Political Spectacle: El Sistema Seminarios, policy and decision-making.

On our first week in Venezuela, and among the excitement of finally being here as Abreu Fellows, I have also had time and inspiration to reflect on ideas I've had for a couple of weeks now. Political spectacle is a subject I have thought –and blogged– about before, in relation to El Sistema and arts policy in general.

Last week, our last in Boston, we had a lecture by Ricardo Hausmann, Director of the Center for International Development at Harvard University, and former Minister of Planning of Venezuela (1992-1993). One of his anecdotes that day reminded me of the political spectacle phenomenon in relation to El Sistema: Dr. Hausmann had to deal with big budget cuts in the Venezuelan government, after the Gulf War set the prices of oil on a downward spiral. Part of his task was to meet with each of the high government officials to ask for recommendations on where to make cuts in their ministries' budgets. When it was the time to speak with Dr. Jose Antonio Abreu, he called Hausmann at the last minute to cancel the budget-cut meeting due to an emergency at his office, but he sent him tickets to a concert that evening. In Dr. Hausmann's own words to us, after the concert he just didn't have the heart to make any cuts in Abreu's budget.

This story sounded familiar to me.  For instance, I had been always curious on the purposes and effects of the El Sistema "seminarios" (intensive camps), specifically the ones I helped organize as a host in Guatemala, in the late 1990s. Besides from empowering young musicians and raising the bar of an otherwise stale ensemble, these seminarios also had a huge impact on some of our policy makers and powerbrokers in the audience. Government officials, sponsors, and even parents immediately realized that their commitment to this cause was essential to the cause, and potentially favorable to their own interests.

People usually argue that playing that card –the political spectacle card– leads to compromising the educational and social benefits of a program.  If you present the final product of an intensive seminar it looks and sounds impressive, but skeptics say that this is an incomplete educational process that disfigures traditional music pedagogy.  Moreover, they argue, there is no immediate way to prove that the seminario will lead to the promised social/human development outcomes.

On the other hand, Murray J. Edelman (Symbolic Uses of Politics) argues that in creating policy, instrumental evidence (assessments, surveys, scholarly research) don't matter much.  Rather, what's important to policy makers is to give the appearance that they have done something.  Edelman calls this symbolic policy.  He argues that the people, the spectators, consume symbols that have an emotional value (anxiety over problems, reassurance, patriotism or even revange).  In his 1988 book Constructing the Political Spectacle, Edelman argues that the constant use of symbolic policy is the main reason why it is impossible to trace the the outcomes and consequences of political decisions and policy-making.  Come think about it, most policy, as Edelman argues, comes as a result of power brokering and negotiation.

In other words, it seems like decision-making could depend more on touching someone's heart (the policy makers themselves, or the spectators they serve) than in presenting hard evidence of beneficial outcomes.  As El Sistema has demonstrated here in Venezuela and in other countries, support ultimately comes from institutions ran by human beings.  Political spectacle is a powerful tool of El Sistema, one that has to be carefully designed.  A balance has to be kept not to fall into good 'ol cheap political circus (as many have had), nor to turn it into the usual un-accessible (elitist) classical music program.

"Austria came to learn closely about the national orchestra system"

Published by the Bolivarian News Agency (ABN)

Caracas, Feb 12th. ABN.- In order to strenghten the existing cultural links between Austria and Venezuela, and to get to learn in detail the teaching methods of the Venezuelan National System of Youth and Children's Orchestras and Choirs, and group of Vienese personalities headed by Austria's Minister of Education, Arts and Culture, professor Claudia Schmied.

(read the whole article, in Spanish)

Austria vino a conocer de cerca al Sistema Nacional de Orquesta

Caracas, 12 Feb. ABN.- Para estrechar los vínculos culturales ya existentes entre Austria y Venezuela y conocer de cerca los métodos de enseñanza musicales del Sistema Nacional de Orquestas y Coros Juveniles e Infantiles de Venezuela, llegaron a Caracas varias personalidades vienesas, encabezadas por la ministra de Educación, Arte y Cultura de Austria, profesora Claudia Schmied.

Ver el artículo completo

What's an El Sistema núcleo? Let's start at the very begining/¿Qué es un núcleo en El Sistema? Empecemos por el principio.

