Instead of listening to my typical Today’s Hits radio station on Pandora, I recently switched to the Classical station. To say that Ludwig Van Beethoven’s “9th Symphony” is a tad different than Lady Gaga’s “Applause” would be a drastic understatement.

This change got me thinking about music and art in a more general sense. Today’s pop culture, which can often be synonymous with trash culture, has blinded us from the beauty of what art and music can really express.

It is hard to look past images of Miley Cyrus’s raunchy Video Music Awards performance and Justin Beiber’s illicit drug use because our vision is often clouded by a haze of celebrity scandals and garbage. Nevertheless, at the heart of every song and work of art, we find the same passion that drove Picasso’s brush and Mozart’s keys.

Sitting down at a piano or canvas gives meaning to the meaningless without questions or criticisms. Nothing becomes something in the blink of an eye and a combination of harmony and balance take form.

Budget cuts have led to a depletion of art curriculum. Canvases have been exchanged for textbooks and notebooks have taken the place of instruments.

In fact, a 2012 study published in Grantmakers in the Arts reported that the three primary sources of public funding for the arts in the United States have experienced declines in the past decade. The three sources include federal appropriations to the National Endowment for the Arts , legislative appropriations to the nation’s state arts agencies and direct expenditures to the arts by local governments.

In comparison with 2011, the NEA had a decline of $146 million, or 6 perecnt, a $260 million or 5 percent decline in the legislative appropriations and $706 million or 3 percent in direct expenditures.

These cuts have a direct impact on students. Art education is not just fun, but beneficial as well. Language development, an increased IQ, enhanced spatial-temporal skills and a deeper connection with the world are only a few of the effects.

What’s more is that a College Board study published by the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies found that “students who took four years of arts coursework outperformed peers who had taken similar classes for a half year or less by 58 points on the verbal portion of the SAT and by 38 points on the math portion.”

Today’s musical and artistic creations are often disguised by flashing lights, gaudy costumes and slutty dances. It is a shame that such talented artists resort to this sort of performance, but it is even more of a shame to see art and music classes taken out of education completely.

Without the arts, schools operate in black and white. There is no room for personal expression.

Financial constraints pose problems, but we need to find ways other than cutting art education to deal with them. Studies have shown the benefits and it is clear the arts should not have to fight for a seat in the classroom.