Art music and the economy: the modernity index and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, 1895 to 2013

Abstract

This article views the production and performance of new art music as a public good that benefits society by infusing vitality into contemporary culture. This article presents a new modernity index (MI), a consistent index for assessing the degree to which a season of music programmes can be considered 'contemporary'. The article also presents a case study of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO), for the period 1895 to 2013. Analysis of the MI reveals trends over time, clearly showing a reduction in modernity as time goes on. This article discusses how the data based on the MI may be used by artistic organisations to transition its historic product (repertoire) into a more modern and socially relevant product. The study suggests that further research should examine increasing reliance on a private good model for financing art music that may lead to underproduction of contemporary art music.

Creating Pedagogy to Integrate Sustainability and the Arts

“…Lastly, we have maintained that the flourishing of art that reflects our current culture is an imperative as opposed to an excessive focus on historical art expressed by what is considered "canonical" in the various fields within art (Bertaux et al, 2015). Art is for everyone, from the novice to the dedicated artist, and people only need to be exposed to art for artistic experiences to commence.…”

“…The second direction to highlight in this pedagogical integration is in emphasizing the inclusion of contemporary artistic works, as is the case with both examples given above. Note that this definition of "contemporary" is flexible as it may vary within artistic disciplines and, indeed, with the sustainability issue to be considered within a course (Bertaux et al, 2015). Some issues, for instance, are more recently manifested while others may have been quite long-lasting.…”

“…The theory presented in this article addresses the key roles of complexity (Bertaux & Skeirik, 2018), modernity (Bertaux, Skeirik, & Yi, 2015), and equity/justice (Francis, 2015) in designing an effective arts/sustainability pedagogy for any educational context. We argue that such a pedagogy should, whenever possible, utilize greater degrees of artistic sophistication to address the high level of complexity inherent in sustainability, engage today's art for today's sustainability challenges, and incorporate a focus on equity and justice in recognition of the disproportionate impact of environmental concerns on those at the bottom of the pyramid.…”

Toward a Theory of the Arts and Sustainability

“…The Classical Arts tend to be mostly of historic interest, and are primarily shared with the public through subsidized venues such as libraries, art galleries, classical music series, etc. The Serious Contemporary Arts occupy a region the public is much less aware of; for the most part, this art is complex, intended to be highly engaging, and created mostly during our lifetimes, often using contemporary or avant-garde techniques (Bertaux, Skeirik, & Yi, 2015). Of special interest in this article will be the region of lowest complexity, Commercial and Popular Arts, which is omnipresent in modern culture and yet yields relatively lower engagement for the audience.…”

“…Finally, Serious Contemporary Art is intellectually involved contemporary art with many inter-related elements. Contemporary in this context is interpreted as being within an artist's lifetime (Bertaux et al, 2015), although works of a simpler nature, such as renditions of the Star Wars theme by a pops orchestra, are not included. The Serious Contemporary region occasionally exhibits popular and commercial interests, however, such as the modal pulse music of Steve Reich (b.…”