A very controversial ruling was just handed out from the New York State Court of Appeals saying that Pole Dancing and Lap Dancing are not forms of art and therefore taxable. Before your heads go spinning you should read this article. This was not a landslide decision like some might believe it to be and it raises a more pertinent question of what art really is and who gets to define it. The court ruled in a 4-3 decision saying that "women gyrating on a pole to music, however artistic or athletic their practiced moves are, was also not a qualifying performance".
I guess the first thing we need to do is define what dance is. Wikipedia defines dance as such:
"Dance is a type of art that generally involves movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, performed in many different cultures and used as a form of expression, social interaction and exercise or presented in a spiritual or performance setting"
The other term that got thrown around in this decision was "choreography" which was defined as "the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified".
The deciding judges viewed lap dance as a form of "lowbrow art" such as baseball or the circus. What they didn't do was clearly define what highbrow art is. Instead they created a situation where the term "highbrow" was only applied to a specific type of dance: Ballet. However; the dissenting judges raised other great questions when saying that the state regulations on dance are not specific to types. Naturally one must assume they include all forms of dance and choreography. Also you need to consider the term "dancer" as referring to someone who dances. Considering the official definition of "dance" one must assume that anyone who engages in the art of dancing is a dancer and therefore an artist. Though the judges all agreed on this, the deciding judges still deemed lap dancing a lowbrow form of dance because "they don't promote culture in a community the way ballet or other artistic endeavors do" and are therefore taxable.
You could make an argument to which cultural classification lap dancing belongs to. The mother or father of three might tell you that there is no place for adult entertainment in their town. That this specific type of entertainment is extremely tasteless and cheap. However; look at the price of Ballet. If you want to sit up close to the Boston Ballet you're going to lose about $140 per person. Compare that to the person at the strip bar who drops $30-$40 every 15 minutes to have a man or woman perform a private dance in a private room for their own entertainment. It's about the same when you look at the cost. Obviously "class" and "taste" have nothing to do with the cost of art. It seems to be more about the publics perception of art that determines if it's highbrow or lowbrow, yet in the end that is only an opinion.
So I do believe this is the part where you need to ask yourself. Are men or women who perform choreographed dance moves for money artists?
Who are you to decide that?
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Perceiving the World Through Sound and Finding Ourselves In It
Back in the days of Bach, music lessons were taught daily from father to son. I doubt this task was a choice left up to the children and I doubt it was optional. It was simply a way a of life. Children knew what was expected of them; they worked hard and they listened carefully. There was plenty of time spent in the silence of a pre-industrial world; silence which bore the fruit of creativity. Hours of contemplation, practice, and play became an endless world of discovery about nature and about the self.
Today, it is a known fact that creativity is endangered. Children are conditioned to give the "correct" answer to a given question in schools, rather than encouraged to expand their mind to the possible ways of experiencing the world. Individuality is sacrificed in favor of working toward a general standard. These days, I don't think it is common for a child to "pretend" a sauce pan is a crown or to make a fishing pole out of a string tied to a stick. There are too many available toys already made. Children never have to use their abstract thinking.
What are we loosing when we surrender our individuality, our sensitivity to the world, our abstract thinking, our creativity and our playfulness? We loose a deeper connection to ourselves, empathy for our fellow man, and a magnitude of beauty that our world has to offer. Music is a creation of the active, abstract mind. It is a realm where the spirit can roam and expand into any form. It is a means of growth and a means of therapy. It is not hard to understand why children today have less discipline and generally less interest in everything including classical music yet I think it is urgent that we engage them anyway. As performers, as pedagogues, and as teaching artists, we may not be in demand among the youth like any other consumerist product of the 21st century but we are among the few that have the power to turn these children into open vessels, sensitive to interesting noise, the stillness of silence; vacuums which can then be filled by all the complicated expressions of a child getting to know himself.
Through Longy school of Music's experiencial education program. I had the opportunity to work directly with a class of urban teenagers at one of the city's Boy's and Girl's club locations in Everett, M.A.. This group of teenagers met after school every day to play beats and sing the lyrics to their favorite songs. My goal was to expose them to some music they had maybe never heard before and challenge them to find themselves in it.
During the first session I asked each teenager to pick a beat but to refrain from sharing the lyrics or the title of the song. Instead, I asked each to walk out to the beat in a manner that reflected the meaning of the lyrics. Each experimented with weight, tempo, facial expression, use of space, and a variety of other subtle expressions in order to represent the mood, the character, and the energy behind the music. I asked those in the audience: What is this song about? Who is the singer? Tell me more about her.Upon second performance of each song, I asked the teenagers to include the lyrics but to put just as much expression into their body language, their facial expression, and the way they move. It was clear that the teenagers had made the discovery that human and emotional qualities can be found in the abstract sounds that surround the lyrics in their song; that words are not always necessary to express something.
During the second session, I shared a bit of myself. I performed Liszt's concert paraphrase of Verdi's opera Rigoletto. I told them, "This piece is actually a showy version of an opera piece. The music is from a place in the opera that includes four different characters all expressing different emotions at the same time. What can you tell me about the characters? What can you tell me about the dialogue?" The teenagers's feedback proved that they were really exploring the sounds within the music, the dynamic shifts, the differences in texture, among many other characteristics. Then I shared the libretto and talked about the active dynamics as if we were gossiping about people we knew. I also played Prokofiev's third piano sonata and asked the same questions. Of course, the sonata does not have lyrics or a story written into the score; yet every performer creates one. I was impressed with how much detail the teenagers came up with to describe the sonata. "This was my story and I was the main character," I told them. "However, all the stories and characters that you came up with are just as correct; they are expressions of you!"
During the third and final session, I created a workshop in composition. "Think back to last week and the experience that you had listening to the Prokofiev sonata. Everyone get out a notebook and write down a list of feelings, emotions, characters and/or scenarios that came up last week. Let's talk about what specific things you heard that gave you those impressions, and why. As we crudely work through the score, notice what elements you are the most swayed by; is it the underlying rhythm? Tempo? Melodic Contour? Volume? The Physical way that I approached the section? The thickness of the section?" The teenagers worked for twenty minutes on these ideas. All were engaged. I led them toward a musical expression of themselves and their own stories:
"Think about the tempo and rhythm. We talked about the emotional qualities that rhythm and tempo can have. Think back to the entrance walk that I had you experiment with during our first session. You agreed that the slower walk showed more cool confidence. A faster tempo had a lot of you thinking about drama and action. Give me some descriptive words to describe your rhythm and tempo."
"Think about your melodic line. Remember when we were analyzing some songs in the first session and we decided that melodic lines that twist and turn are reminiscent of wailing or crying? Remind yourself what kind of melodic line you would here from someone cool and collected. “ Give me some descriptive words to describe you melodic line."
"Now, finally put some words to the musical excerpt that you just created. Allow the words to guided by the emotions in the music. Take note of what affect reversing this approach has on your outcome? How much more affective is your music?' Do you feel that may be able to rely on the words less to explain the whole story? Maybe you don't even need many words at all?”
The musical and personal results of this workshop inspired me. I made friends through the process; in fact, many of them requested to attend my recital. As performers, pedagogues, and teaching artists, we have to teach the language of music. We must encourage a relationship between engaged listening and active creativity because the world is just as beautiful and interesting as it ever was. It is the bridge between the sound world and the self that needs to be repaired. Unfortunately, we are dealing with a society where sounds abound as a constant drone and individuals stop listening. Once we succeed in getting their attention however, we also must help them find themselves in the sound. After all, isn't that how we all got seduced by this profession?
__________________________________________________________
Questions for Dean Chin:
1) What role do you think future ethnomusicologists have in future compositions? What role do you think they have in targeting today's multicultural audience?
2) Since it is impossible to perform a truly authentic historical performance, how much freedom do you believe the modern performer has to express his or her unique influences, soundscapes, life experiences, exposure to other genre, etc. within his or her performance of Classical works?
3) Do you believe that the classical performer has any values that he has a responsibility to preserve as times and tastes continue to change?
Today, it is a known fact that creativity is endangered. Children are conditioned to give the "correct" answer to a given question in schools, rather than encouraged to expand their mind to the possible ways of experiencing the world. Individuality is sacrificed in favor of working toward a general standard. These days, I don't think it is common for a child to "pretend" a sauce pan is a crown or to make a fishing pole out of a string tied to a stick. There are too many available toys already made. Children never have to use their abstract thinking.
What are we loosing when we surrender our individuality, our sensitivity to the world, our abstract thinking, our creativity and our playfulness? We loose a deeper connection to ourselves, empathy for our fellow man, and a magnitude of beauty that our world has to offer. Music is a creation of the active, abstract mind. It is a realm where the spirit can roam and expand into any form. It is a means of growth and a means of therapy. It is not hard to understand why children today have less discipline and generally less interest in everything including classical music yet I think it is urgent that we engage them anyway. As performers, as pedagogues, and as teaching artists, we may not be in demand among the youth like any other consumerist product of the 21st century but we are among the few that have the power to turn these children into open vessels, sensitive to interesting noise, the stillness of silence; vacuums which can then be filled by all the complicated expressions of a child getting to know himself.
Through Longy school of Music's experiencial education program. I had the opportunity to work directly with a class of urban teenagers at one of the city's Boy's and Girl's club locations in Everett, M.A.. This group of teenagers met after school every day to play beats and sing the lyrics to their favorite songs. My goal was to expose them to some music they had maybe never heard before and challenge them to find themselves in it.
During the first session I asked each teenager to pick a beat but to refrain from sharing the lyrics or the title of the song. Instead, I asked each to walk out to the beat in a manner that reflected the meaning of the lyrics. Each experimented with weight, tempo, facial expression, use of space, and a variety of other subtle expressions in order to represent the mood, the character, and the energy behind the music. I asked those in the audience: What is this song about? Who is the singer? Tell me more about her.Upon second performance of each song, I asked the teenagers to include the lyrics but to put just as much expression into their body language, their facial expression, and the way they move. It was clear that the teenagers had made the discovery that human and emotional qualities can be found in the abstract sounds that surround the lyrics in their song; that words are not always necessary to express something.
During the second session, I shared a bit of myself. I performed Liszt's concert paraphrase of Verdi's opera Rigoletto. I told them, "This piece is actually a showy version of an opera piece. The music is from a place in the opera that includes four different characters all expressing different emotions at the same time. What can you tell me about the characters? What can you tell me about the dialogue?" The teenagers's feedback proved that they were really exploring the sounds within the music, the dynamic shifts, the differences in texture, among many other characteristics. Then I shared the libretto and talked about the active dynamics as if we were gossiping about people we knew. I also played Prokofiev's third piano sonata and asked the same questions. Of course, the sonata does not have lyrics or a story written into the score; yet every performer creates one. I was impressed with how much detail the teenagers came up with to describe the sonata. "This was my story and I was the main character," I told them. "However, all the stories and characters that you came up with are just as correct; they are expressions of you!"
During the third and final session, I created a workshop in composition. "Think back to last week and the experience that you had listening to the Prokofiev sonata. Everyone get out a notebook and write down a list of feelings, emotions, characters and/or scenarios that came up last week. Let's talk about what specific things you heard that gave you those impressions, and why. As we crudely work through the score, notice what elements you are the most swayed by; is it the underlying rhythm? Tempo? Melodic Contour? Volume? The Physical way that I approached the section? The thickness of the section?" The teenagers worked for twenty minutes on these ideas. All were engaged. I led them toward a musical expression of themselves and their own stories:
"Think about the tempo and rhythm. We talked about the emotional qualities that rhythm and tempo can have. Think back to the entrance walk that I had you experiment with during our first session. You agreed that the slower walk showed more cool confidence. A faster tempo had a lot of you thinking about drama and action. Give me some descriptive words to describe your rhythm and tempo."
"Think about your melodic line. Remember when we were analyzing some songs in the first session and we decided that melodic lines that twist and turn are reminiscent of wailing or crying? Remind yourself what kind of melodic line you would here from someone cool and collected. “ Give me some descriptive words to describe you melodic line."
"Now, finally put some words to the musical excerpt that you just created. Allow the words to guided by the emotions in the music. Take note of what affect reversing this approach has on your outcome? How much more affective is your music?' Do you feel that may be able to rely on the words less to explain the whole story? Maybe you don't even need many words at all?”
