Noise is not art
To The Editor:
Thank you for covering the reaction of Tribeca residents to Pier 26 noisy events (news article, July 31 – Aug. 13, “Is Tribeca pier too alive with the sound of music?”). Though fortunately less frequent, in Battery Park City a similar problem exists with the Brookfield Arts & Events summer program.
As Ms. Wils acknowledges, “the river carries noise,” and sound bounces off the water and directly into my apartment above the 20th floor at Gateway Plaza. I hear the words and every groan — and pornographic whine and grunt — that these “artists” offer as I arrive home after a long day at work.
In what kind of narcissistic bubble do the planners of these events live? Would they tolerate such disturbance outside the windows at their own residential addresses? From your piece, I gather that in these events two values preclude all others: (1) money, and (2) the addictive need in our culture to be entertained (Are we having fun yet?) The absence of any effort on the part of these professional planners to consider, or engage, the needs of residents displays the same myopia as the de rigueur noise a k a “concerts.”
Noise is harmful to public health and is an environmental pollutant. Calling these programs “concerts” doesn’t change that fact. What is it that these planners don’t get?
Dolores D’Agostino
