Cleveland rocks?

[jmc_bks]

Does Cleveland count as Middle America?  Or is it too far east for that?  The city seemed a lot like Pittsburgh or Baltimore:  former industrial cities devasted by the loss of industry, struggling to change its economy to something else.  Why was I in the land of Drew Carey (a show I didn't watch)?  For an Arts-Education conference.  

The theme was "trAnsfoRmaTionS" -- the transformative power of the arts; the transformations that AIE groups have to go through to survive the disaster that is NCLB; etc.  The keynote speaker was Sir Ken Robinson and his speech on creativity and innovation rocked.  Part of his presentation was about how the American (and other developed nations') school system promotes conformity rather than creativity or innovation, since the point of public education was the creation of a standardized work force for industrializing nations.  Check out his presentation here.  I'm not sure about the source of the study, but he spoke about a genius measured by non-linear thinking studied longitudinally.  Tested at age 5, 98% of the children had creative genius; at age 10, after 5 years of institutionalized education, the number dropped to 32%; by age 15, the number was at 10%.  You could've heard a pin drop in the room, which was full of educators.  Beyond the valid points he was making. Sir Ken (Sir Robinson?) was quite funny -- I got the impression that he'd be the sort of dinner guest or host who would have the entire table in the palm of his hand all evening.  Must see if the library has either of his book on the shelf.

In one of those odd coincidences, he happened to bring up a quote of Chou Enlai that I had just read in Chalmers Johnson's Nemesis.  When asked what he thought of the French Revolution, Chou Enlai responded that it was too soon to tell.  Johnson mentioned it to make the point that the Chinese have a longer view (and philosophy) of empire than western civilization does.  Robinson brought up the point when connecting education, creativity and economics.  He also mentioned an article in The Economist that I would like to read about a stronger economic alliance among ASEAN nations, given American preoccupation with the Middle East and the idea that American empire may be just an historical blip, especially in comparison to the older cultures of Asia.

I missed the dinner at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame -- didn't arrive in time.  But the sessions at Jacobs Field?  And lunch in the glassed in terrace over looking the field?  Awesome.  Especially the presentation by the slam poet (I noticed that the old white guys in the crowd found him to be a little too "edgy") and Aaron Dworkin of the Sphinx Organization, which works to break down the cultural sterotypes about classical music and promotes participation by black and latino youth .  Plus, I've mentioned before that when I grow up I want to be a groundskeeper, haven't I?  And the view from the terrace onto the field was gorgeous.  The O's were in town, but I didn't get a chance to see them, since events were scheduled.    Instead I went to Severance Hall to hear the Cleveland Symphony play.  Mozart?  Meh.  New composition?  Eh.  But Tchiakovsky's Symphony No. 4 in F, Opus 36?  Wow.  The first and second movements were good, the third seemed a little out of place with the delicate plucking of the strings.  The fourth?  Gave me goosebumps.  And the hall itself is gorgeous, down to the tiling (Art Deco?) in the ladies room.

The lunch panel at the Cleveland Botanical Gardens was interesting, too.  The panelists were a fellow from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; one of the founders  and the director of the Progressive Arts Alliance, which does a variety of programming, including a hip hop summer camp; the executive director of the board (I think, must check the program) of the Cleveland Symphony; and a member of ROAM, which does AIE programming related to tracing the progression of American music (folk, blues, etc.)  into the music that's popular today.  The panel was moderated by Aaron Dworkin.  One of the speakers said something about taking what you love seriously; he was talking about rock and roll as opposed to classical music and the divide between high and low culture as perceived by patrons and musicians often, but I've been thinking about that as it translates into the growing academic interest in romance novels as a part of pop culture.  Hmm.