“Going through security
I held her for so long
She finally looked at me in love
And she was gone”
“Just a Song Before I Go” – Crosby, Stills, and Nash
During a tour stop in Hawaii, Graham Nash revealed that he was preparing to return to Los Angeles, and he was dared to write a song in the limited time he had before he needed to be to the airport. The result, written in less than 40 minutes, per Nash’s recollection, was “Just a Song Before I Go,” which ended up being the longest-running song for the group on the charts, spending 20 weeks on the charts and peaking at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The song reflects on a traveling musician returning home for a brief moment between shows and the struggle of leaving loved ones behind as part of the job. It’s one of the group’s shortest songs, running just two minutes, 14 seconds.
It really doesn’t take long for music to find its way into our mind, our heart, and our soul.
Last week, I introduced National Music Week, sponsored by the National Federated Music Clubs, and its theme this year, “Music is our constant companion.” We’ve run nine letters to the editor supporting music in the three papers around the week, had photo collages of the band and orchestra concerts in late April for the Huron Middle and High Schools, covered a proclamation from the city recognizing National Music Week, and enjoyed the musical talent from our Huron High School musicians at the annual POPS concert. This is on top of numerous recitals, award ceremonies, and other concerts this week in the Heartland area, celebrating music.
While it’s wonderful to celebrate music, there are times when I relate to music and music education because of my role working at a newspaper. It seems music and newspapers are both in a world that appreciates what we provide less and less by the day.
Each fall, I take the time to reach out to the 13 school districts in our coverage area, hoping to receive at least the information about which students from each respective school would be attending the All-State Chorus and Orchestra concert in late October/early November. My predecessor in the role attempted this as well. Names alone would be great, but a photo of the participants is even better.
Unfortunately, what I’ve found is that more and more districts right in our region are no longer offering music education. There might be an English teacher or a math teacher who offers to direct a choir, but that’s often the extent of high school’s offering of music.
According to multiple sources, millions of students attend school districts without music education offered at any level, let alone high school. A study by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute suggested that more than 3.6 million students have no access to music education during their school careers.
And it’s not getting any better, as the funding crunch in Congress saw a “compromise” where millions in federal funding for arts education were slashed out of the federal budget. Beyond that, donations to music are down, with philanthropic giving in the United States to arts-based charities and foundations down by between eight and ten percent in 2025 compared to 2024, depending on which sources you read.
The situation is not good for supporting our music programs and future musicians, regardless of the source(s) you trust.
What I find interesting is that those schools that are no longer funding a full-time staff person in music education are often funneling significant funds toward athletics. When cuts are made, playing football games in the afternoon to save on the electricity costs of the night games is never brought up. Heck, the annual new jerseys for the basketball team aren’t even a consideration for a cut in many of these discussions.
It’s not as if these are districts that are struggling with participation in any extra-curricular activities and are making choices based on that, either. In fact, multiple schools without a paid high school music educator in the region have seen a sports team participating in a state tournament, and the school funded travel arrangements and hotels for those students, while often the community stepped up to fundraise for food and other needs the players may have while competing in a state tourney.
The perception of cost is skewed as well. When talking with someone here in Huron recently, the conversation turned to a baseball bat that was to be purchased for the upcoming season for his son at a cost of hundreds of dollars. One bat. When I stated that the same amount could purchase a band instrument for one of my children, the other person in the conversation was astounded at the price of a band instrument. Yet, the bat’s cost was not in question.
I still have a snare drum that I received as a young percussionist in middle school. I have the guitar that was an 18th birthday gift, and the two electric guitars I own have both been in my ownership for more than a decade. My daughter is playing the same band instrument that my wife used in her school years, which she has owned ever since.
I’m a big-time sports fan. Heck, I’m one of the co-directors of a worldwide Internet baseball writers’ association. That said, I’ve never once heard of someone planning out their first free throw as a married couple at their wedding. Nor has anyone asked me to help pick out which first pitch to use for their mother’s funeral. I’ll be very surprised the day someone tells me about the play call that they hum to help their newborn child fall asleep.
While this may come off as music versus sports, please don’t mistake that as my intent. I absolutely feel that both are vital offerings for a school district in the growth of a child. Learning to harmonize in a choir and how to work together on a wedge block in football are similar lessons in working together, listening, and trusting a teammate that can be valuable years later in the work world.
However, when cuts have to happen, and they sometimes do, it’s very seldom Friday night lights that are on the chopping block, and we owe it to our future generations to ensure they have the same opportunities to experience and love music as were afforded to generations before.
This past week has allowed us to see the joy and companionship of music throughout life. It’s important we do not deprive future generations of that same joy!
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