I already realized that, like many things in El Sistema, there are many different faces and perspectives to look at it. So this title itself may be seen in many ways. There are many ways to see "the very beginning." But I'll start with the meaning of the word. Not only the obvious Spanish and Latin origin of the word (Here it is: Núcleo [NOO-cleh-oh], spanish for Nucleus: "From Latin, literally 'kernel, inner part,' diminutive of nux, nuc- 'nut'", Webster Dictionary), but its different meanings in other disciplines and try to reflect on that. The word itself, according to the Webster Dictionary, means: "Nucleus: The central and most important part of an object, movement or group, forming the basis for its activity or growth" Webster goes on to define its meaning in "Physics the positively charged central core of an atom, containing most of its mass." I could go into cute metaphors, but I'd rather concentrate on the definition in "Biology a dense organelle present in most eukaryotic cells, typically a single rounded structure bounded by a double membrane, containing the genetic material." Two ideas in these definitions I find fascinating. First, the idea that the núcleo is the center of a movement. Second, the idea that it contains DNA, genetic material. Looking a bit more into biology, it is interesting to see that not only it contains that genetic material, but it also replicates it (with occasional mutations). This replication happens within the núcleo... I mean, the nucleus. Not in the brain or in other larger "central" organ. Thinking back of an El Sistema núcleo and its "genetic material" –the ethos and principles that we have been exploring and discussing about at the Abreu Fellowship program–, I view the role of the núcleos as essential in keeping this movement rooted in communities (the "cells") and its own mutations responding to their needs, to a big extent. But also, my guess is that if the DNA (genetic material) in a cell varies TOO much, to the point that it has nothing similar to the rest of the cells around it, it becomes something else. Or, translated into El Sistema movement, if a núcleo changes its ethos and principles TOO much to adapt to very particular circumstances of the community, it risks becoming something completely different, separating itself from the El Sistema global movement (nothing wrong or condemning about that, but if you don't share ethos and principles, why call yourself "El Sistema-inspired"?) Now what is the El Sistema core DNA? What are the ethos and/or principles like?

Ya me dí cuenta que, como muchas cosas en El Sistema, hay muchas formas de ver sus diferentes frentes y perspectivas. Así que este título en sí mismo puede ser visto de distintas formas. Hay muchas formas de "empezar por el principio". Pero voy a empezar por el significado de la palabra. No sólo el origen en latín (Según el diccionario Webster en inglés: "(...) literalmente semilla, parte interna, diminutivo de nux, nuc-(...)") sino tambien sus diferentes significados en otras disciplinas y luego voy a tratar de reflexionar un poco sobre esto. La palabra misma, deacuerdo con el diccionario Webster en inglés, significa: "Nucleus: La parte central y más importante de un objeto, movimiento o grupo, formando la base para su actividad o crecimiento". Más especificamente, para el diccionario de la Real Academia Española, significa: "Fís. Parte central del átomo, que contiene la mayor porción de su masa, constituida por protones y neutrones, y que posee una carga eléctrica positiva que se corresponde con su número atómico." Podría entrar en metáforas bonitas, pero prefiero concentrarme en esta definición del diccionario Webster en inglés: "Biología un organelo denso presente en la mayoría de células eucarióticas, típicamente una estructura simple y redonda, contenida por una doble membrana, conteniendo el material genético". Dos ideas en estas definiciones me parecen fascinantes. La primera, la idea que un núcleo es el centro de un movimiento. Segundo, la idea que contiene el DNA, el material genético. Siguiendo con la línea de la biología, es interesante notar, que el núcleo no sólo contiene el material genético, sino que tambien lo replica (con ocasionales mutaciones). Esta replicación ocurre dentro del núcleo. No ocurre en el cerebro, o en otro órgano mayor o "central". Regresando a pensar en los núcleos de El Sistema y su "material genético" –el Ethos y principios que ya hemos estado explorando y discutiendo en el programa Abreu Fellows–, veo que el papel que juegan los núcleos es esencial en mantener el movimiento enraizado en las comunidades (o las "células") y sus propias mutaciones respondiendo a sus necesidades, hasta cierto punto. Pero también, me imagino que si el ADN (material genético) en una célula varía MUCHO, al punto que ya no tiene nada similar a las otras células, entonces se convierte en otra cosa. O, traducido al movimiento de El Sistema, si un núcleo cambia MUCHO su ethos y sus principios para adaptarse a circunstancias muy particulares, corre el riesgo de convertirse en otra cosa, separándose así del movimiento global de El Sistema (nada malo o condenable si eso pasara, pero si no se comparten el ethos y los principios, para qué llamarse parte de El Sistema?) Ahora, ¿cuál es el ADN de El Sistema? ¿Cómo son su ethos y principios?

What is an El Sistema Núcleo? / ¿Qué es un núcleo en El Sistema?

