Drawing more lines than you erase
The concept of globalization is often framed in a negative manner and certainly in many ways it can be; from issues of worker exploitation to environmental degradation, the confluence of cultures and economies is one of turbidity. However, that is not to say that the process of stitching together disparate ideas and views is futile, rather it is one that could build a relational framework by which individuals and groups can communicate with one and another. Such is the expressed goal of the The Fez Festival of World Sacred Music.
The Adam Blenford, writing for the BBC, posted a balanced piece about the organization’s aims, chief among them to engage in a pan-cultural dialog, while offering the criticism that much of the group’s productions are beyond the means of the average citizen in the host city of Fes, Morocco. My feeling is that while the goals of the organization are admirable the execution is flawed and even slightly disingenuous, as if it were built upon the notion of Trickle-Down Intellectualism. Blenford writes,
While the elite flock to evening shows at the grand Bab Makina, a courtyard in Fez’s old medina, and intellectuals debate global problems during the day, ordinary Moroccans are priced out of the showpiece concerts.
The shows are priced individually and with some commanding up to $57 USD a ticket and with the per capita income of the nation hovering around $1520 it is safe to say that the average citizen will not be attending. To put it in perspective it is equivalent to charging $1500 for show at your local concert venue and I’m not talking skybox seats either. Granted there are free shows held around the city but those are crumbs compared to the feast that those with means will enjoy.
The pricing structure, in of itself, tarnishes the lofty ideal of opening a worldwide dialog by playing right into the criticisms of globalization. Seeking to end divisions based on culture the organization defines and establishes ones based on economics. Certainly nothing in this world is free but there is something to be said about upholding one’s stated aim of inclusiveness by ensuring that all peoples, regardless of social and economic status, can participate.