofits and volunteers.

Our Community Centre building is almost 50 years old; it is 100% owned by its membership, and 100% volunteer run. It’s tough to be on a board and know that you need to raise a lot of money for a new roof, or heating system, or just a paint job. The dollars are difficult to come by and are hard earned. And coming full circle, if our buildings aren’t kept up, then it becomes more difficult to be able to support the arts.

Grants – an imperative for many of the arts – are a bit of a conundrum for our venue. I have searched for grant opportunities, but they are difficult to come by for a community centre. I believe that unlike our building, most community centres are probably supported by their local governments. It’s actually much easier to qualify for a grant, for example, if you cater specifically to the arts, to seniors, to those with disabilities, or to First Nations. Not only that, it’s a bit of an art in itself to apply for a grant, and it takes a lot of time and effort to do so.

Unfortunately, our Community Centre rather falls between the cracks as regards grants. In order to function and serve our community, we have needed volunteers who are passionate and dedicated. The ones we have currently do an amazing amount of work to keep the Centre going. The worry is volunteer burnout, and succession.

Like myself, the entire Board is passionate about our Centre. Our mission reads: “To promote the happiness and well-being of residents in the Municipality of Summerland and area by having access to safe, affordable recreational activities.” We fervently wish for our Centre to be a cultural centre in our community, a place where people feel at home and can come to have fun, share with others, and enjoy the best of what our community can offer. I hope that our artistic community can continue to work with us and help us carry out this mission.

If you or anyone you know are interesting in helping me grow this work please reach out to me via Ken’s contact page.

~ Susan Norie