THE TIMES ARE A’CHANGIN’- LET THE GAMES BEGIN

Two friends and I were at dinner Monday night.

The three of us are retired, but, as the saying goes, “Not expired.”

We talked of this and that. The food and drink were most pleasant, the wait staff pleasant and attractive, and conversation ebbed and flowed in the nicest manner.

At a quiet moment, I ventured to comment on the difficulties currently being faced by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, one of the cultural entities which has survived from the golden days of yore down to these difficult times.

I opined that it was interesting, a sign of the times, that Detroit funds the implausible, fantastic expense of no less than four professional sports teams, franchise which play children’s’ games, while at the same time finds it impossible to pay the expenses of one high quality cultural entity, an entity which would cost a fraction of what possibly a few players of these children’s Games make in a year or two.

This was not my way to argue for any form of tax support for the arts.

What it was was instead a commentary on the changing tastes of our people, tastes which prefer ball games to classical music.

We do not pretend to know what this apparent change of values really means, just that it seems to exist.

The classical arts in this part of our world are in trouble.

Children’s games are thriving.

And the public is happy.