I’ve been called many things in my days; a traditionalist being one of the more benign. Which brings me point blank to the subject of my blog. Lately I’ve seen an ever-worrisome propensity of marrying what I deem the higher arts — opera, dance, symphony, visual art — with the more base “art” forms — including, but not limited to, pop music and reality television.

By way of example, I cite the show American Artist, hosted by the fragrant and talented Sarah Jessica Parker — the iconic Queen of Pop Culture. This was a reality show that ran last year on Bravo in which regular people competed to win top prize of becoming the next Picasso or Warhol. Is it just me, or is it rather difficult to take someone who wears entire ostriches on their head as the foremost expert in sculpture and oil on canvas?

Slightly less nauseating, and with a more local flavour, one need look no further than Park Lane Mall and Empire Theatres — Live at the Metropolitan Opera, to be more precise. While a wonderful treat for those of us who cannot afford to travel to Paris or NYC, it took a little while to become accustomed the use of breaking down the fourth wall between acts as Placido interviewed Renée Fleming. Inherently, a little bit of the mystique was washed away. In my opinion, it is the mystique that makes the great arts great.

I was recently held hostage by, er, I mean treated to the music of a wonderful group named Destino. Their particular brand of music is called “popera.” For those of you unfamiliar with this genre, it combines pop music with opera. If I didn’t know before this experience, I certainly know now: I like my pop and my opera on opposite sides of the table. Having said this, I realize there is an audience for this kind of thing. I just won’t be in it.

The saying goes that necessity is the mother of invention so is that indeed what’s happening in these cases? It’s no real secret that the finer arts have been experiencing a decline in attendance and this might be a mitigating factor behind the re-branding efforts. It poses an interesting topic for debate: Are we as a society watering down the finer arts to appeal to the masses – do we run the risk of alienating the traditional “higher arts” patrons? Is it doing a disservice to the pure art form? Or is it simply a matter of smart positioning – a funneling through of art by using a broader variety of mediums?

The beauty of this of course is that like art, it’s all open to interpretation.

A Cape Breton gal born and bred, Erin traded in the tar ponds of Sydney for the windswept marshes of Sackville, N.B. where she received her Bachelor of Commerce, Major in Marketing from Mount Allison University. In addition to her formal education, Erin enrolled in the school of life and has travelled overseas extensively, living in both Scotland and The Netherlands. With respect to her work at trampoline, as the old adage goes, "if Erin doesn't know, it ain't worth knowing." In her spare time, Erin owns and operates Step Lively School of Dance, and waits for Adam to propose.