The musical and personal results of this workshop inspired me. I made friends through the process; in fact, many of them requested to attend my recital. As performers, pedagogues, and teaching artists, we have to teach the language of music. We must encourage a relationship between engaged listening and active creativity because the world is just as beautiful and interesting as it ever was. It is the bridge between the sound world and the self that needs to be repaired. Unfortunately, we are dealing with a society where sounds abound as a constant drone and individuals stop listening. Once we succeed in getting their attention however, we also must help them find themselves in the sound. After all, isn't that how we all got seduced by this profession?
__________________________________________________________
Questions for Dean Chin:
1) What role do you think future ethnomusicologists have in future compositions? What role do you think they have in targeting today's multicultural audience?
2) Since it is impossible to perform a truly authentic historical performance, how much freedom do you believe the modern performer has to express his or her unique influences, soundscapes, life experiences, exposure to other genre, etc. within his or her performance of Classical works?
3) Do you believe that the classical performer has any values that he has a responsibility to preserve as times and tastes continue to change?
Play This Shape
Play this shape.
_______________
* * *
'''''' '''''''' ''''''''
What did it sound like? Why?
The second question is a critical aspect of making a lasting connection with listeners when playing graphically notated music. Even if your answer is "I don't know" or "I started playing it without really thinking" there is something to be said about your choices or lack thereof. The reasons why people play graphic notation in unique ways are fascinating. In my experience, audiences are genuinely excited by performers who provide a thoughtful, honest description of their performance choices.
A friend of mine wrote a graphically notated piece (a complex series of shapes and lines) for me and another bass player to perform back to back in a program. We decided to explore the possibilities of perception. The other bass player received the work a week in advance and made several notes about his choices for performing. He performed the piece for the audience and answered questions while I sat with my ears plugged in an adjacent room. I then walked to the performing space and was handed the piece for the first time just before I played it. This allowed for a completely different perspective of the work both in respects to who was performing and the amount of preparation time. Our interpretations were completely different which led to wonderful discussions among everyone present.
This is not to say that all graphic notation is solely based on performer choices and freedoms. Many compositions in this style are specific about rhythm, pitch, dynamics, timbre, etc. In those cases, graphic notation serves the purpose of demonstrating exactly what a performer should do when playing a piece. The graphic element of the composition is often used to fill a void left by traditional notation. This type of notation is certainly useful but it is less romantic to talk about.
Onto the romantic part...
Let's be free from stems and note heads Let's play rectangles, triangles, photographs, paintings, nature, or even actual people. Who is to stop a performer from 'playing' the audience? Think of all the inspiration that comes from curious people. When we talk about the future of classical music we need to be considering every facet of composition as well. Playing music that is graphically notated can be fulfilling and even liberating. I highly recommend it to anyone that is curious.
One final thought:
What is the limit of graphic notation?A friend of mine wrote a graphically notated piece (a complex series of shapes and lines) for me and another bass player to perform back to back in a program. We decided to explore the possibilities of perception. The other bass player received the work a week in advance and made several notes about his choices for performing. He performed the piece for the audience and answered questions while I sat with my ears plugged in an adjacent room. I then walked to the performing space and was handed the piece for the first time just before I played it. This allowed for a completely different perspective of the work both in respects to who was performing and the amount of preparation time. Our interpretations were completely different which led to wonderful discussions among everyone present.
This is not to say that all graphic notation is solely based on performer choices and freedoms. Many compositions in this style are specific about rhythm, pitch, dynamics, timbre, etc. In those cases, graphic notation serves the purpose of demonstrating exactly what a performer should do when playing a piece. The graphic element of the composition is often used to fill a void left by traditional notation. This type of notation is certainly useful but it is less romantic to talk about.
Onto the romantic part...
Let's be free from stems and note heads Let's play rectangles, triangles, photographs, paintings, nature, or even actual people. Who is to stop a performer from 'playing' the audience? Think of all the inspiration that comes from curious people. When we talk about the future of classical music we need to be considering every facet of composition as well. Playing music that is graphically notated can be fulfilling and even liberating. I highly recommend it to anyone that is curious.
One final thought:
...
Playing Classical Music in Non-Standard Venues
I was surfing the web for recent news in the classical music world when I came across this interesting article of how classical music groups in the Baltimore area are performing their music in non-standard venues such as bars, public parks, open houses, and other areas. I found the article very intriguing as I saw the immediate potential of this for classical musicians.
A striking part of the article that I read mentioned a musician that stated that the raised stage of the standard concert hall places musicians on a different level than the audience. He goes on to say that when classical musicians play in venues in which they are close to the audience and the stage is not raised, the artist is taken off the "pedestal" and is consequently made more accessible to the average concert goer.
This reminds me of one of my most memorable moments from my undergraduate music career, when I performed in an art gallery. The College of Wooster was known for its undergraduate research program in which seniors take on an independent study project and work throughout their senior year on the said project. At the end of the year, the seniors present their research on a certain day. As a performance major, my senior thesis just involved preparing to give a senior recital. Being that I was one of the only senior music performance majors at the school, I was asked to play a piece from my program (a duet with a violinist) at the school's art gallery while the art majors presented their senior projects.
This memory not only resonated with me because of the great acoustics of the gallery, but also because I was able to perform for a more diverse crowd. I feel that this performance also was able to give proper representation to the music department, more importantly classical music as a whole. In addition, I felt a strong sense of freedom with the audience, as this was distinctly not a music hall. This could further lead to more performances of its kind.
This article gives me hope for classical musicians; it proves that there are more venues to play at than the "hall". I for one would enjoy going to a bar and seeing a performance of Ravel's string quartet. Although it would be difficult to change the perception of classical music as a sacred art only performed in a concert hall, I believe that with time we can change that image. As with a multitude of things, this change will have to start with the generation. But honestly, who doesn't want to see a live performance of a Mahler symphony at a local pub?
A striking part of the article that I read mentioned a musician that stated that the raised stage of the standard concert hall places musicians on a different level than the audience. He goes on to say that when classical musicians play in venues in which they are close to the audience and the stage is not raised, the artist is taken off the "pedestal" and is consequently made more accessible to the average concert goer.
This reminds me of one of my most memorable moments from my undergraduate music career, when I performed in an art gallery. The College of Wooster was known for its undergraduate research program in which seniors take on an independent study project and work throughout their senior year on the said project. At the end of the year, the seniors present their research on a certain day. As a performance major, my senior thesis just involved preparing to give a senior recital. Being that I was one of the only senior music performance majors at the school, I was asked to play a piece from my program (a duet with a violinist) at the school's art gallery while the art majors presented their senior projects.
This memory not only resonated with me because of the great acoustics of the gallery, but also because I was able to perform for a more diverse crowd. I feel that this performance also was able to give proper representation to the music department, more importantly classical music as a whole. In addition, I felt a strong sense of freedom with the audience, as this was distinctly not a music hall. This could further lead to more performances of its kind.
This article gives me hope for classical musicians; it proves that there are more venues to play at than the "hall". I for one would enjoy going to a bar and seeing a performance of Ravel's string quartet. Although it would be difficult to change the perception of classical music as a sacred art only performed in a concert hall, I believe that with time we can change that image. As with a multitude of things, this change will have to start with the generation. But honestly, who doesn't want to see a live performance of a Mahler symphony at a local pub?
Should Classical Music be "Cool"
Bridget Jones recently wrote an article for stuff.co.nz entitled "How to Make Classical Music Cool?" In the article, she discussed the recent trend in New Zealand regarding orchestras and their inclusion of popular music into the repertoire. Before her substantial list of recent mash-ups involving orchestras and popular musicians, she apologizes to all those who may be offended by the wording of her headline. She writes "Sorry, that's a question that might be slightly offensive to some people
- I mean, a: who says it's not already cool? And b: who says it has to
be (or wants to be) cool?" This is a question that has been at the heart of our course discussion as well as one of Dean Chin's talking points two weeks ago. Do we, as classical musicians, want to be "cool" and play for thousands of screaming fans?
Answering that question demands that we take a philosophical stance on the role of music in today's culture. To answer "no" would be to say that classical music should be content with its current relatively small but devoted audience. It would be to say that a mass of adoring fans somehow cheapens the art form. It would be to perpetuate the negative stereotypes of pretense and inhospitality surrounding the theater of classical music. My personal answer to the aforementioned question is a resounding "yes". The average music listener in this country has the ear for classical music. We see the proof of that year after year when we go to the movie theater and hear the music of Michael Giacchino or Alan Silvestri in dolby surround sound. John Williams, one of the most prolific and accomplished classical composers of our time, has been nominated for 47 Academy Awards. Classical music can extend its reach and influence upon society if it decides to swallow its pride to younger audiences. That is precisely the phenomenon that Jones describes in her article, and in my mind, it requires no apology.
Answering that question demands that we take a philosophical stance on the role of music in today's culture. To answer "no" would be to say that classical music should be content with its current relatively small but devoted audience. It would be to say that a mass of adoring fans somehow cheapens the art form. It would be to perpetuate the negative stereotypes of pretense and inhospitality surrounding the theater of classical music. My personal answer to the aforementioned question is a resounding "yes". The average music listener in this country has the ear for classical music. We see the proof of that year after year when we go to the movie theater and hear the music of Michael Giacchino or Alan Silvestri in dolby surround sound. John Williams, one of the most prolific and accomplished classical composers of our time, has been nominated for 47 Academy Awards. Classical music can extend its reach and influence upon society if it decides to swallow its pride to younger audiences. That is precisely the phenomenon that Jones describes in her article, and in my mind, it requires no apology.
To get orchestras out of their financial mess, all sides must accept the new realities
By Eric Nilsson
October 17, 2012
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/10/18/nilsson/
This article illustrates the crisis on labor issue of musicians, and the writer offers some practical solutions from his point of view.
The brief answer to the problem is about the money by promoting the donation from the society.
In fact, promoting donation or charity requires enormous effort and makes people confront some critical problems to do fundraising in these days. In recent years, the economy goes to the worse direction and many people suffer from the financial difficulty. This condition makes people thinking the positive reaction (i.e., any form of benefit) from their action. When people are asked about the donation, they might expect some benefit. For example, when a music institution sends a letter of fundraising, the recipients of the letter might find a music event that is exclusively for the donators. I do not think that this way of thinking is not right, but the financial difficulty makes people to think in this way.
For the continuous development of music, the institutions as well as the society generously support the musicians or musical talents within the people. This is also true for the continual existence of orchestra groups that undergo the financial problems.
===============================
Question for Dean Chin
1. What is the expectation of doing Celebrity series? What is the actual outcome of the past events?
2. I am personally curious about how Dean Chin has prepared the future through his entire life.
3. Who was a mentor who has been strongly impacted in your life and what was the influence of that individual?
October 17, 2012
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/10/18/nilsson/
This article illustrates the crisis on labor issue of musicians, and the writer offers some practical solutions from his point of view.
The brief answer to the problem is about the money by promoting the donation from the society.
In fact, promoting donation or charity requires enormous effort and makes people confront some critical problems to do fundraising in these days. In recent years, the economy goes to the worse direction and many people suffer from the financial difficulty. This condition makes people thinking the positive reaction (i.e., any form of benefit) from their action. When people are asked about the donation, they might expect some benefit. For example, when a music institution sends a letter of fundraising, the recipients of the letter might find a music event that is exclusively for the donators. I do not think that this way of thinking is not right, but the financial difficulty makes people to think in this way.
For the continuous development of music, the institutions as well as the society generously support the musicians or musical talents within the people. This is also true for the continual existence of orchestra groups that undergo the financial problems.
===============================
Question for Dean Chin
1. What is the expectation of doing Celebrity series? What is the actual outcome of the past events?
2. I am personally curious about how Dean Chin has prepared the future through his entire life.
3. Who was a mentor who has been strongly impacted in your life and what was the influence of that individual?
Monday, October 22, 2012
Thoughts on Social Function
While reading the Hewett text this week, I was struck by the idea of music being an authentic expression of whatever social situation was at hand.1 As he traced the evolution of music from its role in the early church to the conception of a formal concert, it got me wondering about the social function of classical music today. Some of us have already discussed how classical music can function as a force for social change, but I'm curious how it functions in a broader social sense.
At work last Saturday, I overheard a customer chatting with her friend about this horrible concert her father dragged her to at Symphony Hall. She said it was the "Military band President thingy" which I was able to translate as 'The President's Own' U.S. Marine Band. She said it was the most boring thing ever, and that they ended up leaving at intermission. Apparently she then thanked her father for taking her out to another of one of his stupid ideas that always end up as epic fails. Funny, because earlier that morning I saw a number of my friends who went to the same concert rave about how wonderful it was. Obviously, for this girl, this concert was not her idea of a social function, or even a function worthy of her time. Had it been Lady GaGa or Katy Perry, I bet she would have thought her dad was the best ever.
