Staff Blog: The Best of Times

The new director of the National Endowment for the Arts, Rocco Landesman, was in the Twin Cities this week and he met with many arts leaders, observed artists at work, and met with a pivotally important legislator and advocate for the arts, Representative Betty McCollum.

One of the unspoken reasons for the visit is the unparalleled tax support now available to artists and arts organizations in Minnesota

due to the constitutional amendment that created the Heritage (or Legacy) Fund.

This landmark legislation was passed in November 2008 in a general election that will support the arts and natural resources to the tune of approximately $45 million each year for the next 25 years. Junior Composers has recently received generous support for its programs from this fund through the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council.

The result for young composers in Minnesota and around the country is that Junior Composers is able to provide enriched experiences during our summer camps by sponsoring guest artists, professional readings of student works, and (among many other things) this website. 

In the coming days, you will find an online music theory assessment that you can take for free because Minnesota's voters stepped up in November 2008 and established an arts heritage fund that now supports this expansion of our website.

On September 25, the Workshop: New Symphonies will launch and provide 16 young composers the experience of learning how to compose for orchestra. This program is also supported (through the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council) by the cultural heritage fund.

So -- are we living in the best of times? 

The opportunity is there for the taking...IF you act. The arts are as close as your computer keyboard. Take a look around this website. You don't need to live in Minnesota to have the arts enliven your life. You can get involved with Junior Composers or any of the hundreds of thousands of arts activities taking place in this country. The arts aren't so much a door as a window. Flights of imagination start at that window sill. Are you willing to spread your wings and ask the question:

What's next?