Klarinet Archive - Posting 000435.txt from 2003/11

From: Mark Gresham <mgresham@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Music Museum
Date: Thu, 27 Nov 2003 13:55:39 -0500

Well, I welcome the opportunity on Thanksgiving Day to post a reply
in the area of one of my favorite subjects, American cultural identity.

James O'Briant wrote:
> Mike Marmer wrote, in part:
>
>>The museum is in South Dakota of all places.
>
> Why is it that people (especially people from the East Coast) seem so
> surprised when something of cultural significance occurs in the Midwest?

I think that James' concern is much more than a rhetorical question,
and, being from the American South, I understand it well. There are
still people from "back east" who think we are all uneducated, shoeless
and ringworm infested, living in shanties with tin roofs, and therefore
couldn't possibly be in touch with "things cultural."
There is a deeply embedded cultural myopia in the US that continues
to influence public opinion, whereby to the surprise of many, there
exists outside of New York, New England, Washington DC and Los Angeles,
a vast expanse known generically as "The United States of America."
Yes, important things can happen in small towns, and much response
has been focussed on "absence of large populations" or "majority of
citizens." But it is worth pointing out that James used the phrase
"occurs in the Midwest" -- not "in small towns." Although the particular
museum in question is in Vermillion, SD, there is the assumption that
the "midwest" is "remote" and of "small towns."
Bear with me for a moment for the following paragraphs of
geo-cultural identification:
If we're speaking about "the Midwest" (and I will capitalize it, as
it deserves recognition of cultural identity), it geographically starts
as far south as Austin and Ft. Worth, Texas (Dallas, is more "Southern"
while Ft. Worth" is more "Midwest" or "Breadbasket Plains" to use
another term, Austin is somewhat border town, being the seat of civil
government for the State, but also is not so thoroughly "Mex-America"
like San Antonio). Draw a border line that arcs notheast to include
Oklahoma City and Tulsa, through the middle of Missouri through St.
Louis as a "border town" between the Midwest and the South, then to
Indianapolis, another border town but this time between 3 cultures,
where "Midwest" and "South" meet the parts of the industrial "Foundry"
culture that incorporates "back east" but extends west to Chicago and
Milwaukee. Continue your line from Indianapolis northwest towards Gary
until cornfields give way suddenly to industrial wasteland, then draw a
crescent far enough around Chicago and north of Milwaukee to meet Lake
Michigan, so Madison, WI, is in the Midwest.
Back down somewhere between Austin and Ft. Worth, you can draw
another long arc westward which turns north to encompass northwest Texas
and the whole of the Oklahoma panhandle, up to Denver, another border
town, then northeast between the Badlands and Pierre, SD, then northwest
into Saskatechwan, Canada, west of Regina, all the way to Calgary,
Alberta (see http://www.visitor.calgary.ab.ca/ ), which, much like
Denver is a cultural border town.
This is a large region, but the point of the long description above
is that there are significant cities/metro areas which, while not in the
top 10 by Rand McNally stats (my home, Atlanta, is number 11), are not
exactly what one would call "isolated" or even "small towns."
Ft. Worth, TX (not a border town, despite Dallas) - Oklahoma City, OK
- Tulsa, OK - Kansas City, MO - Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN - Winnipeg,
Manitoba for larger metro areas that are entirely within the Midwest and
not border towns like Denver or St. Louis that are more often considered
gateways to and from other US cultural regions.
Smaller cities like Madison, WI are cultural hotbeds, primarily due
to the unusually intense level of academic activity (University of
Wisconsin) which has fostered its growth - one long-time resident
describes it as the modern Midwest's equivalent of the Athens of
classical Greece.
Vermillion, SD, is, indeed, smaller; but its cultural acumen is also
very much centered around its academic community at Unioversity of South
Dakota ( http://www.usd.edu/ is the home page - http://www.usd.edu/cfa/
takes you directly to Fine Arts) where the National Music Museum is
located ( http://www.usd.edu/smm/ ). The City of Vermillion describes
itself as having "a small town atmosphere with the benefits of big city
attractions." http://cityofvermillion.com/
On the one hand, there the argument has been made that a museum (or
artist, or instrument maker) would locate in a small town to "escape"
the negative elements of a "big city" (see my brief interview of
composer Alvin Singleton in a recent issue of Creative Loafing, Atlanta:
