Where I Stand -- Brian Greenspun: Divas' musical message

MAYBE I MISSED something but ...

The publicity build-up for VH-1's much vaunted "Divas Live" concert Tuesday evening led the world to believe that the evening's dress was armor plating and the meal would consist of catnip. If you paid attention to those "in the know," last year's effort to get Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan, Mariah Carey and Aretha Franklin on the same stage and in the same frame of mind was less than successful. Perhaps it was. And maybe this year's effort was, too, unless of course you focused solely on the musical talent exhibited worldwide (which was incredible) and ignored the behind-the-scenes maneuvering that is common when egos clash and managers meet to decide which star is more deserving of what billing.

I can only speak for one -- and possibly two -- of the showgoers who managed tickets to the live performance at the Beacon Theater in New York this week. And from where Myra and I sat, John Sykes and his VH-1 crew pulled off another talent-laden night with what appeared to those in attendance as "nary a hint" of a problem. Admittedly, we weren't backstage, where the divas were left to deal with each other, but from the vantage point of the audience -- both live and around the world through the wonder of cable television -- they couldn't have been more professional or more entertaining.

I remember the days not too long ago when just the sight and sounds of Tina Turner was enough to make most of us jump to our feet either dancing to or singing "Proud Mary" along with the lady who made us all proud to be a part of the boomer generation. So when she was joined onstage by the beautiful and oh, so tres Cher-looking diva of the same name, well, what can I say? The theater was alive and the music was compelling and there was no sign of a hitch to be found.

That doesn't mean there weren't some problems which the show's producers kept well-hidden from the audience of millions. It just means that professionals manage to do what they need to do to make their fans feel comfortable and proud that they are fans.

There were three other divas that night. Brandy, a young and fully-talented lady who should endure the generations, and Whitney Houston, an incomparable diva who is enduring, much to the delight of her millions of fans. While there were some other soon-to-be or might-be divas who helped make the show a success, there is one who deserves special mention.

For those of you who missed this rare night of female vocal talent, Elizabeth Hurley's introduction of the last diva was especially touching in the way she prepared the audience. For there is no one as talented as this particular person, whose tiara collection matches that of the Queen of England and who, as Hurley suggested, is not afraid to let the First Lady of England know it.

So when she introduced Sir Elton John, the crowd went wild. And justifiably so, for he is a man whose talent is unbounded and whose efforts on behalf of so many good and charitable causes the world over is practically unmatched. If there needed to be a glue that kept the divas singing rather than at each other's throats -- as the pundits were predicting -- it was Elton John. He helped the ladies make the evening work and he helped VH-1 provide the medium for its so-very-important message.

For everything worthy of note these days has another purpose. Part of Tuesday evening's message was included in the performances and part of it came through some of the people sitting in the audience. Whether it was the well-edited tape of young people across our country who benefit from music programs in our schools or from the smiles of pleasure and accomplishment from people like Sumner Redstone, Donald Trump and Matt Lauer, who have done their part to make this message come home to all Americans, the results are the same.

Through the "Divas Live" concert, Americans now know the importance of music in the lives of our young people. It is proved beyond dispute that music at young ages creates better math and science students. It is also a fact that many of the geniuses who make .com mean something in this world are former musicians taking the musical talent they acquired in their younger years and making it work for them and their colleagues as they try their best to scale the uncharted paths of the Internet.

Yet while the world is exploding into a new millennium of excitement and opportunity, community after community is shutting down its grade school and junior high school music programs in some near-sighted effort to save money. That's where VH-1's "Save the Music" program comes in. Through a commitment to raise the hundreds of millions of dollars needed, VH-1 will assure students across the country that they will have the costly musical instruments needed for them to study and play their way through their school years.

And that effort is joined by hundreds of musicians, thousands of teachers and millions of Americans through the commitment of their cable television providers. It is the dream of John Sykes that music will endure at all ages, and it is to the credit of those with whom he works -- especially the ego-endowed divas -- that this program is a growing success. As each of us share this dream, we can not only make the kind of music that strengthens our country, we can teach it to our children.

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