PROTEST AGAINST THE Romanian Radio Broatcasting Corporation
President General Manager
MARIA TOGHINA
 
 

paris, february 7th 2007

to whom it might concern,

It recently came to my ears that the festival Acousmania has its
financial support cut down. I am very surprised to hear about this
decision.

I had the great opportunity and honour to participate to the last
Spectrum festival in Paris. I rarely have seen in the past individuals
that were so implicated and devoted to their passion such as Ana-Maria
Avram and Iancu Dumitrescu.

Their energy to bring people together, to
support young composers and to bridge the gap between generations of
listeners was the cornerstone to the succes of this festival. I saw
them building this courageous adventure and resolving problems here in
Paris that even some french wouldn't dare to face, I saw them giving
all they had to serve contemporary music, or avant-garde -call it what
you want-, with an inconditional faith. Not only they were very
professional but they were fantastic human beings doing their best to
offer the french audience a program of the highest quality. We do not
have everyday this opportunity here in France to access the romanian
culture, I mean today's culture.

This is a very political issue.

I  cannot understand how in today's Europe the idea of cultural exchange
should go backward. Yes, it is to me the common sense that a country
has to fully support its artists and keep its specificity and
identity. And this starts by supporting them 'at home'. Ana-Maria
Avram and Iancu Dumitrescu are part of Romania's inheritance. Your
only option is to be proud of having such leading figures, the same
exact way you were finally proud to have Enescu, Cioran, Tzara or
Brancusi. Please, don't let history repeat itself.

Don't let them chose to become French or German or whatever. We need them to stay
Romanian because we need them to continue teaching us through their
difference! Any progress in art history was done thanks to
singularities, to local inventions that were shared by their local
inventors.

We do not want a global taste, we do not want a global
music!

We want quality art and unique creation and this has to do with
specific cultures, this has to do with roots, may they come from Japan
or Finland or Romania.

We want to have something to share, to be
confronted to something we don't understand that is someone else
spirit or poetry to create and see forward. And this is as well an
economical issue. 'Avant-garde' means what will be tomorrow's trends
and styles. It is what feed the next mainstream and mainstream in
culture means cultural power, cultural exportable products, commercial
potential.

No, definitely I cannot believe that a cultural institution
from a country entering the European Community may be afraid of its
promising future.

With all my consideration,

Samon Takahashi
Artist, composer, radio producer.

See Giselher SMEKAL's protest from ORF Wien          See Marc MEDWIN's protest         Read Andy Wilson's text