If we are going to make an effort to expand the audience for classical music, I think we need to focus on how concerts are percieved and how they function as a social scene. Like Hewett said, once music became mobile, music became seperate from its original social situation, and instead became the social situation itself.2 But how social are concerts, really? Yes, there is the potential dinner before or after, the opportunity for socializing at intermission, and the proverbial night cap before heading home, but none of that happens when the music is being performed. Compared to a pop or rock concert, where during the entire performance you're probably singing your lungs out along with the performers, dancing with friends, and perhaps having a drink, classical concerts aren't very social at all. Especially to the people who are not classically inclined.
I don't have an answer to this dilemma, but I think the mobility of music today can help the situation. It's now possible to listen to almost any piece of music anywhere you are in the world. What motivates people to listen to what they choose to listen to? Taste, popularity of the band, emotional connection; the list goes on and on. Fortunately, making classical music more relevant and creating more connections to the emotions of people who may not principally listen to classical music through meduims such as the companion CD to Fifty Shades of Grey is a wonderful beginning. The more people hear the music and have the chance to make a connection to it, the better. Then, the social function of a classical music concert becomes more relevant. It needs to work from both ends though. As we try and get our music out to more people, we also have to work on re-thinking the fundamentals of the concert experience so that we can reach out to the audience that is hopefully, trying to reach out to us.
____
1 Hewett, Ivan, Music Healing the Rift (New York: Continuum, 2003), 12
2 Hewitt, 15
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Music and Mental Health
I have never been much of an animal activist, but this article I read certainly made a very good case for the better treatment of animals in regards to music.
The article summarizes a recent study at Colorado State University in which dogs were subjected to various musical genres. The point was to monitor and assess the relaxation of the dogs while hearing music and thereby provide better care facilities for the animals. In a controlled setting, the dogs were observed while they listened to classical music, rock music, modified classical music, and silence. The study found that the subjects were considerably more relaxed when listening to classical music or the modified classical music. Rock music made the animals agitated and restless. The conclusions were based on the animal's observable movements and vocalizations during musical exposure.
I found this study intriguing for several reasons. It is interesting for the ways it promotes better treatment for animals and how it implies that music is a special force for mental well-being. I would be curious to hear someone from the Dalcroze department remark on this fact. Given their focus on mind, body, and movement, they could provide some fascinating insight into the claims of this study. I do wish the study had been a bit more extensive. Having been limited to just dogs, I do find the credibility of the study a bit far-fetched. Besides, other, similar studies have come to different conclusions. One study even goes as far as to say that human music is uncomfortable for our pets and other animal species. This affects my confidence in the believability of this relaxation study. The results are not particularly definitive and could be easily refuted given other, larger bodies of evidence. Also, while rock music isn't characteristically relaxing, I am not happy that it has been automatically assumed to be the antithesis to classical music.
However, I do think we agree that music, of all types, is a viable tool for relaxation. I myself often relax with a good Brahms symphony when I'm stressed. I will also unwind while listening to a Queen album if I feel so inclined. If music can relax a dog, it definitely has an influence on our own mental health. The extent of that influence is as varied and unique as the number of people who listen to music. Every individual perceives a different energy or catharsis within a musical work, regardless of the genre or your species.
Obama + Musicians = Good, happy, fun times
Unfortunately, it's time to get political.
I have heard too many an artist quip and complain that they are "apathetic" when it comes to politics. Yes, our political system is corrupt in many ways. Yes, the Electoral College is a joke. Yes, campaign financing is horrific. And yes, it is absurd to have a two-party system in such a vast, diverse nation. But you know what? There are candidates to vote for. And the outcome will affect your life. You cannot afford to be "above" it, because "above" could mean "below," in the sense that your apathy has forced the votes of people with questionable self-interest to win the election, gain power, and take over forces that could ultimately force you into poverty, joblessness, or ex-patriat-ism.
In a sense, the apathetic artist, particularly in the case of classical music and art, contributes to the growing sense of irrelevancy and elitism that has been the main focus of this blog. Sorry, folks - if you are a self-employed artist, and you get cancer without health insurance, and you have elected a candidate who opposes current health reforms, and don't have upwards of $200,000 to pay for treatment, the heroism of a Beethoven symphony isn't going to do anything for you, except maybe raise your spirits while you wither away. You have a body just like everyone else, and you, as a likely self-employed, debt-ridden, grant-writing member of the community, benefit from the common good. Artists: your well-being, employability, your financial future, and, ultimately, the health of music in this nation, depend in many ways on the policy and culture set forth by the candidates you elect.
I'm sure you all know or can guess that I am a fervent Obama fanatic, but, I'd like to just lay down some issues for you if you happen to be undecided. I am not going to even attempt to rid myself of bias, but that's because these issues have truly affected me on a personal level - and I expect that we share this in common. Upon perusing the internet, I haven't found many voter's resources that cater to the artist, as we are such a small but vulnerable component of the population. I hope this article can, at the very least, help you realize the importance of your vote for whoever and whatever candidates, and inspire you to be involved with policy-making and discussion on any greater level.
Some issues artist-voters should consider:
National Endowment for the Arts
The most obvious is funding for the National Endowment for the Arts. Now, I have engaged in many a firey conversation with fellow artists on the relevancy of this organization in today's world, with Kickstarter and Indiegogo providing immense amounts of funding for various organizations. But, the fact remains that, if we have a governmental institution that supports the arts and is well-respected and well-funded, we are a step closer to disseminating a cultural belief in the importance of the arts throughout the nation. It is true that governmental agencies, while often inefficient, have a symbolic affect on the populace, and if we eliminate any national recognition that arts are an important part of our moral and social lives, we risk communicating this to our vulnerable cultural identity. Moreover, if governmental grants and other programs provide yet another avenue for independant artists and organizations to seek funding, then we are well off! Kickstarter, Indiegogo, state and federal grant programs must all coexist for us to have an inspiring, multi-faceted future. Young children and teenagers will be more drawn to a career in the arts that offers the stable edifice of governmental support - imagine the fear a teenager off to college would face if she knew that her only prospects of funding were Kickstarter and Indiegogo! Without a reputation, it's nearly impossible to make a decent living off of these resources. But the NEA funds organizations, which in turn give us jobs. We cannot afford to lose the NEA. You don't have to use it, but it needs to exist.
Presidential candidates' positions on the NEA
Barack Obama: supports increased funding to the NEA. Cuts occurred in 2009 as part of a drastic across-the-board cut for all government spending, but his 2013 budget includes very hopeful allegations towards the arts. More here, here (PLEASE READ THIS ONE!!!!), and here.
Quotes: "..We have to remember that our strength as a people runs deeper than our military might; it runs deeper than our GDP -- it's also about our values and our ideals that each generation is called to uphold, and that each artist helps us better understand.
And it's also about the capacity of the arts and the humanities to connect us to one another. In a nation as big as ours, as diverse as ours, as full as debate and consternation as it sometimes is, what the people we honor here today remind us of is that kernel of ourselves that connects to everyone else and allows us to get out of ourselves, to see through somebody else's eyes, to step in their shoes. And what more vital ingredient is there for our democracy than that?" - Barack Obama, awarding the 2010 National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medal (full transcript here)
Mitt Romney: supports cutting the NEA drastically and even gutting it entirely, as well as education and other programs that feed into the arts (you probably heard him hate all over Big Bird). During his tenure as governor of Masschusetts, Romney attempted to drastically cut arts funding, but was unsuccessful due to congress. Romney is not alone in this, as the general GOP platform doesn't support spending in much other than defense and corporate bailouts. Importantly, gutting the NEA and other programs, while it would save a few pennies, doesn't even touch balancing the budget, and in a sense this becomes a cut for principle rather than for effective policy and growth. More here and here, and in this hugely important post about Romney's tenure as governer, and how he tried to cut the Massachusetts Cultural Council grants which enable many of us at Longy to do what we do.
Quotes: "Some of these things, like those endowment efforts and PBS I very much appreciate and like what they do in many cases, but I just think they have to stand on their own." Mitt Romney, in an interview.
And just for fun, a quote from our ol' friend Sarah "Winkin' Countrypants" Palin: "NPR, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, all those kind of frivolous things that government shouldn't be in the business of funding with tax dollars -- those should all be on the chopping block as we talk about the $14-trillion debt that we're going to hand to our kids and our grandkids. Yes, those are the type of things that for more than one reason need to be cut." - Don't you just LOVE her??
Education and Student Loans
Look, we're all probably in some form of student loan debt, and many of us likely discovered our passion for music though a publicly funded in-school arts education program. These issues go hand in hand: it is in their best interest for artists to support candidates who provide more funding for education, which has several results. First of all, more allocation to education funds nationally can help lower tuition and provide grants and scholarships for students in all fields, particularly the arts. Secondly, more funding towards public education means schools have greater means to include arts in their curriculum; exposing children at young ages means more people interested in arts as a career, more cultural support for the arts, and, surprise, more jobs for those of us who are already trained and working in the arts world. I can't imagine why you would vote for a candidate who wants this all privatized and at the whim of a billionaire's pocket, but, that's an option if for some twisted reason this appeals to you. And, lastly, since so many of us are already in debt, we need a candidate who will help us find solutions to pay off our loans in a way that corresponds with our income, and also who keeps interest rates from rising. To go along with this, the jobs from aforementioned education funding will help us pay off our debt in a more timely matter. (And maybe a few NEA grants, at that).
Presidential candidates positions on student loans and education funding
Barack Obama: in 2012, kept student loan interest rates from rising; capped student loan repayments at 10% of income; growth in Pell Grants; eliminated No Child Left Behind; supports states' individual initiative in educational policies; seeks to tighten federal oversight of tuition for for-profit institutions; proposes to invest in community colleges that train students for specific jobs, enhancing job growth; opposes voucher programs and public tax money used for private schools; I could go on forever.
Mitt Romney: thinks the federal government should have little to do with k-12 education excepting cases for disabled and and poor students; proposes to restructure Pell Grants, making them rarer and only allocating to the most disadvantaged of students; would attempt to eliminate regulation on student loan lenders, believing the private sector is better equipped to handle loan situations (which is clearly terrifying); agreed with Obama to keep student loan interest rates down; wanted to ban bilingual education as governor of MA (legislation did not pass); wanted to require the parents in the lowest-performing schools to attend parenting classes while they put their children in full-day kindergarten (appalling, also did not pass). Overall, Romney is a little ambiguous on education (what a surprise), but his emphasis on letting the private sector "take care of it" should be a note of caution for all of us - when banks are involved, this is a very unsafe route. Obama's proven record and enthusiasm for education is, perhaps, a more solid route for the voter to follow.
A good article here that pits issues of both candidates side-to-side.
Healthcare
If you are an artist, health insurance is a tricky, soft issue. As I mentioned in the beginning of this article, many artists are self-employed, which often means they are either paying out of pocket for their own insurance, or simply do not have it. Even in my fervent support of Obama, I am appalled at the United States' general inability to pass universal health care: I'm sure there is a link somewhere where someone has proved that universal healthcare is tied to healthy artistic cultures, because when you have poor, self-employed people who are often suffering mentally and physically from their very occupation (tendinitis? laryngitis? performance anxiety?), draining their finances on doctor's visits cannot be particularly healthy to the economy or the well-being of art in that nation. Because of the national attention given to Obamacare, I probably don't need to outline all the points of why it benefits you as an artist; and also, you live in Massachusetts, and our healthcare system was the model for Obamacare. Ironically, of course, because it was the very Governor Romney who instigated it, and now he thinks it's bad news. Another reason to be wary of his ways.
Presidential candidates' positions on healthcare
Barack Obama: developed and passed Obamacare, or, the Affordable Care Act, which was upheld by the Supreme Court as constitutional and a "tax." As I'm sure you know, ACA allows people with pre-existing conditions to get health insurance; prevents women from paying more on health insurance simply due to their gender; health insurance is more affordable to those who have to purchase it, of particular interest to us; young people are allowed to stay on parents insurance until age 26, particularly helpful for young artists; medicaid expansion; cuts the deficit; more and more and more and more. Read more simply on its Wiki or here, a site outlining myths and facts about Obamacare.
