Rosaleen Molloy, Co. Wexford, writes:

I wish to commend Dr Beausang on taking the initiative to keep the music education debate alive in her recent article in the JMI, ‘Where do we go from here?’ Dr Beausang posed some questions in her article to which I wish to respond.

‘..until relatively recently, music in Ireland was not considered a serious business…. But has this change [in music having become a highly professional business] been reflected in increased support for music education?’

The answer to this is no. While some Local Authority Arts Services are actively programming in the area of music education (in particular Wexford, Sligo, Carlow and Laois) development and investment in this area of the arts is sporadic and very often based on what resources (in terms of musicians and music teachers) are available locally. The reality is that the majority of music education initiatives (apart from state funded music schools within the big cities) are still dependant upon either the enthusiastic musician, the voluntary worker and/or the music teacher who believes that everyone has the right to a music education and simply wants to share their love of the art form.

‘Three substantial reports on music education have been produced… but despite all their eloquence and enthusiasm there is a sense of déjà vu.’

When I read this sentence in the article, a philharmonic chorus did not just audiate these words in my head, it pulsated these words in my inner most ear. The reality is that while we have the policies, the reports and the strategies, they alone are not enough – music education needs to be valued; it needs a place at the political table; it needs a strong leader who believes in it for its own sake; and above all it needs money, real amounts of it – forget the tokenism.