Mozart and Federal Funding of the arts

[Stephen Kobrin <kobrins@wharton.upenn.edu>]

As a favor to my blood pressure I have kept out of the debate about Federal
funding of the arts.  However, I cannot let Marc's comment about Mozart not
taking government funding go.  Most, if not all musicians in the 18th, and
even into the 19th, century begged for government support, typically in the
form of positions at various courts.  Mozart's father was Kapellmeister to
the Prince-Bishop of Salzburg and Mozart himself left Paris because he
could not find a court position.  In his last years (his late 20s) he lived
in constant financial distress and died in his early 30s.  Even in the 19th
century, Beethoven was supported by Count Waldstein.  Furthermore, court
musicians were seen as servants and often treated as such.  Most
compositions were done at the behest of wealthy, typically aristocratic,
patrons.  

Civilized countries support the arts, do so publically, and have enough
maturity to realize that everyone will not like every painting, musical
composition or novel that is produced. Do we really want to go back to
having artists beg for crumbs from wealthy patrons?  The Kobrin solution is
simple: Given the cost per inch of the latest Stealth bomber -- which does
not seem to work in the rain -- if we made each of them one inch shorter we
could afford to support both the arts and education without raising taxes.  

Lets get back to Leicas.

Steve