Mitt Romney: vows to appeal Obamacare for unknown reasons if he's elected, most likely because of principle that the government should take the backseat to the private sector. So, this is where "principle" becomes really harmful and irrelevant. Keep in mind that opposition to Obamacare was people saying that they did not want to be told to have healthcare. Just ponder that for a moment. The GOP thinks that millions should be without care simply because.... they don't want to be told that. As an artist, you need a healthcare safety net: please consider this. Read Mitt Romney's position on Obamacare here; of course, like everything else, he has a variety of responses, most of them to the tune of "Uhh, Government should not do stuff... and I'm better than you so you should listen." We can be assured that he would allocate more power to the private sector which, as usual for artists, does more harm than good.
Global Reputation
Something we don't often think about: the arts is an international career. In order for meaningful, relevant art to be created, cultures must mix, relationships must be positive. We need a candidate who promotes a positive image of American culture abroad, in order for artists to be drawn to work with us; we need cultures from the developing world to look upon our leader with an inspired attitude, to see our leader as someone that understands recognizes and cares for their plight. We, as artists, also need to be able to obtain visas, to travel to any country of our choice, without disdain and fear thrown upon us at customs. My family endured countless fees and impasses traveling through Europe and Latin America during the Bush years - it was unreal; many of these fees were instigated simply because of Bush's reputation. Artists cannot afford this socially, artistically, and financially. We cannot go back to that - and the global perception of Obama is, already, clearly a more positive situation than the perception of Romney, which failed miserably during his many Olympic gaffes in London.
Please vote. Please prove to your non-artist peers and your culture as a whole that we are relevant members of society, and please help prove to your government that we have a voice and a purpose in our nation than must be recognized and support but all possible forces. The future of classical music will go nowhere if the future of art is outsourced to countries with better funding. We have too great of a thing going on here in the good ol' U S of A to slash it entirely.
So, that's my two cents. You might not agree with me, but, in four years, please don't make me say I told you so.
Oh, also: if you are a woman, artist or not, keep in mind that Romney sees you as a resume in a binder, and Paul Ryan sees you as a baby-incubator.
(Couldn't help myself).
I have heard too many an artist quip and complain that they are "apathetic" when it comes to politics. Yes, our political system is corrupt in many ways. Yes, the Electoral College is a joke. Yes, campaign financing is horrific. And yes, it is absurd to have a two-party system in such a vast, diverse nation. But you know what? There are candidates to vote for. And the outcome will affect your life. You cannot afford to be "above" it, because "above" could mean "below," in the sense that your apathy has forced the votes of people with questionable self-interest to win the election, gain power, and take over forces that could ultimately force you into poverty, joblessness, or ex-patriat-ism.
In a sense, the apathetic artist, particularly in the case of classical music and art, contributes to the growing sense of irrelevancy and elitism that has been the main focus of this blog. Sorry, folks - if you are a self-employed artist, and you get cancer without health insurance, and you have elected a candidate who opposes current health reforms, and don't have upwards of $200,000 to pay for treatment, the heroism of a Beethoven symphony isn't going to do anything for you, except maybe raise your spirits while you wither away. You have a body just like everyone else, and you, as a likely self-employed, debt-ridden, grant-writing member of the community, benefit from the common good. Artists: your well-being, employability, your financial future, and, ultimately, the health of music in this nation, depend in many ways on the policy and culture set forth by the candidates you elect.
I'm sure you all know or can guess that I am a fervent Obama fanatic, but, I'd like to just lay down some issues for you if you happen to be undecided. I am not going to even attempt to rid myself of bias, but that's because these issues have truly affected me on a personal level - and I expect that we share this in common. Upon perusing the internet, I haven't found many voter's resources that cater to the artist, as we are such a small but vulnerable component of the population. I hope this article can, at the very least, help you realize the importance of your vote for whoever and whatever candidates, and inspire you to be involved with policy-making and discussion on any greater level.
Some issues artist-voters should consider:
National Endowment for the Arts
The most obvious is funding for the National Endowment for the Arts. Now, I have engaged in many a firey conversation with fellow artists on the relevancy of this organization in today's world, with Kickstarter and Indiegogo providing immense amounts of funding for various organizations. But, the fact remains that, if we have a governmental institution that supports the arts and is well-respected and well-funded, we are a step closer to disseminating a cultural belief in the importance of the arts throughout the nation. It is true that governmental agencies, while often inefficient, have a symbolic affect on the populace, and if we eliminate any national recognition that arts are an important part of our moral and social lives, we risk communicating this to our vulnerable cultural identity. Moreover, if governmental grants and other programs provide yet another avenue for independant artists and organizations to seek funding, then we are well off! Kickstarter, Indiegogo, state and federal grant programs must all coexist for us to have an inspiring, multi-faceted future. Young children and teenagers will be more drawn to a career in the arts that offers the stable edifice of governmental support - imagine the fear a teenager off to college would face if she knew that her only prospects of funding were Kickstarter and Indiegogo! Without a reputation, it's nearly impossible to make a decent living off of these resources. But the NEA funds organizations, which in turn give us jobs. We cannot afford to lose the NEA. You don't have to use it, but it needs to exist.
Presidential candidates' positions on the NEA
Barack Obama: supports increased funding to the NEA. Cuts occurred in 2009 as part of a drastic across-the-board cut for all government spending, but his 2013 budget includes very hopeful allegations towards the arts. More here, here (PLEASE READ THIS ONE!!!!), and here.
Quotes: "..We have to remember that our strength as a people runs deeper than our military might; it runs deeper than our GDP -- it's also about our values and our ideals that each generation is called to uphold, and that each artist helps us better understand.
And it's also about the capacity of the arts and the humanities to connect us to one another. In a nation as big as ours, as diverse as ours, as full as debate and consternation as it sometimes is, what the people we honor here today remind us of is that kernel of ourselves that connects to everyone else and allows us to get out of ourselves, to see through somebody else's eyes, to step in their shoes. And what more vital ingredient is there for our democracy than that?" - Barack Obama, awarding the 2010 National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medal (full transcript here)
Mitt Romney: supports cutting the NEA drastically and even gutting it entirely, as well as education and other programs that feed into the arts (you probably heard him hate all over Big Bird). During his tenure as governor of Masschusetts, Romney attempted to drastically cut arts funding, but was unsuccessful due to congress. Romney is not alone in this, as the general GOP platform doesn't support spending in much other than defense and corporate bailouts. Importantly, gutting the NEA and other programs, while it would save a few pennies, doesn't even touch balancing the budget, and in a sense this becomes a cut for principle rather than for effective policy and growth. More here and here, and in this hugely important post about Romney's tenure as governer, and how he tried to cut the Massachusetts Cultural Council grants which enable many of us at Longy to do what we do.
Quotes: "Some of these things, like those endowment efforts and PBS I very much appreciate and like what they do in many cases, but I just think they have to stand on their own." Mitt Romney, in an interview.
And just for fun, a quote from our ol' friend Sarah "Winkin' Countrypants" Palin: "NPR, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, all those kind of frivolous things that government shouldn't be in the business of funding with tax dollars -- those should all be on the chopping block as we talk about the $14-trillion debt that we're going to hand to our kids and our grandkids. Yes, those are the type of things that for more than one reason need to be cut." - Don't you just LOVE her??
Education and Student Loans
Look, we're all probably in some form of student loan debt, and many of us likely discovered our passion for music though a publicly funded in-school arts education program. These issues go hand in hand: it is in their best interest for artists to support candidates who provide more funding for education, which has several results. First of all, more allocation to education funds nationally can help lower tuition and provide grants and scholarships for students in all fields, particularly the arts. Secondly, more funding towards public education means schools have greater means to include arts in their curriculum; exposing children at young ages means more people interested in arts as a career, more cultural support for the arts, and, surprise, more jobs for those of us who are already trained and working in the arts world. I can't imagine why you would vote for a candidate who wants this all privatized and at the whim of a billionaire's pocket, but, that's an option if for some twisted reason this appeals to you. And, lastly, since so many of us are already in debt, we need a candidate who will help us find solutions to pay off our loans in a way that corresponds with our income, and also who keeps interest rates from rising. To go along with this, the jobs from aforementioned education funding will help us pay off our debt in a more timely matter. (And maybe a few NEA grants, at that).
Presidential candidates positions on student loans and education funding
Barack Obama: in 2012, kept student loan interest rates from rising; capped student loan repayments at 10% of income; growth in Pell Grants; eliminated No Child Left Behind; supports states' individual initiative in educational policies; seeks to tighten federal oversight of tuition for for-profit institutions; proposes to invest in community colleges that train students for specific jobs, enhancing job growth; opposes voucher programs and public tax money used for private schools; I could go on forever.
Mitt Romney: thinks the federal government should have little to do with k-12 education excepting cases for disabled and and poor students; proposes to restructure Pell Grants, making them rarer and only allocating to the most disadvantaged of students; would attempt to eliminate regulation on student loan lenders, believing the private sector is better equipped to handle loan situations (which is clearly terrifying); agreed with Obama to keep student loan interest rates down; wanted to ban bilingual education as governor of MA (legislation did not pass); wanted to require the parents in the lowest-performing schools to attend parenting classes while they put their children in full-day kindergarten (appalling, also did not pass). Overall, Romney is a little ambiguous on education (what a surprise), but his emphasis on letting the private sector "take care of it" should be a note of caution for all of us - when banks are involved, this is a very unsafe route. Obama's proven record and enthusiasm for education is, perhaps, a more solid route for the voter to follow.
A good article here that pits issues of both candidates side-to-side.
Healthcare
If you are an artist, health insurance is a tricky, soft issue. As I mentioned in the beginning of this article, many artists are self-employed, which often means they are either paying out of pocket for their own insurance, or simply do not have it. Even in my fervent support of Obama, I am appalled at the United States' general inability to pass universal health care: I'm sure there is a link somewhere where someone has proved that universal healthcare is tied to healthy artistic cultures, because when you have poor, self-employed people who are often suffering mentally and physically from their very occupation (tendinitis? laryngitis? performance anxiety?), draining their finances on doctor's visits cannot be particularly healthy to the economy or the well-being of art in that nation. Because of the national attention given to Obamacare, I probably don't need to outline all the points of why it benefits you as an artist; and also, you live in Massachusetts, and our healthcare system was the model for Obamacare. Ironically, of course, because it was the very Governor Romney who instigated it, and now he thinks it's bad news. Another reason to be wary of his ways.
Presidential candidates' positions on healthcare
Barack Obama: developed and passed Obamacare, or, the Affordable Care Act, which was upheld by the Supreme Court as constitutional and a "tax." As I'm sure you know, ACA allows people with pre-existing conditions to get health insurance; prevents women from paying more on health insurance simply due to their gender; health insurance is more affordable to those who have to purchase it, of particular interest to us; young people are allowed to stay on parents insurance until age 26, particularly helpful for young artists; medicaid expansion; cuts the deficit; more and more and more and more. Read more simply on its Wiki or here, a site outlining myths and facts about Obamacare.
Mitt Romney: vows to appeal Obamacare for unknown reasons if he's elected, most likely because of principle that the government should take the backseat to the private sector. So, this is where "principle" becomes really harmful and irrelevant. Keep in mind that opposition to Obamacare was people saying that they did not want to be told to have healthcare. Just ponder that for a moment. The GOP thinks that millions should be without care simply because.... they don't want to be told that. As an artist, you need a healthcare safety net: please consider this. Read Mitt Romney's position on Obamacare here; of course, like everything else, he has a variety of responses, most of them to the tune of "Uhh, Government should not do stuff... and I'm better than you so you should listen." We can be assured that he would allocate more power to the private sector which, as usual for artists, does more harm than good.
Global Reputation
Something we don't often think about: the arts is an international career. In order for meaningful, relevant art to be created, cultures must mix, relationships must be positive. We need a candidate who promotes a positive image of American culture abroad, in order for artists to be drawn to work with us; we need cultures from the developing world to look upon our leader with an inspired attitude, to see our leader as someone that understands recognizes and cares for their plight. We, as artists, also need to be able to obtain visas, to travel to any country of our choice, without disdain and fear thrown upon us at customs. My family endured countless fees and impasses traveling through Europe and Latin America during the Bush years - it was unreal; many of these fees were instigated simply because of Bush's reputation. Artists cannot afford this socially, artistically, and financially. We cannot go back to that - and the global perception of Obama is, already, clearly a more positive situation than the perception of Romney, which failed miserably during his many Olympic gaffes in London.
Please vote. Please prove to your non-artist peers and your culture as a whole that we are relevant members of society, and please help prove to your government that we have a voice and a purpose in our nation than must be recognized and support but all possible forces. The future of classical music will go nowhere if the future of art is outsourced to countries with better funding. We have too great of a thing going on here in the good ol' U S of A to slash it entirely.