"Sing to the Sun" at
http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/2003-11-13/vibes_feature.html ).
What has not been offered is the possibility that the artist,
insrument maker, or museum founders may have had their *origins* in the
Midwest, not born into "back east" and not "escaped" to a less populous
area like Mr. & Mrs. Douglas in "Green Acres" -- outside of stress
relief, the "Seinfeld myopia" sees settlement outside a "big five" city
(or just outside New York) as a "culturally incomprehensible," much less
that anything of "cultural value" could *ever* have its *origins* in
that kind of place!
Except for certain parts of southern California, people "back east"
have this misguided perspective about much of the USA, including the
Midwest. (Unfortunately, both the Northeast and upper Midwest have
strong cultural prejudices regarding "the South" that are not shared by
the intenational community at large. But the Midwest does suffer the
myopia exhibited from the Northeast with regard to most of the USA.)
When London merchants or bankers think of "an American", they are
most likely to think of New York.
When German industrialists think of "an American," at least in the
last 40 years, they think of the American South.
Many Middle Easterners will think of Texas.
Many Hispanics consider San Antonio to be the most important city
inthe US.
Japanese love Atlanta, both the "real" north Georgia and the
mythology of the "Old South." (There is a Coca-Cola drink not available
in teh US but has been popular in Japan called "Georgia Iced Coffee" --
which is fascinating since iced coffee isn't a part of Southern cultural
habits, nor are there any coffee plantations in the region, despite the
picture of a plantation and the Dixie "stars and bars" on the package,
but the Japanese take it anyway, just as much as they mis-associate
Kentucky Fried Chicken with Christmas in America.)
Ok, back to the Midwest:
South Dakota could be considered the Pennsylvania of the Great Plains.
Why?
Pennsylvania is, functionally, two states, respectivly centered in
Pittsburgh for the western half, Philadelphia for the east, with
Harrisburg somewhat gluing them together as the seat of civil government.
South Dakota is also, functionally two states, with the west centered
in Rapid City, the east in Sioux Falls, and Pierre as the central seat
of state government.
Vermillion is about as far southeast as you can go in SD without
falling into Nebraska or becoming part of metro-Sioux City, Iowa (as
does N. Sioux City, SD). But in addition to proximity to Sioux City,
it's a stright shot 50 miles down I-95 from Sioux Falls. It's on the
Missouri river, so it was right on agricultural river trade route that
goes down through Omaha, Kansas City, and on to St. Louis on the
Mississippi. So it is less that Vermillion is "isolated" except in the
mannar that many colleges and universities often locate themselves
close, but not too close, to whatever most represents an urban center of
commerce in the area.
As a location based on "academic" decisions, such a university town
is going to try to develop features that bring it national, if not
international, attention and attracts not so much average tourists as
"scholars" and, in this case, appearances by important performing
artists by presenting "collection specific" concerts (see the musiem's
website). Hence, the "small town" location for a National Music Museum
may be preferable based on its intent and mission. It does not so much
need hordes passing through its gate for support; though the city
leaders will certainly consider it another means by which to attract
tourism and otherwise get "on the map" as a "blend of agriculture,
higher education, retail business and light industry" (from the
Vermillion city website.)
South Dakota, BTW, is also corporate home base to ChoralNet (
http://www.choralnet.org/ ) another musical resource which has enjoyed
the support and participation of international music organizations since
its inception. And that's in Rapid City, in the "western" division of
the state which "gets less money than the eastern half" from the
legislative politicos who favor Sioux City, according to one "western
SD" resident.
Ok, it has been a long essay, but IMHO it is important to examine
cultural regions of the US like the Midwest, the South, and Mex-America
as being viable in their own right, under their own terms, and not by
the yardstick of the myopic and often entirely blind prejudices of
conventional mindset, and James notes, of the Northeast. This is a big,
diverse, and wonderful nation. Go discover it.

--
--
Mark Gresham, composer
mgresham@-----.com/
Lux Nova Press http://www.luxnova.com/
LNP Retail Webstore http://www.luxnova.com/lnpwebstore/

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