Several answers to the question have come up during the length of the Abreu Fellowship Program, and I have had some ideas of what a núcleo is, and what it is not, from my experiences in Guatemala. I want to start a series of blog entries with several ideas about the núcleo concept as we go along the program, but also during and after our visit to Venezuela next February. But I don't want to describe how a núcleo looks like. We all have come to a consensus that there isn't (or there shouldn't be) a unique model for a núcleo. All núcleos look different. But there has to be something beyond –other than their leaders saying "This is an El Sistema núcleo"– that all have in common. I want to get philosophical and explore the non-tangible elements that may make up a núcleo. I expect my ideas to be changing in the next months, so expect contradictions in my postings. All your input and ideas will definitely have an effect in it. First, a preview: José Antonio Abreu has called the orchestras the soul of the community. I am very interested in exploring the idea of the núcleo as an intangible element of a broad community, beyond the orchestra or the choir (or the facilities where they rehearse). More on that later.

Ya han surgido varias respuestas a la pregunta, a lo largo del programa del Abreu Fellowship, y yo ya he tenido varias ideas, por mi propia experiencia en Guatemala, de lo qué es, y lo que no es, un núcleo. Quiero iniciar una serie de entradas en este blog sobre el concepto del núcleo a lo largo del programa, y especialmente durante y después de nuestra visita a Venezuela en febrero. Pero no quiero describir como se vé un núcleo. Ya hemos llegado al consenso de que no hay ( o no debería haber) un modelo único para los núcleos. Todos se ven diferentes. Pero hay algo más detrás de ellos que es común, más allá de que sus líderes digan "este es un núcleo". Espero que mis ideas vayan cambiando en los próximos meses así que esperen contradicciones en mis entradas del blog. Todos sus comentarios y opiniones tendrán en efecto en estos cambios. Para iniciar, una primera idea: José Antonio Abreu ha llamado a las orquestas del Sistema "el alma de la comunidad". Estoy interesado en explorar la idea del núcleo como un elemento intangible de una comunidad más amplia, más allá de la orquesta o el coro (o las instalaciones donde ensayan)

Be the artist. (and yes, be the Athlete too, why not?)

This Sunday November 1st the 40th NYC Marathon took place under great weather. I ran that Marathon two years ago, after volunteering in my running club’s water station in mile 24 the previous year. I was very inspired by seeing those thousands of runners (over 38,607 finishers in 2007). This Sunday I volunteered once again, this time I got there early enough to help in the preparation: a team of about 60 volunteers from my running club setting up tables with thousands of paper cups with water and Gatorade. And to think that 40 years ago Fred Lebow co-founded this marathon which only 55 runners finished the first time. His enthusiasm and drive were essential in making the running movement in New York grow and turn those 55 runners in 1970 to the estimated 43,475 that finished the marathon on Sunday. I was fired up (to quote my friend and Abreu Fellow Stan, quoting Obama, quoting someone else) thinking this is what Dr. José Antonio Abreu has been doing for almost the same time in Venezuela and Latin America, and now at a global scale!

A couple of weeks ago, Ben Cameron, Program Director for the Arts at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation visited us and made a presentation about the state of the economy of the arts in the U.S. He talked about how JFK made a policy that Cameron summarized as “see the artist, become the athlete”. This statement helps to understand why there are about 45,000 runners finishing the marathon, another few thousand volunteers, and literally millions of spectators following the race. The challenge for El Sistema USA and the Abreu fellows is to start a new “become the artist” movement, and to amend this JFK-era policy (looking back at it...a crazy idea, coming from a President who loved the arts, as Cameron reminded us). Be the artists. Be part of the movement, it’s good for you, for your body and soul, and it’s good for your community.

In my Arts Administration degree essay about the internationalization of El Sistema, I made a couple of arguments about the current trends in U.S. orchestras missions and the concept of participation in the arts, according to a couple of research institutions. I found (and I might have been a tiny bit cynical, I confess) that orchestras' missions could be summarized as saying "Orchestras exist so that orchestras can exist" (Trying to paraphrase: "XYZ Orchestra's mission is to maintain, promote, preserve, foster the interest, enjoyment, of music making…” and then there’s something about outreach and education) (Yes, I’m being very cynical…sorry, I’m just trying to make my point clear). The other argument is that many of these organizations consider participation as sitting in a concert passively. In few cases “participation” has been seen as actually putting instruments in the hands of people, especially children.

Cameron argues that orchestras mission is to be the conduit for communities to access symphonic music (and that that may not be by presenting concerts!).  After watching the enthusiasm and pageantry, but also the dedication and sacrifice of thousands of people at the marathon, paired with the history of El Sistema in Venezuela and Latin America, I have no doubt that I am standing in the right place at the right moment. It's time for all orchestras, professional, community-based or youth to help everyone become the artists.  Change is in my hands!! Come join us!!!