The Artist as Citizen.

The Artist as Citizen, by Joseph W. Polisi. Amadeus Press, LLC (512 Newark Pompton Tnpk., Pompton Plains, NJ 07444), 2005. 178 pp. $2.95.

Joseph Polisi has served as president of the Juilliard School in New York City for the past two decades. This book is a compilation of selected essays and speeches he presented during those years of dedicated service to one of the leading arts institutions of our country.

The Artist as Citizen contains humorous anecdotes and serious discussions, careful planning statements and assessments of achievement, pep-talks and celebrations. It gives a remarkable overview of the major concerns facing performing artists and arts organizations as they deal with the complex challenges of the new century.

In the "Foreword," Wynton Marsalis states: "This book is a call to action." The author's "Prologue" follows, expanding on his belief that 21st-century artists "must rededicate themselves to a broader professional agenda that reaches beyond what has been expected of them in an earlier time."

The most compelling discussions for readers come within "Culture, the Arts, and Diplomacy" and "American Culture and the Performing Arts." These hard-hitting speeches decry many aspects of our country's off-hand treatment of the arts. For instance, "The federal government, while paying lip service to the important role of art in our country, gives less money to all American performing arts institutions, from the Metropolitan Opera on down, than it does to the annual allocation for military bands."

Twenty-one candid photographs catch Polisi with distinguished world leaders, musicians, actors and dancers over the span of 20 years. There is President Reagan at the White House in 1986; Crown Princess Michiko and Crown Prince Akihito of Japan in 1987; and President and Mrs. Clinton giving Polisi the National Medal of Arts in 1999. Polisi's beaming smile welcomes Leonard Bernstein, Bill Cosby, Wynton Marsalis, Isaac Stern, Leontyne Price and Robin Williams, among many celebrities.

The Artist as Citizen's final chapter, "Planning for the Twenty-First Century," outlines six major long-term goals, a five-point mission statement, eleven visionary educational programs and significant outreach activities. Proposals addressing student life, financial aid, faculty and staff development, and enhancement of the physical facility also are included. This important sampling of the most crucial current issues for Juilliard and its graduates can help each reader focus on applicable issues for her or his artistic future. Reviewed by Loran Olsen, NCTM, Port Angeles, Washington.