As long as I can remember I have been interested in the arts. I could draw fairly well as a young child, enjoyed music and nearly all other forms of art. I did not really pursue my artistic abilities until much later as an adult. However I did discover jazz in my teens and it proved to be a major part of my life.
My passion for the arts is no longer just an interest; I have devoted myself to it for the past 30 years.
As president and board member of several arts organizations, as an active sculptor and furniture designer and with my passion for jazz, my life has been blessed. I have also travelled all over the world and experienced the love of the arts in other cultures and in other peoples’ lives. In all of the countries I have visited the arts are integral part of everyone’s life, from businesses to governments, they are not a separate part but integrated into all parts of the various communities. There, it is unheard that arts programs and education would be cut because of budget restraints or other issues.
The community suffers the most from the elimination of arts programing. The entire community, including business, government, sports is integral part of our environment not just the air we breathe
or the water we drink, therefore we must convince them to join us in our efforts to make the arts just as integral a part of our community.
All of us have heard so many times how valuable the arts are! So many times, as a matter of fact, that those of us intimately involved in the arts must go beyond reading our own press releases, we must stop the self-congratulation and talk vehemently with those who feel differently about the arts. We must work much more closely with business and other members of the community, and we must be willing to engage in meaningful discussions, so that we may reach an understanding of the role that all of us can play. Many people in America care less about the arts than we do, therefore it is our responsibility to reach out and help change this attitude: we must refuse to let the arts be cut at any time. We also must get beyond pretty pictures, pop music and other simplistic art forms to increase the awareness
of the complexity and richness of all forms of art. Using the example of a Jazz trio, group or big band where players start out together then improvise and come back together to produce a new creation is what our country should be striving to do in the arts and all of our endevors.
In short we must demand that all of the arts play a major role in our society, rejecting the dismantling and cutting of our culture. When we eliminate the arts, we kill our American culture.
Doug Morrill
President
Jazz Haven
jazzhaven