So, that's my two cents. You might not agree with me, but, in four years, please don't make me say I told you so.
Oh, also: if you are a woman, artist or not, keep in mind that Romney sees you as a resume in a binder, and Paul Ryan sees you as a baby-incubator.
(Couldn't help myself).
The New Classical Era?
Having
lived in Chicago for about ten years of my life, I try to keep up with
the various things that are going on there, so when I saw an article in
the New Yorker by Alex Ross about the Chicago Symphony’s opening night
at Carnegie Hall, I immediately read it, curious to see what sort of
review the concert had gotten. It has only been three years since
Riccardo Muti has been directing the CSO, and some of that time has been
a little shaky. The first year wasn’t as great a success as expected
because of Muti’s health problems, which prevented him from directing a
number of concerts. And, as we know, the last few weeks have been
tumultuous due to a short-lived strike in the orchestra. There were
questions about whether the CSO would be able to pull off Carnegie
Hall’s opening night in New York, but thankfully, I am proud to say that
according to several reviews, the orchestra gave a beautiful
performance, a good sign for the collaborative future of the CSO and
Maestro Muti.
More than just a great performance, Muti’s repertoire choices bring up some interesting ideas. Instead of playing the current popular choices such as Beethoven or Mozart, Muti decided to perform Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana,” Ottorino Respighi’s “Feste Romane,” Cesar Franck’s Symphony in D minor, and Mason Bates’ (one of the CSO’s composers in residence) “Energy Symphony.” Accordingly, Alex Ross titled his article about the concert “Back in Style.” According to Ross, it seems that different historical periods value, or at the very least, put more emphasis, on certain composers. The resulting effect is that the same composers and the same works are performed repeatedly by different orchestras all around the world. Unsurprisingly, this can make classical music feel dated. As musicians trying to find our footing in a world that has already been labeled as passé, it is probably not in our best interest to limit ourselves to the most “well-known” and readily-accepted group of composers. In an informal talk with the Maestro, Ross reports that Muti chose these works in part out of nostalgia: “This fantastic symphony by Franck... was played everywhere when I was young... Then, suddenly, it vanished. Why is this?” Indeed, that is an interesting question. Of course, there will always be prevailing trends, and many composers have only truly been discovered post mortem, only to be brought back to life with a surge of excitement and sense of discovery. Bach, for instance, was venerated as an organist during his lifetime, but it was only after his death that people began to see the genius of his writing. Perhaps Muti’s choices will have a similar effect on Cesar Franck for instance, whose works, aside from the violin sonata, one rarely hears of. Muti’s program made me realize that one of the ways in which to keep classical music fresh and pertinent is to showcase its range. Programmation is just as important as the level of performance, the decision (or not) to play in more approachable venues, the consideration of audience participation, and countless other details which we have talked about over the course of the semester. Furthermore, Muti did not only revive old “standards,” he also promoted the performance of contemporary works. The Chicago Symphony has two composers in residence, Anna Clyne and Mason Bates, both hand picked by Maestro Muti, who has shown that he is not afraid to showcase these two young talents by bringing their works on tour and performing them alongside the classics.
Perhaps strangely, I have never really thought of the issue of programming as having a direct impact on our audiences. However, the more I think about it, the more I believe that it is an aspect which we can control as musicians and performers, and one that may have a much bigger impact than we think. I know that one of the “tricks” often used by concert organizers is to insert a new work into a program otherwise filled with Beethoven or Mahler, so that concert goers end up experiencing something like swallowing a pill by coating it in ice cream. Yet, Muti’s “magnificent performance,” (quote from John Von Rhein of the Chicago Tribune) was programmed in such a way that everything felt new. In our society of pluralism where anything goes, why are we limiting ourselves to Bach, Beethoven and Brahms? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want these guys to disappear, but I think it would be interesting to see them share the stage more frequently with a diverse assortment of their contemporaries, predecessors and descendants.
More than just a great performance, Muti’s repertoire choices bring up some interesting ideas. Instead of playing the current popular choices such as Beethoven or Mozart, Muti decided to perform Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana,” Ottorino Respighi’s “Feste Romane,” Cesar Franck’s Symphony in D minor, and Mason Bates’ (one of the CSO’s composers in residence) “Energy Symphony.” Accordingly, Alex Ross titled his article about the concert “Back in Style.” According to Ross, it seems that different historical periods value, or at the very least, put more emphasis, on certain composers. The resulting effect is that the same composers and the same works are performed repeatedly by different orchestras all around the world. Unsurprisingly, this can make classical music feel dated. As musicians trying to find our footing in a world that has already been labeled as passé, it is probably not in our best interest to limit ourselves to the most “well-known” and readily-accepted group of composers. In an informal talk with the Maestro, Ross reports that Muti chose these works in part out of nostalgia: “This fantastic symphony by Franck... was played everywhere when I was young... Then, suddenly, it vanished. Why is this?” Indeed, that is an interesting question. Of course, there will always be prevailing trends, and many composers have only truly been discovered post mortem, only to be brought back to life with a surge of excitement and sense of discovery. Bach, for instance, was venerated as an organist during his lifetime, but it was only after his death that people began to see the genius of his writing. Perhaps Muti’s choices will have a similar effect on Cesar Franck for instance, whose works, aside from the violin sonata, one rarely hears of. Muti’s program made me realize that one of the ways in which to keep classical music fresh and pertinent is to showcase its range. Programmation is just as important as the level of performance, the decision (or not) to play in more approachable venues, the consideration of audience participation, and countless other details which we have talked about over the course of the semester. Furthermore, Muti did not only revive old “standards,” he also promoted the performance of contemporary works. The Chicago Symphony has two composers in residence, Anna Clyne and Mason Bates, both hand picked by Maestro Muti, who has shown that he is not afraid to showcase these two young talents by bringing their works on tour and performing them alongside the classics.
Perhaps strangely, I have never really thought of the issue of programming as having a direct impact on our audiences. However, the more I think about it, the more I believe that it is an aspect which we can control as musicians and performers, and one that may have a much bigger impact than we think. I know that one of the “tricks” often used by concert organizers is to insert a new work into a program otherwise filled with Beethoven or Mahler, so that concert goers end up experiencing something like swallowing a pill by coating it in ice cream. Yet, Muti’s “magnificent performance,” (quote from John Von Rhein of the Chicago Tribune) was programmed in such a way that everything felt new. In our society of pluralism where anything goes, why are we limiting ourselves to Bach, Beethoven and Brahms? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want these guys to disappear, but I think it would be interesting to see them share the stage more frequently with a diverse assortment of their contemporaries, predecessors and descendants.
Bringing Tradition to the Electric Guitar
When I'm not at Longy I have a very unique career in the music business. I repair instruments and electronics for a small company called Musical Instrument Service Center (MISC) and we are contractors for Berklee College of Music - the biggest contemporary music school is the world. Fortunately there are not many people in the country who do what we do at the level we do it at. Unfortunately for me there are not many other places I can do this and to some it is seen as an "anchor job", but luckily that's not the case for me. I love what I do and love where I do it.
For the past two years classical guitar has become a very important love in my life. However; for twenty years my first love has been, and still is, the electric guitar. Some people can instantaneously identify with their instruments and if there was one thing that identified me it would be the electric guitar. I just love the simplicity and the complexity of it. A real classical guitar is complex with many layers to the technique and approach taken to get a good sound. The funny part about the electric version is that there is so much to hide behind in amplification, effects and layering. This makes it easy and fun, but what most people never seem to realize is that this makes it incredibly hard to sound good. Whether you're 10 years old or 30 years doesn't matter cause the feeling of using this for the first time is the same: Pure excitement. At that first moment your thought is in the area of "this sounds good" and you're not concerned with "does this sound good?" or "is my sound good?"
Having been around the block a few times I've realized that electric guitarists do not have a tradition of understanding their instrument like classical guitarists do. Perhaps this can be attributed to relatively young age of the electric guitar (which turned 80 this year) or maybe this is a fault of the ones commonly seen as pioneers of the instrument. Unfortunately for electric guitarists our pioneers are not recognized for how they played the instrument so much as for what they played on the instrument which is essentially backwards. Our understanding of the instrument has a very small tradition with as many variations on how to play as there are players. Everyone eventually figures out how to play it, but few ever understand really how it works. This is the main difference between classical guitarists and electric guitarists: a disciplined approach to understanding how our instrument works.
For me a better understanding of the guitar was the reason I moved to Boston to attend Berklee. With so many guitarists in Boston (the most per capita anywhere in the world) I felt I had the best shot of finding what I needed. That wasn't so much the case. Rather than find a lot of people who knew how it worked I found a lot of teachers who were obsessed with how to apply the guitar (which is still very admirable, but becoming increasingly harder to do) and scores of students who wondered, but never searched for their answer. So many just accept that it works and don't concern themselves with how. Which brings me to how I'm going to try and solve this problem.
On November 19th, 20th and possibly the 21st I will be giving a free lecture at Berklee College of Music to any interested on the history of the guitar, an advanced understanding of its anatomy and how it works, considerations for performance and the necessity for a tradition. This is part of a much larger project that I have been working on for a few months now and is something I am very excited for. To this point in time the information I will be giving out has been held on to as "privileged information" by those entrusted with building the guitar and those who are asked to fix them (which are never the same people). My hope is that by doing this students will not only gain a deeper understanding of how their instrument works, but they will understand the different sensitivities involved with maintaining a working instrument and why it needs to work a certain way. The electric guitar is very complex, but extremely limited to different possibilities in it's construction. People are inventing new techniques and having new guitars built do accommodate those techniques, but it becomes a compromise between keeping current aspects original or losing some to gain others. My belief is that the future of this instrument is no longer in the construction, but rather in the understanding of it. Doing so will give more weight to how we play, which in time can hopefully give an even greater importance to "what we play". I feel this is essential and am taking the steps I deem necessary to fix this problem.
For the past two years classical guitar has become a very important love in my life. However; for twenty years my first love has been, and still is, the electric guitar. Some people can instantaneously identify with their instruments and if there was one thing that identified me it would be the electric guitar. I just love the simplicity and the complexity of it. A real classical guitar is complex with many layers to the technique and approach taken to get a good sound. The funny part about the electric version is that there is so much to hide behind in amplification, effects and layering. This makes it easy and fun, but what most people never seem to realize is that this makes it incredibly hard to sound good. Whether you're 10 years old or 30 years doesn't matter cause the feeling of using this for the first time is the same: Pure excitement. At that first moment your thought is in the area of "this sounds good" and you're not concerned with "does this sound good?" or "is my sound good?"
Having been around the block a few times I've realized that electric guitarists do not have a tradition of understanding their instrument like classical guitarists do. Perhaps this can be attributed to relatively young age of the electric guitar (which turned 80 this year) or maybe this is a fault of the ones commonly seen as pioneers of the instrument. Unfortunately for electric guitarists our pioneers are not recognized for how they played the instrument so much as for what they played on the instrument which is essentially backwards. Our understanding of the instrument has a very small tradition with as many variations on how to play as there are players. Everyone eventually figures out how to play it, but few ever understand really how it works. This is the main difference between classical guitarists and electric guitarists: a disciplined approach to understanding how our instrument works.
For me a better understanding of the guitar was the reason I moved to Boston to attend Berklee. With so many guitarists in Boston (the most per capita anywhere in the world) I felt I had the best shot of finding what I needed. That wasn't so much the case. Rather than find a lot of people who knew how it worked I found a lot of teachers who were obsessed with how to apply the guitar (which is still very admirable, but becoming increasingly harder to do) and scores of students who wondered, but never searched for their answer. So many just accept that it works and don't concern themselves with how. Which brings me to how I'm going to try and solve this problem.
On November 19th, 20th and possibly the 21st I will be giving a free lecture at Berklee College of Music to any interested on the history of the guitar, an advanced understanding of its anatomy and how it works, considerations for performance and the necessity for a tradition. This is part of a much larger project that I have been working on for a few months now and is something I am very excited for. To this point in time the information I will be giving out has been held on to as "privileged information" by those entrusted with building the guitar and those who are asked to fix them (which are never the same people). My hope is that by doing this students will not only gain a deeper understanding of how their instrument works, but they will understand the different sensitivities involved with maintaining a working instrument and why it needs to work a certain way. The electric guitar is very complex, but extremely limited to different possibilities in it's construction. People are inventing new techniques and having new guitars built do accommodate those techniques, but it becomes a compromise between keeping current aspects original or losing some to gain others. My belief is that the future of this instrument is no longer in the construction, but rather in the understanding of it. Doing so will give more weight to how we play, which in time can hopefully give an even greater importance to "what we play". I feel this is essential and am taking the steps I deem necessary to fix this problem.
