Re: musings

Posted by stella on December 13, 2007 at 11:48:07:

In Reply to: Re: musings posted by mallika on December 06, 2007 at 17:35:52:

If a dancer dedicates so many years of life and thousands in fees to learn an intricate art form, and wants to make a profession of teaching and performing, what is wrong with that? Others who take degrees in law or business make their living and no one thinks it odd. If an artist takes advanced degrees in dance and music, and has hours of dedicated riyaz to maintain his/her skills, then others should definitely pay the fees required to learn from the expert. If you give the art away for free, then people do not value it. People who want to learn an art form, or watch a performance, will value it more highly if they have to spend their own hard-earned money. If the artists wishes to give scholarship assistance to a student who does not have means to pay the fees, that is of course within the teachers right to do so, and if the performer wishes to dedicate funds to charity, that is another choice. But do not make your art cheap or free, which has been developed over the centuries at great expense and sacrifice. People pay hundreds of dollars for a ticket to an opera by Verdi, why should they expect to see a production of Ramayana for free?
: thanks for the input raga,
: this thought has germinated from a discussion not so long ago in this forum about how to create a wide rasika base. there was a lot of hue and cry over people not paying for the job and i was a prominent voice on it.
: i am still not against demanding money for performances, but when it comes to teaching, whether one can offord or not, money should not be an important thing. i know of atleast 2 people- one a dance teacher and the other a classical music teacher- who do not charge a single pie. but most of the students can afford the fees. i feel the interest in the art itself should be important and not making bucks thru teaching the art. iam not saying tht one should do it even its the sole bread earning job, but for people like me, who are financially very secure, can go ahead do our bit. again, i would still charge if one asked me to perform, but teaching..........
: what do u have to say?