A good portion of this opinion piece focuses on how music study fueled high-profile careers, (by and large) outside the arts arena.

The writer, Joanne Lipman, is author of Strings Attached…, non-fiction that reads like a novel and honors a task master H.S. music teacher who endured a life of hardship. No doubt the meat of the matter is accompanied by a side dish of book promotion.

Regardless,

Here’s the attention-getting opening NYT paragraph that KEYS in on mega-successful, high income earners:

“CONDOLEEZZA RICE trained to be a concert pianist. Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve, was a professional clarinet and saxophone player. The hedge fund billionaire Bruce Kovner is a pianist who took classes at Juilliard.”

Could this item have packed a punch if it opened as follows?

Jim Schwartz, former Curtis grad, is now on Food Stamps and roaming the streets of downtown Berkeley looking for a handout.

Or, Marissa Mankovic, Juillard performance major, has given up the cello because she can’t find a steady work— so many orchestras are going belly up.

Bella Bretovsky, a single mom, has thrown in the towel teaching piano, because she’s outflanked by sports-crazed moms who can’t manage a touch down at weekly lessons.

Three magnet-posted schedules on the refrigerator tell the story:

Every other Wed. pupils
4th Tuesday adults
bi-annual Seniors

*RED-LINE REMINDER–Email parents article on how piano lessons grow neuro-linguistic transmitters (That’ll keep ’em comin’!)

Given this backdrop, I can’t help but wince at the pomposity of the opinion piece that needs a REALITY CHECK!

Hard-working, dedicated musicians and their shattered dreams is perhaps a more timely topic that happens to coincide with our government shutdown.

Take NOTE of this NYT expose, (published in 2004!) that rings out to crescendo levels! (“The Juilliard Effect, 10 years Later”) Imagine the tsunami impact if re-written and researched in 2013!!

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/12/arts/music/12waki.html

Finally, most “serious” musicians are not in the 1% Bruce Kovner category, so their asset value pales by comparison.

In truth, those luminaries mentioned who started out as “serious” music students, managed to escape the grips of poverty because of their transferable skills.

Therefore, the embedded message in Ms. Lipman’s writing is, conscientious and attentive practicing will pave a path to the GOOD life once you pack and seal your violin in its case along with the carpet beetles!

And don’t look back!