Questions for Dean Chin
Sorry these are late.
How is the market for professional musicians today different than in was 15-20 years ago?
Do all of these differences stem from the state of the economy or are there other significant factors at play?
Do you believe that a four year bachelor's degree program is the best track for those who want to be professional musicians, and if so, should that curriculum contain business and marketing classes?
How is the market for professional musicians today different than in was 15-20 years ago?
Do all of these differences stem from the state of the economy or are there other significant factors at play?
Do you believe that a four year bachelor's degree program is the best track for those who want to be professional musicians, and if so, should that curriculum contain business and marketing classes?
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Questions for Dean Chin
Sorry for the lateness of these questions!
1. What is your opinion on the future of the job market for classical musicians?
2. With the recent strike of the Chicago Symphony, what do you think the future holds for big name orchestras? And what of regional and smaller orchestras?
3. There seems to be a certain lingo among classical musicians when they speak of lesser known repertoire, do you think there will ever be a day when people on the streets will be speaking of Ravel's String Quartet? Or other pieces that are not well known to the general population?
-Noah Dresser
1. What is your opinion on the future of the job market for classical musicians?
2. With the recent strike of the Chicago Symphony, what do you think the future holds for big name orchestras? And what of regional and smaller orchestras?
3. There seems to be a certain lingo among classical musicians when they speak of lesser known repertoire, do you think there will ever be a day when people on the streets will be speaking of Ravel's String Quartet? Or other pieces that are not well known to the general population?
-Noah Dresser
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Intersections
On Thursday I attended a lecture and concert at MIT given by electronic music pioneer John Chowning. Famous for having discovered the algorithm for frequency modulation (FM) synthesis, and also known for his work in sound spacialization, Chowning's biggest contributions are more in the world of technology than they are in music. Given this, it was heartening to see a full hall (If I had to estimate, I would put the attendance number somewhere around 50-60) for the concert portion of the event; given the fact that it was at MIT, the lecture was bound to be well-attended, but I did not expect so many people to be interested in hearing his compositional applications of the aforementioned technical innovations.
On Friday and Saturday, as part of my job working at the box office for Puppet Showplace Theatre in Brookline, I ushered an adult puppet show entitled "Senseless!". The show is a send-up of old-timey noir radio mysteries, complete with a bumbling blind detective, a perfectly ridiculous plot involving the murdering of students at the Helen Keller School of Music, and a musician providing an incidental score to the piece. While the show itself garnered lots of laughs for the inspired puppetry and the pun-heavy rapid-fire dialogue and plot, the evening's biggest laugh came as a result of the music: following the climax of the piece, the musician began a Johnny Cash-style parody of the events that had transpired which had the audience in stitches.
What do these unrelated accounts have in common? The power of music to appeal to an audience outside its normal bounds. Though the music could probably have functioned as an entity on its own (and in the case of Chowning's work, it absolutely does), it was the intersection of technology and dramatic narrative that took the music to a new level, or, at least, a new audience.
On Friday and Saturday, as part of my job working at the box office for Puppet Showplace Theatre in Brookline, I ushered an adult puppet show entitled "Senseless!". The show is a send-up of old-timey noir radio mysteries, complete with a bumbling blind detective, a perfectly ridiculous plot involving the murdering of students at the Helen Keller School of Music, and a musician providing an incidental score to the piece. While the show itself garnered lots of laughs for the inspired puppetry and the pun-heavy rapid-fire dialogue and plot, the evening's biggest laugh came as a result of the music: following the climax of the piece, the musician began a Johnny Cash-style parody of the events that had transpired which had the audience in stitches.
What do these unrelated accounts have in common? The power of music to appeal to an audience outside its normal bounds. Though the music could probably have functioned as an entity on its own (and in the case of Chowning's work, it absolutely does), it was the intersection of technology and dramatic narrative that took the music to a new level, or, at least, a new audience.
Thoughts on finding an audience
This weekend I had a meeting with some fellow musicians to put our plan for a small concert series into motion. We had already done a "test run" of the planned performance, attended by perhaps 10 or 11 audience members--nonetheless, it was a success in our eyes, as the performance quality was high and the attendees expressed their enjoyment of the program. Our next step is to find more venues and interested potential audience members--but how?
As a young singer nearly out of school, taking initiative to put on my own performances is in the outside world is a fairly new (but exciting!) venture for me. My path as a vocalist seems to have been described to me through most of my career thus far as one of "seriousness" and constant auditioning. This is certainly true, but I have also recently opened my eyes to the plethora of possibilities that are actually open to me: I can put on my own recitals! I can find gigs! I can find my own performance venues! As freeing as this is, however, I've found that it can be difficult to find opportunities to perform; often (even with great collaborators), you must either pay to find a venue, pay a fellow performer, or pay to audition somewhere. Actually making any of the money back is frequently one of the last priorities, since, as I mentioned before, it's more important to gather an interested audience first. Essentially, for most of us, a good deal must be invested--time, effort, expertise, some money, zeal--in order to receive any kind of payoff in the form of an interested audience. There's no doubt that finding that audience is a huge leap forward for career success.
Setting aside the issue of monetary pay (which is clearly heavily concerning me lately, given my posts!) how does one find an interested audience? Advertising, certainly, and a willingness to go to the audience instead of always attempting to bring them to you, can go a long way. How, though, can we predict what will capture an audience's interest? Is there a formula? Does it vary from place to place? Are the topics and performances that interest me necessarily stepping stones to success?
I'm not sure there's a clear-cut answer for any of this. As performers, I suppose its our job to figure it out.
As a young singer nearly out of school, taking initiative to put on my own performances is in the outside world is a fairly new (but exciting!) venture for me. My path as a vocalist seems to have been described to me through most of my career thus far as one of "seriousness" and constant auditioning. This is certainly true, but I have also recently opened my eyes to the plethora of possibilities that are actually open to me: I can put on my own recitals! I can find gigs! I can find my own performance venues! As freeing as this is, however, I've found that it can be difficult to find opportunities to perform; often (even with great collaborators), you must either pay to find a venue, pay a fellow performer, or pay to audition somewhere. Actually making any of the money back is frequently one of the last priorities, since, as I mentioned before, it's more important to gather an interested audience first. Essentially, for most of us, a good deal must be invested--time, effort, expertise, some money, zeal--in order to receive any kind of payoff in the form of an interested audience. There's no doubt that finding that audience is a huge leap forward for career success.
Setting aside the issue of monetary pay (which is clearly heavily concerning me lately, given my posts!) how does one find an interested audience? Advertising, certainly, and a willingness to go to the audience instead of always attempting to bring them to you, can go a long way. How, though, can we predict what will capture an audience's interest? Is there a formula? Does it vary from place to place? Are the topics and performances that interest me necessarily stepping stones to success?
I'm not sure there's a clear-cut answer for any of this. As performers, I suppose its our job to figure it out.
Questions for Dean Chin...
...as I forgot to include them in my last post!
1. How will Celebrity Series benefit our school?
2. What is a possible solution to the problem of lack of pay for our work?
3. How can we "get ourselves out there" as classical musicians?
ICA Adventure
This past Thursday I visited the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) for the third time in three years. Every trip has been as exciting and unique as the last. The museum is very generous to have free admission every Thursday evening. This allows people who are usually not financially able to attend art museums the chance to explore new, engaging works.
Onto the artwork...
The two featured artists were Os Gemeos and Josiah Mcelheny. It was wonderful to see such a diverse set of artists at the same museum. Who would have thought that the graffiti artists Os Gemeos would become as prominent as they did? Who would have envisioned that Mcelheny's universe-structures inspired by chandeliers at the Met would become well known? This is what I love about visual art. The status quo is constantly broken for the sake of affecting people.
Os gemeos have recently gained international recognition and grants. You might have noticed the exciting mural in Dewey square which they crafted in collaboration with the ICA. The duo is dedicated to bringing art to as many people as possible with street art as the main method. My reaction to the exhibit in the museum and on murals around Boston was one of excitement and joy. The works exude a cheerfulness which is unparalleled in most other contemporary works.
Mcelheny's exhibit was a perfect blend of science and art. It is rare to simultaneously enjoy pieces of art and discover theories about our universe. His ability to blend these two concepts in a seamless and beautiful way is impressive. People were mumbling about the different shapes and their meanings which sparked many interesting conversations. I can only hope that this type of fusion will continue into the future.
The two exhibits provided me with significant inspiration and I am now more optimistic and excited about creating music than before. Art should affect people in a way that fosters individual growth. The ICA achieved this goal in a unique and stimulating way. It is hard to believe that such an experience ended up costing me nothing (except an evening of curiosity).
My questions for Dean Chin:
What types of visual art inspire you?
What collaborations with non-musicians have proved most successful and meaningful?
How can younger musicians grow from other art fields? Why is this important?
Onto the artwork...
The two featured artists were Os Gemeos and Josiah Mcelheny. It was wonderful to see such a diverse set of artists at the same museum. Who would have thought that the graffiti artists Os Gemeos would become as prominent as they did? Who would have envisioned that Mcelheny's universe-structures inspired by chandeliers at the Met would become well known? This is what I love about visual art. The status quo is constantly broken for the sake of affecting people.
Os gemeos have recently gained international recognition and grants. You might have noticed the exciting mural in Dewey square which they crafted in collaboration with the ICA. The duo is dedicated to bringing art to as many people as possible with street art as the main method. My reaction to the exhibit in the museum and on murals around Boston was one of excitement and joy. The works exude a cheerfulness which is unparalleled in most other contemporary works.
Mcelheny's exhibit was a perfect blend of science and art. It is rare to simultaneously enjoy pieces of art and discover theories about our universe. His ability to blend these two concepts in a seamless and beautiful way is impressive. People were mumbling about the different shapes and their meanings which sparked many interesting conversations. I can only hope that this type of fusion will continue into the future.
The two exhibits provided me with significant inspiration and I am now more optimistic and excited about creating music than before. Art should affect people in a way that fosters individual growth. The ICA achieved this goal in a unique and stimulating way. It is hard to believe that such an experience ended up costing me nothing (except an evening of curiosity).
My questions for Dean Chin:
What types of visual art inspire you?
What collaborations with non-musicians have proved most successful and meaningful?
How can younger musicians grow from other art fields? Why is this important?
The Talent Club
Last week I attended Daniil Trifonov in concert as part of the celebrity
series at the Longy school of music. The concert was sold out well in
advance; not even the Longy students were given complimentary tickets.
However, a viewing room was set up where the concert was broadcasted
live on a screen. At the time of the concert I was overflowing with
enthusiasm (even viewing it from a screen). After all the acclaim that
he received, I expected something amazing:
Daniil Trifonov has won Grand Prix, First prize and a Gold Medal in the XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (2011). Daniil also won the Audience Choice Award and the Award for the Best Performance of a Mozart Concerto.
A few weeks earlier winning the Tchaikovsky Competition, Daniil Trifonov was awarded the First Prize and Gold Medal at the 13th Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition, which took place in Tel Aviv (2011). In addition, he also won the prize for the best chamber music performance, the Pnina Salzman Prize for the best performance of a Chopin piece and the Audience Favorite prize.
Daniil Trifonov – winner III prize in the 16th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw (2010), awarded also special prize of the Polish Radio for the best performance of mazurkas.
The performance was full of life, direction, emotion, and fire. There was no doubt that Trifonov had plenty to express through music and infinite potential to enrich the musical community. However, I did disagree a number of his tempos. Of course, he is the "celebrity." Therefore, it is probable that his choice of tempos would be most justifiable... at least, more correct than mine.
The week prior I had spoken to my teacher about Mr. Trifonov. I was impressed with him when I heard that she knew of him. She told me, "He is certainly a talent...but he still has a lot of room to grow." The word talent stayed with me all week. I have been studying music for eighteen years. I am almost twenty-four years old and yet I don't believe I have ever been told of my talent. Trifonov, on the other hand, is twenty-one years old, has been studying music for sixteen years, and has been bestowed with the social title talented by more than one person on more than one occasion within more than one publication. It took well over a week for the implications of this distinction to sink in: What does it mean to have talent? Is it possible that it means simply having the prestige and authority that goes with being called talented by someone already considered talented? Is talent some kind exclusive club?
