Saw this on LD: Governor recognizes Mich. contributors to cultural history August 30, 2004
BY FRANK PROVENZANO FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER Two pioneers of what was once considered underground music will receive the state's highest recognition for artistic success from Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Today, Detroiters Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson, who as DJs and music producers helped propel techno into a worldwide phenomenon, will be named recipients of the International Achievement Award as part of this year's Governor's Awards for Arts & Culture. While techno has been embraced by the European masses since the late '80s, it's only been in the past five years that the men who most people credit as the godfathers of the music have won broad acclaim in their hometown. First, there was the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, which brought hundreds of thousands of music lovers to Hart Plaza for Memorial Day weekend dance music. Then there was "Techno: Detroit's Gift to the World," an 18-month-long exhibit that ended this month at the Detroit Historical Museum, which illuminated their role in putting techno on the international music map. Then came May and Saunderson's prominent roles in shaping Movement, the techno music festival in Detroit's Hart Plaza that replaced DEMF. The pair joins a Who's Who of Michigan cultural history who have received the award, including Aretha Franklin, Lily Tomlin, James Earl Jones, the Four Tops, Elmore Leonard, Arthur Miller and Smokey Robinson. "Earlier in my career, I would've thought that being part of a tradition would mean that I was giving up some independence and control, but now, I see it as part of our legacy," said Saunderson, 39, preparing to leave Detroit for a concert tour of Holland, Belgium and Germany. "Everywhere we go around the world, people realize the scene wouldn't be what it is if it wasn't for our ambition," he said. In discussing the history of Detroit techno, Juan Atkins is typically cited along with May and Saunderson as the most important groundbreakers. Officials say that Atkins was not included because he no longer lives in Michigan, though other winners had moved before their awards. The governor's awards also include patrons Maxine and Stuart Frankel of Bloomfield Hills for donating $10 million to the University of Michigan Museum of Art; Dr. C. Robert Maxfield, superintendent of Farmington Public Schools, for pushing the arts as part of core curriculum classes, and former Detroit Symphony Orchestra artist-in-residence Michael Daugherty, who has composed a homage to the city titled "MotorCity Triptych." The 19th annual Governor's Awards for Arts & Culture event is coordinated by ArtServe Michigan, a statewide nonprofit arts advocacy agency aiming to increase public arts funding and recognition for the state's artists.. This year's ceremony will be Nov. 18 at the Henry Ford in Dearborn. Tickets are $50-$300, with proceeds going to ArtServe, which typically grosses $300,000 at the event. A call for nominations went out in May. In mid August, a selection committee sifted through 250 nominations. The final decision was based on the impact and contributions that the nominees made to a community. "These choices signify the size, breadth and diversity of our cultural umbrella," said ArtServe President Barbara Kratchman. "Michigan artists are on the level of those in New York, Chicago, L.A. and anyplace else. We need to recognize what we have here." Like past years, the recipients are from around Michigan. Among the winners are Latin pop singer Liliana Rokita of Saginaw as Emerging Artist of the Year; while the award for Cultural Organization of the Year is shared among Blissfest Music of Petoskey, Grand Rapids Ballet and the city of Marquette's arts department. For Rokita, 32, who recently recorded her first CD and often steps from the stage to dance with fans, the award means immediate credibility. "Now, when people hear I've won this award, they will stop and say, 'Let's see why,' " said Rokita, who 11 years ago emigrated from Toluca, Mexico.. "The attention is so important when you live outside large Hispanic cities, and want to reach the non-Spanish population, too." With a modest $160,000 budget for arts programming, the city of Marquette coordinates and provides seed money for a regional symphony, summer theater company, annual arts show and a mid-winter dog sled race. "We don't have large corporations up here, so we have to rely on volunteers and individual donations," said Reatha Tweedie, director of Marquette's arts department. "People here see the immediate impact of giving their time and money to the arts, so they tend to give more readily." Last year, after cutting arts grants from nearly $23 million to $11.8 million, Granholm addressed those at the awards ceremony and talked about the vital role of the arts. This year, appeals from arts advocates for increased funding will be met with a counter appeal from Granholm, said spokeswoman Mary Dettloff. "We need perspective," said Dettloff, who noted that there are $1.3 billion in Granholm's proposed cuts of a $8.7-billion budget, none including arts funding. "There are many in the legislature who want to do away with arts funding altogether because they don't think it's a necessity, and only something to fund in prosperous times." Yet there's a growing desperation among arts advocates that the time is at hand to begin fighting. "If we see the arts as an integral part of the fundamental education experience, then it's inherently unfair to think only those districts that can afford the arts should teach the arts," said Farmington superintendent Maxfield, recipient of the Arts in Education award. "Getting this award carries a responsibility to be an evangelist for the arts." ##################################################################################### Note: Any views or opinions are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Channel Four Television Corporation unless specifically stated. This email and any files transmitted are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to which they are addressed. If you have received this email in error, please notify [EMAIL PROTECTED] Thank You. #####################################################################################
