Some years back local resident Hannie Wolf wrote to the Albion News decrying potential cuts in funding for the arts, observing that a ‘community that loses the arts loses its soul.’  As co-directors of the Albion Area Arts Council, my wife Lori and I agree, and I’d hazard a guess that the many individuals and businesses who either joined the Arts Council this season and/or donated during the recent Big Give agree as well.
The Albion Area Arts Council was founded in 1979 not only to bring a variety of quality performances to this area but to encourage local students and adults to participate in the arts.  Since 2005 when Lori and I took the helm, in addition to bringing in professional artists from as far away as Nova Scotia, we’ve presented readings of original works by local authors, exhibitions of original artwork and quilts, and concerts by local artists, the most recently this past Sunday.
This concert, which was organized by retired Boone Central vocal teacher Dawn Bussey and local pianist Jill Nore, featured both students and adults.  All were volunteers – including the sound man, Pastor David Frerichs — who had to make time in their busy schedules in order for this to happen.
And though none of the artists Sunday make their livings doing this, they were every bit as professional as any of the other performers we’ve brought here over the years.  Watching them rehearse was a great example of how like-minded people can come together to accomplish something that wouldn’t happen otherwise.  Everybody was there for the same reason – a love of music and a desire to share it not only with each other but with their friends and family members in the audience.  Questions were asked and suggestions were given and even though Dawn and Jill were in charge, decisions were made as much by consensus as anything.
Critics of small towns can recite a litany of things they lack, but talent isn’t on the list. Talent isn’t confined to cities – it can be found everywhere, and given how talented these local artists are and how well everyone worked together, it was no surprise that their performance was as good as you’d find anywhere.
And the audience clearly agreed – one woman even described it as “magical.” The audience plays an important role in every concert – if they are receptive and enthusiastic, the artists will perform their very best.  A good concert is a symbiosis where the performers and the listeners interact, and this was well-demonstrated Sunday.
I once overheard a businessman in a neighboring community comment that he “wouldn’t cross the street to hear a concert” and I know there are people like that.  To some people music means nothing.  But even the most tone-deaf person should still be able to understand that art nourishes the soul of a community and helps tie its members together.
It might be as apt to say that a community loses the arts when it’s lost its soul – the two are inextricably intertwined.  Hannie – who escaped the Holocaust as a teenager – knows first-hand the dangers a soulless community poses (the Nazis used art only for propaganda).  Keeping the arts alive isn’t just a nicety – it’s a necessity that does much more than we often realize to keep us both human and humane.  The soul of our community expressed itself wonderfully Sunday, and I would like to think the ties that weave us together are stronger as a result.