Art is the symbol of the two noblest human efforts: to construct and to refrain from destruction. - Simone Weil

I received an unusual item in my mail today. It was a DVD sent by a former associate of The Music Settlement, Dr. Seymour Slavin, who was also a group services consultant for the Welfare Federation of Cleveland in the 1960’s. The DVD showed an old black and white film that told the story of the 1967 Cleveland Summer Arts Festival, a unique event that he created with the direct support of Howard Whittaker, who was the visionary leader of The Cleveland Music School Settlement at the time, and Dr. Lester Glick, who served on the Board of Directors for both the Welfare Federation and The Settlement. Many of you know, in fact, that our recital hall is named for Dr. Glick.

Organizing such a festival was a very bold move for these men, for it had been less than a year since parts of the city were engulfed in rioting, and the rift between racial groups was still very wide and the level of trust in civic planning and leadership was very low. These men sought the support of many University Circle and greater Cleveland institutions, such as Karamu House, the Cleveland Play House, The Cleveland Orchestra, and many of the settlement houses, including ours, to bring their ambitious plan to fruition.

Ultimately, the festival ran 68 days, with 103 performances, workshops and events attended by more than 150,000 people! More than 2,640 young people enrolled in free art, drama, dance and music classes at 14 neighborhood centers. Performers featured at the festival included Duke Ellington, Lionel Hampton, Carmen McRae, Loretta Washington, Woody Herman, and members of The Cleveland Orchestra and the Cleveland Play House repertory company. Everything was free to the public, despite the estimated cost of the summer-long project, which exceeded $350,000. Many sources provided financial support for the undertaking, including the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity, the City of Cleveland, the Cleveland Board of Education, and many local charitable organizations and individuals.

At its heart, this extraordinary project embodied the ideals that created The Music Settlement and still guide it today - the power of the arts to affect an individual and a community for the better. Reports from the time indicated that the children of the community in particular had benefited from the workshops and classes, as many parents described positive behavioral changes and academic improvement in their children. Neighborhood arts associations came forward to help organize and support the many events; Clevelanders of all ages and ethnic backgrounds interacted in comfort and mutual appreciation of the arts. Many of these outcomes were galvanized to aid in the improvement of Cleveland neighborhoods for years afterwards.

What a heartening story: a city in turmoil is raised up by the efforts of a visionary few through the creative cauldron of the arts, and from it comes a new alloy blended from the very best qualities of each of the city’s inhabitants. I find myself wondering what it must have been like to be there that summer, now more than forty years in the past, and how with each year it passes further from our collective memories. Do we have the courage to take such leaps today, when we find ourselves and our community in a similar place? I know the arguments - there are no more federal dollars for such flights of fancy, the organizations that stepped up to the challenge at the time are currently struggling to just keep the wolf from their door, and the logistics to make such magic happen are daunting. But maybe a solution rests within smaller scale efforts - community gatherings, street fairs and block parties, spontaneous concerts or dances… you get the idea.

I challenge you to embrace the spirit of the 1967 Cleveland Summer Arts Festival. It can start right in your own house, or street, or neighborhood. But it first needs to start in your heart. The arts redeem us and speak to our soul, and they nourish us in times of deprivation.

Open yourself to the opportunity!