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Save the historical places of music

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The news of the umpteenth permanent closure of a place of culture, entertainment and leisure in Milan is now almost daily. Only in the last few days has a petition been launched to save the Sala Venezia, a local historian of the National Combatants and Veterans Association in the Porta Venezia district, a representative place of the history and culture of Milan since the post-war period and a meeting point for the district, which received an eviction from the State Property Agency to be carried out on 8 April to be transformed into an archive of the Police Headquarters. And yesterday the sad announcement of the Arizona 2000 ballroom, in the Nolo area, which will be transformed into a supermarket because the current managers, strangled for more than a year of closure, are unable to bear the rent costs. It was a club that since 1963, when it opened with the name Stella D’Oro, represented an important place of entertainment for an audience of all ages and ethnicities, offering dance evenings and afternoons ranging from dance to ballroom dancing to South American music. It is true that these bad news are just the latest in a sad list of local citizens that have been forced to close their doors forever in the last year, from the Ohibò to the Seraglio passing through Blues House and Spazio Ligera, but what distinguishes Sala Venezia and Arizona 2000 from the others is that they are also places with a historical and iconic weight to be considered, starting with the furnishings of both, important examples of an architectural aesthetic that is absurd to be destroyed with bulldozers. And as for the proposed contents, both Sala Venezia and Arizona 2000 were shining examples of that concept of “Diversity and Inclusion” which today is rightly supported by everyone, so one should look with respect to those who have always put it into practice. In England, a land where entertainment has always been considered a national value, an important source of income and a reason for international tourism, this type of venue has a definition, “Grassroots Venues”, literally “places with roots in the ground”, and to protect them, a foundation called Music Venue Trust was created in 2014, which defines itself as a “Charity organization with the aim of protecting, securing and improving Grassroots Music Venues”. At the basis of the initiative is the awareness of the relevance of these places which, according to the statute, “have played a crucial role in the development of British music over the last 40 years, have launched new talent and have been a platform for the construction of careers of many artists, helping them to improve their performance skills “. A simple equation: if English music is an important voice for the country’s economy somewhere it must be able to develop, clubs are the places where it develops, so clubs must be protected. Logical, isn’t it? The foundation’s manifesto continues: “We work to ensure that the essential role of these places is recognized not only for artistic development but also for their contribution to the cultural industry, the economy and local communities”. The funds of the Music Venue Trust come essentially from individuals: donations, voluntary contributions, fundraisers and sponsors. Among the main donors (“Patrons”) stand out Sir Paul McCartney, the Madness, dozens of small, medium and large English artists, politicians of all colors and professionals of the cultural industry. Funds are also raised creatively. A few months ago the musician Steven Wilson premiered a limited edition of a single vinyl copy of his new album and put it up for sale at the price of ten thousand pounds, which went into the MVT’s coffers. Among the most meritorious works of recent years, the salvation of the historic 100 Club on Oxford Street in London, a fundamental place in the history of English music (it hosted the first concerts of Clash, Sex Pistols and was the incubator of the entire punk scene), which risked close due to excessive rent increase but it was saved and relaunched and is still in business. In Milan, the Menotti Theater, which was also in danger of being converted into yet another supermarket, was saved through a mixed financing system between crowdfunding, private and public contributions, which shows that this system can work here too, with the difference, however. that in Italy there is a tendency to consider “traditional” places only for theaters and not for popular musical entertainment. The crisis of the Milanese clubs is in these days at the center of a dialogue between the representatives of the city clubs and the Department of Culture of the Municipality of Milan for the “Milano Che Spettacolo!” aimed at favoring a first restart phase as soon as possible. Certainly our cities need to work together to find the necessary opportunities for artistic expression and personal enjoyment in any type of setting: from the small club to the large disco, from the traditional ballroom to the disco bar, but it would be nice if “historical” music venues were considered for their additional cultural value and, perhaps through a special body similar to the English Music Venue Trust, protected and helped to survive.

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*Vice President of Talent & Music –  South Europe, Turkey, Middle East

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