Continuing with this line of thought, let's take into consideration the sheer volume of individuals perusing a performance career, the sheer number of tempos that are not accepted because those choosing them are not in the club. Classical music has a lot to offer in the realm of human expression. There is a lot to be said through any facet of humanity, through any voice, with any words. Yet, the only words deemed worthy of being spoken are those which most resemble a Few Great Men. Most of these men are long dead along with most of the composers in the Classical canon. There are some, like young Daniil that have been welcomed into the canon of great performers by critics, managers, respected teachers, and audiences who tend to parrot the reviewers.
I got in touch a few of my colleagues who have recently graduated from music school, in order to see what opportunities they had been given to express their uniqueness within the Classical field. One of these colleagues began working at the pre-college level and spoke to me about her experience. "I like most of my students, I have a nice room to teach out of and I get to be called faculty but they pay me less than I made privately while I was pursuing my Bachelors degree." She continued, "Once a year a get to play one recital without pay. Yet...I know I am doing better than most of my colleagues. I know it is difficult trying to find a place in the music world, but it doesn't get any better" She, as well as every other working musician I know, still attend recitals by these Few Great Men. In addition, she continues to have lessons from a great teacher in the art of being non-original. Neither she, nor I, nor the majority of musicians who have made the sacrifices of time, money, and often the only chance of an education which could lead to a stable career, in order to express ourselves through music, have been given the opportunity to express freely nor to live up to our potential as individuals. Graduates of music programs are often told to accept mediocrity because they are not talented, they are not great. But yet, they passed the harmony and solfege proficiencies, they spent years feverishly studying every marking within a single score in order to deliver a reception to a sad handful of audience members. Do these students not have something to share? Are we so pretentious as an industry that we only allow the top (less than) 1% of professionally trained, willing, music-loving music makers through to be heard by the rest of the world?
The culture of the classical music industry is that of romantic humility, and endless, fruit-less labor. It is unacceptable in twenty-first century America that an individual with a Masters degree from a prestigious school shall perform only once or twice a year, for free, or worse yet, for a price! Many of these graduated are paying the venue! For most, the only possibility of survival is teaching children; a field with which I have no issue only that the field should be a choice. Eighteen years of education should warrant professional choice and mobility. Most of these graduates are capable of teaching pre-conservatory level students and they should be given the opportunity. Likewise, all of these graduates have an immense repertoire of thoughts, feelings, ideas, expressions, creativity, and inspiration to share. The starched, conservative regulations within the classical music industry have to change. I am not declaring that pianists such as Daniil Trifonov are not great. I am simply inviting my readers to expand their list of noteworthy adjectives: Daniil Trifonov is great but my recently-graduated colleague is refreshing, thoughtful, original and charmingly imperfect. I am not going as far as to say that every performer should be heralded by the world or that Daniil Trifonov is anything but worthy of his reception (In fact, I believe he is quite worthy), but why don't we let the audience decide rather than the reviewers, the critics, and the few, subjective, politically-minded competition judges? Musicians are pigeon-holed into their respective tiers of achievement soon after (if not immediately before) graduation! These people have fifty years of development ahead of them and yet the concert halls are opening their doors only once or twice per week, if that, and for only the top 1% of performers. Why not open the doors to the top 10% (dare I say the top %50)? Those performers who don't move their audiences will loose their audiences. Let the people walk out. Perhaps, we will all be surprised when one shocking, clumsy but bold interpretation of a sonata becomes an audience favorite!
Daniil Trifonov has won Grand Prix, First prize and a Gold Medal in the XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (2011). Daniil also won the Audience Choice Award and the Award for the Best Performance of a Mozart Concerto.
A few weeks earlier winning the Tchaikovsky Competition, Daniil Trifonov was awarded the First Prize and Gold Medal at the 13th Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition, which took place in Tel Aviv (2011). In addition, he also won the prize for the best chamber music performance, the Pnina Salzman Prize for the best performance of a Chopin piece and the Audience Favorite prize.
Daniil Trifonov – winner III prize in the 16th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw (2010), awarded also special prize of the Polish Radio for the best performance of mazurkas.
The performance was full of life, direction, emotion, and fire. There was no doubt that Trifonov had plenty to express through music and infinite potential to enrich the musical community. However, I did disagree a number of his tempos. Of course, he is the "celebrity." Therefore, it is probable that his choice of tempos would be most justifiable... at least, more correct than mine.
The week prior I had spoken to my teacher about Mr. Trifonov. I was impressed with him when I heard that she knew of him. She told me, "He is certainly a talent...but he still has a lot of room to grow." The word talent stayed with me all week. I have been studying music for eighteen years. I am almost twenty-four years old and yet I don't believe I have ever been told of my talent. Trifonov, on the other hand, is twenty-one years old, has been studying music for sixteen years, and has been bestowed with the social title talented by more than one person on more than one occasion within more than one publication. It took well over a week for the implications of this distinction to sink in: What does it mean to have talent? Is it possible that it means simply having the prestige and authority that goes with being called talented by someone already considered talented? Is talent some kind exclusive club?
Continuing with this line of thought, let's take into consideration the sheer volume of individuals perusing a performance career, the sheer number of tempos that are not accepted because those choosing them are not in the club. Classical music has a lot to offer in the realm of human expression. There is a lot to be said through any facet of humanity, through any voice, with any words. Yet, the only words deemed worthy of being spoken are those which most resemble a Few Great Men. Most of these men are long dead along with most of the composers in the Classical canon. There are some, like young Daniil that have been welcomed into the canon of great performers by critics, managers, respected teachers, and audiences who tend to parrot the reviewers.
I got in touch a few of my colleagues who have recently graduated from music school, in order to see what opportunities they had been given to express their uniqueness within the Classical field. One of these colleagues began working at the pre-college level and spoke to me about her experience. "I like most of my students, I have a nice room to teach out of and I get to be called faculty but they pay me less than I made privately while I was pursuing my Bachelors degree." She continued, "Once a year a get to play one recital without pay. Yet...I know I am doing better than most of my colleagues. I know it is difficult trying to find a place in the music world, but it doesn't get any better" She, as well as every other working musician I know, still attend recitals by these Few Great Men. In addition, she continues to have lessons from a great teacher in the art of being non-original. Neither she, nor I, nor the majority of musicians who have made the sacrifices of time, money, and often the only chance of an education which could lead to a stable career, in order to express ourselves through music, have been given the opportunity to express freely nor to live up to our potential as individuals. Graduates of music programs are often told to accept mediocrity because they are not talented, they are not great. But yet, they passed the harmony and solfege proficiencies, they spent years feverishly studying every marking within a single score in order to deliver a reception to a sad handful of audience members. Do these students not have something to share? Are we so pretentious as an industry that we only allow the top (less than) 1% of professionally trained, willing, music-loving music makers through to be heard by the rest of the world?
The culture of the classical music industry is that of romantic humility, and endless, fruit-less labor. It is unacceptable in twenty-first century America that an individual with a Masters degree from a prestigious school shall perform only once or twice a year, for free, or worse yet, for a price! Many of these graduated are paying the venue! For most, the only possibility of survival is teaching children; a field with which I have no issue only that the field should be a choice. Eighteen years of education should warrant professional choice and mobility. Most of these graduates are capable of teaching pre-conservatory level students and they should be given the opportunity. Likewise, all of these graduates have an immense repertoire of thoughts, feelings, ideas, expressions, creativity, and inspiration to share. The starched, conservative regulations within the classical music industry have to change. I am not declaring that pianists such as Daniil Trifonov are not great. I am simply inviting my readers to expand their list of noteworthy adjectives: Daniil Trifonov is great but my recently-graduated colleague is refreshing, thoughtful, original and charmingly imperfect. I am not going as far as to say that every performer should be heralded by the world or that Daniil Trifonov is anything but worthy of his reception (In fact, I believe he is quite worthy), but why don't we let the audience decide rather than the reviewers, the critics, and the few, subjective, politically-minded competition judges? Musicians are pigeon-holed into their respective tiers of achievement soon after (if not immediately before) graduation! These people have fifty years of development ahead of them and yet the concert halls are opening their doors only once or twice per week, if that, and for only the top 1% of performers. Why not open the doors to the top 10% (dare I say the top %50)? Those performers who don't move their audiences will loose their audiences. Let the people walk out. Perhaps, we will all be surprised when one shocking, clumsy but bold interpretation of a sonata becomes an audience favorite!
Music That is Stimulating
This past weekend, as I was hanging outside a restaurant with my roommates I heard a few guys talking about music. It turns out one of the gentlemen was a violist and he had just met the other two gentlemen. Always glad to met a fellow violist, I approached the group and spoke with the group about viola, which led to other topics. As the conversation grew among the three gentlemen and me, the violist got involved in a side conversation with my other friends, so I was left in conversation with the two other men, both contract workers, one from Boston, the other from Philadelphia.
The topic of music came up, more specifically pop music. One of the men said that he was tired of listening to mainstream pop music. He went on to say something that struck me immediately. He said he wants to hear "music that is stimulating." Immediately after hearing this, I was perplexed with multiple thoughts. I proceeded to ask the young man what he had meant by his comment. He basically had said how the pop industry today just produces more and more of the same type of image. He continued by saying "I don't want the media to produce another Katie Perry." We continued the conversation to the topic of classical music, specifically string music. The same man said that he loved strings music and how it was "stimulating."
Before continuing, I would like to say that I have no bias with music and I expressed none of my opinions before the man made the aforementioned statements. I would also like to clear the air that there is I am a firm believer that no one music genre is better than another. However, as I classical musician, I will say that hearing this person's statements of his preference for classical music made me realize that maybe the field of classical music itself can do a better job of reaching outside its normal clientele. These two men I was talking to all knew of contemporary music and what is popular on the Billboard charts. Surprisingly, however, they were very intrigued in the fact that I was training to be a classical musician. They seemed to take a genuine interest in the matter. This makes me feel that maybe more people out there who were in a similar situation to the two men I talked to: they had a strong interest in the subject, viewed it as "stimulating", and, most importantly, was not exposed to a lot of it.
I believe that this conversation is a small piece of evidence that the classical music world needs to continue to make a strong effort in promoting itself to the general public. By continuing to use modern technological media services such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, the classical music world has a strong start. As stated earlier, I believe that no one music is better than another form of music, and, additionally, exposing more people to classical music should never be viewed or acted as a way of implementing "class" or "culture" on a certain group of peoples. With that said, continuing to spread the word of classical music should be viewed as a way of exposing people to different and varying styles, letting them know what else is out there, so that they can make a judgement of their preference on their own volition.
The topic of music came up, more specifically pop music. One of the men said that he was tired of listening to mainstream pop music. He went on to say something that struck me immediately. He said he wants to hear "music that is stimulating." Immediately after hearing this, I was perplexed with multiple thoughts. I proceeded to ask the young man what he had meant by his comment. He basically had said how the pop industry today just produces more and more of the same type of image. He continued by saying "I don't want the media to produce another Katie Perry." We continued the conversation to the topic of classical music, specifically string music. The same man said that he loved strings music and how it was "stimulating."
Before continuing, I would like to say that I have no bias with music and I expressed none of my opinions before the man made the aforementioned statements. I would also like to clear the air that there is I am a firm believer that no one music genre is better than another. However, as I classical musician, I will say that hearing this person's statements of his preference for classical music made me realize that maybe the field of classical music itself can do a better job of reaching outside its normal clientele. These two men I was talking to all knew of contemporary music and what is popular on the Billboard charts. Surprisingly, however, they were very intrigued in the fact that I was training to be a classical musician. They seemed to take a genuine interest in the matter. This makes me feel that maybe more people out there who were in a similar situation to the two men I talked to: they had a strong interest in the subject, viewed it as "stimulating", and, most importantly, was not exposed to a lot of it.
I believe that this conversation is a small piece of evidence that the classical music world needs to continue to make a strong effort in promoting itself to the general public. By continuing to use modern technological media services such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, the classical music world has a strong start. As stated earlier, I believe that no one music is better than another form of music, and, additionally, exposing more people to classical music should never be viewed or acted as a way of implementing "class" or "culture" on a certain group of peoples. With that said, continuing to spread the word of classical music should be viewed as a way of exposing people to different and varying styles, letting them know what else is out there, so that they can make a judgement of their preference on their own volition.
Monday, October 15, 2012
The Show Must Go On
I recently came across Melik Kaylan's article in the Wall Street Journal chronicling the work of Maestro Karim Wasfi, Music Director of the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra. As musicians, we often speak about the unifying power of music, but seldom does this power present itself with such clarity as in the case of the INSO.
