By AARON WUNSCH

In addition to generating celebratory concerts and performances of all shapes and sizes, the Juilliard centennial will offer an opportunity to re-address the questions about which believers in art often wonder, but, in the end, find frustratingly elusive: How does what we do affect society at large? Is what we do growing or diminishing in importance? How can we help art retain its importance, its value?

On September 22, Juilliard President Joseph W. Polisi will convene a forum of guest speakers to consider the role of the arts in American society—past, present, and future. Rest assured, these will not be your usual suspects. Renowned historian David McCullough, the famed composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim, and star soprano Renée Fleming will join the panel along with Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

President Polisi has taken the centennial as an opportunity to think big. "We rarely have an opportunity to invite guests who are specialists in other disciplines to speak at the School," he explains. "I think it will be stimulating and energizing for all members of the community." On the role of the arts in society, panels often tend to be well-meaning yet closed-minded. "I'm extremely hopeful that the forum will generate some provocative thoughts that are not raised in the performing arts world on a regular basis," President Polisi says.

"In the '60s it was 'We will create art and they will come.' Today this notion seems to be faltering."

Scheduled to take place in the Juilliard Theater at 1:30 p.m., the discussion (which the president will moderate) will be divided into three separate parts. The first will consist of a 30-minute speech by Mr. McCullough on the arts in American history. Many in the audience are likely to be familiar with his landmark biographies of U.S. presidents Truman and John Adams. "McCullough is one of the greatest historians of our time," says Dr. Polisi, "and we're privileged that he would address this highly neglected topic."

The second part of the program will be a speech by Justice Scalia on the relationship of the First Amendment to American art and artists. "A knowledge of the First Amendment is such an important component of the knowledge base of any American artist," Dr. Polisi notes. But why Scalia, of all people? "I chose him because of his intellect, and for his interest in the arts—he's a great opera lover," explains Dr. Polisi. "I also believe that his conservative stance on certain legal issues will provide a different view of the First Amendment than we usually have in New York." Although Justice Scalia's positions on issues such as abortion and flag burning have been controversial, he is widely respected on both the right and the left for his commanding intelligence.

The third part of the program will consist of a 30-minute conversation between Renée Fleming and Stephen Sondheim, moderated by Dr. Polisi, addressing the interaction between art and commerce. Since both Sondheim and Fleming have made it into the popular psyche as well as garnering respect as great artists, they may offer an interesting perspective on how the commercial arena may be used to reach a wider public—whether through crossover music, clever marketing, or other means.

"Renée Fleming and Stephen Sondheim have touched millions through their art," Dr. Polisi explains. Much debated, naturally, is the point at which crossover music ceases to be art and becomes purely popular. "The crossover phenomenon is one of many approaches to this issue," the president believes. He points to cellist Matt Haimowitz, a Juilliard Pre-College graduate now known for playing in nontraditional venues such as bars and nightclubs, as someone who has approached his art in innovative yet genuine ways.

American Society and the Arts Juilliard Theater Thursday, Sept. 22, 1:30 p.m. For ticket information, please see the calendar.

What will the forum accomplish? President Polisi hopes the event will "illuminate further the role of arts in our society and stimulate further discussion and action." He doesn't believe in pussyfooting around the issue. "I don't think most people know about the arts in any depth," he states. The recent RAND Corporation survey on the arts seems to substantiate his viewpoint by concluding that "the value of the arts is no longer a given for the American public."

"In the '60s it was: 'we will create art and they will come,'" Dr. Polisi says. "Lincoln Center was built at a time of social awareness—people believed that through social activism public ventures such as Lincoln Center could positively impact all strata of society."

Today this notion seems to be faltering. "The world has changed," he says. "Today my leitmotif is that as artists, we have to be more engaged in the community and show the extraordinary value of the arts to our society."

In the lower corner of the Milstein Plaza outside Juilliard stands a plaque with a quote from John D. Rockefeller III that dates from the founding of Lincoln Center: "The Arts are not for the privileged few but for the many. Their place is not on the periphery of daily life but at its center. They should function not merely as another form of entertainment but rather should contribute significantly to our well being and happiness."

This vision now stands as a far-off ideal; perhaps it always was.

Aaron Wunsch is a D.M.A. candidate in piano.