Classical musicians are shedding their bow ties, pearls and
statuesque postures for a more engaging performance mode, bringing
the music to the masses by way of multisensory experiences.
The current trend in classical music is the integration of
multimedia, which is intended to give the audience a multiplicity
of sensations while listening to the music. Recent recitals in
UCLA’s music department, as well as UCLA Live performances
such as Mikel Rouse’s, reflect this change in artistic
presentation, showcasing classical music with a blend of backdrops
meant as reinforcers.
Definiens, a nonprofit organization, seeks to bring classical
music to the public by redefining chamber music performance for
contemporary audiences. Their nontraditional performance base has
featured concerts with audience-engaging elements such as dance,
visuals and speaking to the audience in conjunction with the
music.
Cellist and Definiens founder Carter Dewberry, who is currently
finishing her doctorate in chamber music at UCLA, started the
organization because she became tired with traditional classical
performance opportunities. Finding traditional modes too elitist,
she wanted to find a new way to speak to people with her music.
Dewberry’s doctoral recital included four alternative
classical cello pieces, each a collaborative effort with an artist
of a different discipline, ranging from a narrator to a
filmmaker.
“We live in a completely different environment from what
existed 200 years ago,” Dewberry said. “We need to
recognize that. It no longer serves us as musicians and performers
to play the music as it had been played 200 years ago without
taking into consideration today’s technological
developments.”
With film and TV saturating the country for more than 50 years,
multimedia and technology seem to be the most involving way to
bring classical music to new listeners. But this performance trend
is not entirely new. Its roots trace back to the 1960s when
musicians such as John Cage worked with artists, dancers, poets and
authors to create grand-scale multimedia performances.
But because of the scarcity of efficient technology at the time,
it was a short-lived experiment, as funding issues made it too
difficult and expensive to sustain.
“Technology wasn’t as available 50 years ago,”
said ethnomusicology alumnus Douglas Wadle. “Sound quality
has improved dramatically. The ability to control all the aspects
of sound and specialization is finally available.”
Wadle, who is currently assistant head of circulation at the
Schoenberg Music Library, is also part of this trend, using a more
technical approach in his own musical ventures. His fusion of art
and music can be seen tonight at guitarist Chelsea Green’s
recital, Amphiboly. His pseudo-cubism painting and experimental
composition will be displayed simultaneously with Green’s
interpretation of composer Erik Satie’s pieces.
“The idea grew out of a philosophical approach to what I
thought a composer does,” said Wadle. “When you boil it
down, the composition is actually creating a visual document that
somebody is using as instructions for performance.”
The painting consists of what looks like traditional music
notation represented on the neck of the guitar, arranged on a
six-line staff that corresponds to the guitar strings. It also
captures other visual representations of music, so that the
audience will be able to discern rhythms that relate the
performance to the painting.
“There was never an attempt to give an equal weight to the
visual and the sonic,” Wadle said. “Rather, it is to
make something that is really a hybridized art form in which you
can’t separate one from another. As far as grabbing onto the
musical meat of what the performers are playing, that’s the
most obvious thing. You become hyper-aware of each element of the
painting through listening to the music.”
With technology and music more unified, the issue at hand for
artists is whether this combined art form will make a permanent
impression in music halls.
“It will be fleeting if sufficient connections
aren’t made,” Wadle said. “It’s a lot
harder to put this stuff on than just to put on a concert of string
quartet music. To justify it, those connections really have to be
made by something beyond just a musical or video performance.
It’s really a hit-or-miss.”
If technology does miss, the question remains: Will such
advances eclipse the music? Not everyone is as supportive of such
experimental ventures if they may replace traditional
standards.
“I’m not opposed to such a use as long as it
doesn’t distract from the music,” said professor of
composition David Lefkowitz. “I believe that there are other
ways to address the problem without the use of media. One can
involve audiences, educate youngsters in music, increase money
spent on the arts in schools. The arts in primary and secondary
schools are more than just a luxury. They’re a
necessity.”