Kaylan writes that in 2008, the orchestra was "Underfunded and under siege from violent incidents, electricity cuts, cracking instruments, pitiful wages, stolen sheet music, and decaying buildings and sound systems..." but "kept going with no stable venue in which to rehearse or perform."While it is not my intention to belittle the collective bargaining struggles of orchestral musicians in this country, the tale of the INSO certainly provides perspective.
As the war in Iraq winds down, times have improved for the Baghdad-based ensemble. Wasfi says in his interview "I'm now able to struggle with artistic quality—getting the music right—rather than logistics or mere survival." He also mentions the orchestra's youth program.
One of the most remarkable subjects Wasfi discusses is the diversity within his group. The INSO comprises "every sect... Christians, Shiites, Sunnis, women, [and] Kurds." Especially in a part of the world where religious intolerance and fanaticism fans the flames of political unrest, Wasfi's orchestra serves as a beacon of tolerance and understanding. The Meastro even notes that after a nearby car bomb caused damage to the orchestra's rehearsal space last winter, "the perpetrators... left a message on a website apologizing for damaging us accidentally."
When people ask musicians what we mean when we employ poetic phrases such as "unity through humanity" in the advocacy of our craft, I can think of no better explanation than the example of the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra. If a musical ensemble can construct a sense of community and acceptance in what has been the world's most prominent war zone for the last decade, then it can do so anywhere.
Kaylan writes that in 2008, the orchestra was "Underfunded and under siege from violent incidents, electricity cuts, cracking instruments, pitiful wages, stolen sheet music, and decaying buildings and sound systems..." but "kept going with no stable venue in which to rehearse or perform."While it is not my intention to belittle the collective bargaining struggles of orchestral musicians in this country, the tale of the INSO certainly provides perspective.
As the war in Iraq winds down, times have improved for the Baghdad-based ensemble. Wasfi says in his interview "I'm now able to struggle with artistic quality—getting the music right—rather than logistics or mere survival." He also mentions the orchestra's youth program.
One of the most remarkable subjects Wasfi discusses is the diversity within his group. The INSO comprises "every sect... Christians, Shiites, Sunnis, women, [and] Kurds." Especially in a part of the world where religious intolerance and fanaticism fans the flames of political unrest, Wasfi's orchestra serves as a beacon of tolerance and understanding. The Meastro even notes that after a nearby car bomb caused damage to the orchestra's rehearsal space last winter, "the perpetrators... left a message on a website apologizing for damaging us accidentally."
When people ask musicians what we mean when we employ poetic phrases such as "unity through humanity" in the advocacy of our craft, I can think of no better explanation than the example of the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra. If a musical ensemble can construct a sense of community and acceptance in what has been the world's most prominent war zone for the last decade, then it can do so anywhere.
Sandow
During my weekly perusal of arts news, I came across Greg Sandow's blog about the future of classical music. He has a lot of relevant and interesting posts, but the few that struck a chord with me were his Four Keys to the Future, 100 Cage, and Shuffle.Play.Listen.
In Four Keys to the Future, he introduces four steps we can take as classical musicians to stay relevant in the future by building new audiences. The keys are to "understand and respect the culture outside classical music, work actively to find your audience, be yourself, and make music vividly." I find it reassuring that these four "keys" are conclusions we as a class have drawn ourselves. Perhaps we have worded them differently, or not as specifically, but if you boiled down our discussions to their essence, I believe there would be a great deal of similarity. This is reassuring not because what Greg Sandow says is some kind of ultimate truth, but because it means the world of classical music is adapting, and that there are people in the real world that have similar ideals in mind for it's future that extend beyond our classroom.
The next article that caught my attention was his article about John Cage. In 100 Cage, he describes two different performances of Cage's piece, Variations IV. I have had the chance to perform this piece, twice, during my undergrad at Syracuse University while taking a class about John Cage. With this piece, you take a blueprint of your performance space, and drop a certain number of cut out circles and points onto the blueprint. These circles and spots indicate where something is to be performed, and you connect the circles to the points with a line. We performed this twice; once in Crouse College, the music school, and once on Marshall Street, a busy street on campus full of restaurants and bars. We each chose what our performances were going to be and which dots we would go to. The performances ranged from Shakespearian monologue recitations to acoustic versions of Brittney Spears songs to evocative moaning sounds. The experience was very different from any performance I had ever done before, and I encourage anyone who has not had the chance to perform this piece to do it at some point in their lives. After reading Sandow's take on Variations IV, the validity of "making music vividly" really can make the difference between, in his words, a lame performance of 4'33" and a moving one. He says that with Cage's music, often times there is nothing for the performer to rely on in terms of notation, so all you are left with is the encompassing style of his works. The freedom his pieces allow provide an opportunity to do something real and meaningful, which is an idea that should be applied to everything we perform.
Shuffle.Play.Listen. brings up an innovative way to program concerts. We briefly discussed the genre of pop music played on classical instruments, but this takes it to the next level. Cellist Matt Haimovitz and pianist Christopher O'Riley put out a CD entitled Shuffle.Play.Listen, which included music from both pop and classical genres on 2 disks. They also gave a live performance where they played the tracks from the CD shuffled together, so that the audience would hear classical works mixed in with the pop pieces. According to Sandow, the pop arrangements aren't immediately apparently pop; they are convincing as legitimate cello and piano works. This got me thinking about the limitless potential we have for programming concerts. I hope they publish their arrangements, because it would be a wonderful way to broaden our audience. Pop played convincingly on classical instruments certainly sounds like fun to me. The CD is on Spotify, so give it a listen if you're interested!
In Four Keys to the Future, he introduces four steps we can take as classical musicians to stay relevant in the future by building new audiences. The keys are to "understand and respect the culture outside classical music, work actively to find your audience, be yourself, and make music vividly." I find it reassuring that these four "keys" are conclusions we as a class have drawn ourselves. Perhaps we have worded them differently, or not as specifically, but if you boiled down our discussions to their essence, I believe there would be a great deal of similarity. This is reassuring not because what Greg Sandow says is some kind of ultimate truth, but because it means the world of classical music is adapting, and that there are people in the real world that have similar ideals in mind for it's future that extend beyond our classroom.
The next article that caught my attention was his article about John Cage. In 100 Cage, he describes two different performances of Cage's piece, Variations IV. I have had the chance to perform this piece, twice, during my undergrad at Syracuse University while taking a class about John Cage. With this piece, you take a blueprint of your performance space, and drop a certain number of cut out circles and points onto the blueprint. These circles and spots indicate where something is to be performed, and you connect the circles to the points with a line. We performed this twice; once in Crouse College, the music school, and once on Marshall Street, a busy street on campus full of restaurants and bars. We each chose what our performances were going to be and which dots we would go to. The performances ranged from Shakespearian monologue recitations to acoustic versions of Brittney Spears songs to evocative moaning sounds. The experience was very different from any performance I had ever done before, and I encourage anyone who has not had the chance to perform this piece to do it at some point in their lives. After reading Sandow's take on Variations IV, the validity of "making music vividly" really can make the difference between, in his words, a lame performance of 4'33" and a moving one. He says that with Cage's music, often times there is nothing for the performer to rely on in terms of notation, so all you are left with is the encompassing style of his works. The freedom his pieces allow provide an opportunity to do something real and meaningful, which is an idea that should be applied to everything we perform.
Shuffle.Play.Listen. brings up an innovative way to program concerts. We briefly discussed the genre of pop music played on classical instruments, but this takes it to the next level. Cellist Matt Haimovitz and pianist Christopher O'Riley put out a CD entitled Shuffle.Play.Listen, which included music from both pop and classical genres on 2 disks. They also gave a live performance where they played the tracks from the CD shuffled together, so that the audience would hear classical works mixed in with the pop pieces. According to Sandow, the pop arrangements aren't immediately apparently pop; they are convincing as legitimate cello and piano works. This got me thinking about the limitless potential we have for programming concerts. I hope they publish their arrangements, because it would be a wonderful way to broaden our audience. Pop played convincingly on classical instruments certainly sounds like fun to me. The CD is on Spotify, so give it a listen if you're interested!
The Good Mood
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a blog about musicians as global
citizens, and cited several examples of what some of our colleagues are
doing to create change in the world. I mentioned El Sistema, the
Venezuelan organization that set out to bring music to thousands of
children, as well as Daniel Barenboim’s West-Eastern Diwan Orchestra,
which brings together Muslim and Jewish musicians with the goal of
facilitating communication lines, and serves as a reminder that music is
capable of transcending cultural and historical rifts. In this same
vein, I came across an article in the New York Times about an orchestra
called “El Gusto” (which can be translated to "the good mood"). At first glance, the article, written by Elaine
Sciolino, seems to be about a performance given by this group on
September 30th in Paris, but it is actually much more about how this
group came to be. Its story is certainly an interesting one, and brings
us back to Algeria, about fifty years ago, pre-1962, when Algeria was
still under French Colonial rule. In those days, communities of
peaceful Muslims and Jews interacted and played music together.
However, Algeria’s new-found independence and new government meant that
many people were relocated - the Jews left for France, and the Muslims
were moved to new housing developments. Contact between friends was
lost, and the music they created together, an “Algerian version of the
popular Arabic-language music known as chaabi was forgotten.”
In 2007, a young woman named Safinez Bousbia, came across one of these musicians in a shop in Algeria, and was so fascinated that she decided to create a film to recount the story. Along the way, she was able to find many of the musicians that had played together before the Algerian War, and the concert that took place on September 30th, was one of the events that the group has had the opportunity to play since they have been reunited.
The concert took place in the heart of the Marais neighborhood, which was primarily a Jewish neighborhood before World War II. No longer considered as such, it still houses the the Musee d’art et d’histoire du Judaisme, where the concert took place. The Museum is currently holding an exhibition called “The Jews of Algeria,” and this concert was “the first performance by Algerians in the Museum’s 14-year history.” Of course, what drew me to this article in particular is that it shows once again the impact that music can have on social awareness and social advancement. As Ms. Sciolino states, “It has revived friendships where religion, class and ethnicity have no meaning.” It is an important part of our lives as artists to bring people from different backgrounds and cultures together, as well as to bring awareness to cultures that have been at odds for so long and who are able to find ways to work together and appreciate each other for what each has to offer. “El Gusto” has performed in Paris, Berlin, London, Geneva and Brussels, and will, in all probability, have more of an international impact once the film makes its way to the big screen in different countries. It is expected to be released this fall in Canada, Spain, Greece, Brazil, Australia, Serbia, Hong Kong, and of course, here in the United States. I, for one, can’t wait to go see it.
Questions for Dean Chin:
1. Why are school hours so limited, and is there any possibility of that changing?
2. What kind of orchestral program is there at Bard? Could there be a secondary concerto competition, as well as a chamber ensemble competition, in which Longy students could perform on Bard's campus? How can we take advantage of Bard's international campuses?
3. What are some of the goals you still have as a performer and educator that you hope to accomplish?
In 2007, a young woman named Safinez Bousbia, came across one of these musicians in a shop in Algeria, and was so fascinated that she decided to create a film to recount the story. Along the way, she was able to find many of the musicians that had played together before the Algerian War, and the concert that took place on September 30th, was one of the events that the group has had the opportunity to play since they have been reunited.
The concert took place in the heart of the Marais neighborhood, which was primarily a Jewish neighborhood before World War II. No longer considered as such, it still houses the the Musee d’art et d’histoire du Judaisme, where the concert took place. The Museum is currently holding an exhibition called “The Jews of Algeria,” and this concert was “the first performance by Algerians in the Museum’s 14-year history.” Of course, what drew me to this article in particular is that it shows once again the impact that music can have on social awareness and social advancement. As Ms. Sciolino states, “It has revived friendships where religion, class and ethnicity have no meaning.” It is an important part of our lives as artists to bring people from different backgrounds and cultures together, as well as to bring awareness to cultures that have been at odds for so long and who are able to find ways to work together and appreciate each other for what each has to offer. “El Gusto” has performed in Paris, Berlin, London, Geneva and Brussels, and will, in all probability, have more of an international impact once the film makes its way to the big screen in different countries. It is expected to be released this fall in Canada, Spain, Greece, Brazil, Australia, Serbia, Hong Kong, and of course, here in the United States. I, for one, can’t wait to go see it.
Questions for Dean Chin:
1. Why are school hours so limited, and is there any possibility of that changing?
2. What kind of orchestral program is there at Bard? Could there be a secondary concerto competition, as well as a chamber ensemble competition, in which Longy students could perform on Bard's campus? How can we take advantage of Bard's international campuses?
3. What are some of the goals you still have as a performer and educator that you hope to accomplish?
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