La Lontananza Nostalgica Utopica Futura

Graeme Jenning plays ‘La Lontananza Nostalgica Utopica Futura’, Monday Evening, March 1st, 2010. San Francisco. As part of the 2010-2011 season by the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players.

SFCMP did something special here. They broke from their mold of multiple pieces interspersed with solo pieces and just put all of their energy and attention to one great piece played by one great musician. With so much music going on in the bay area these days, this one stands out. But it took discipline and preparation, along with a beer ahead of time to relax after a hard monday.

What’s so difficult for people to adjust to in Nono’s late period is exactly what makes them so important: they aren’t flashy, they aren’t new, they aren’t old. They’re the result of a lifetime of thought, finally devoid of ambition or political will or ideological crutches.

I put this piece along with Das Atmende Klarsein and Fragmente Stille as three pieces that grow each time I listen to them. They deal with explorations of instrumental theatre with limited means. All of this is of course heading to Prometeo, Nono’s large and fantastic work.

The result was nothing other than perfectly unique. I’ve heard the piece and even seen Graeme perform before at CNMAT. This, however, was much different because of such a large space (a space I thought I knew, perfectly deconstructed to its boxy essence) with an audience perfectly primed to look around at each other and see each others faces. This seating arrangement should be used much more often, even with a fixed ensemble in the center. Last evening, I happened to find myself looking at the score to Discours II  by Vinko Globokar and, coincidentally, it demands the same arrangement.

‘La Lontananza’ demands, (along with many other great works, coincidentally) that one discards the all too usual default of structural listening that pervades most concert experiences (four or five 10-20 minute pieces with an intermission in the middle). Graeme’s decision to descend from above was necessary to help us remove that feeling. To further this change of feel, I think that pillows in place of chairs would have gone yet another step further- also reminiscent of the original SFCMP concerts.

Adjustment. Losing of focus. Loss of impatience. Heightened focus. Boredom. Timeless moments. Abstract thoughts. Personal thoughts. Awe of playing: extremities in general, but especially the highest notes. Clarity emerging over and over again in these high notes. Unexpectedly shedding new light on some of the more fragmentary material.

The piece ended for me after Graeme walked away from the fourth music stand. I was able to see his performing close up. After this movement the piece essentially started over again, and that was fine. I felt so incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to hear Graeme at his best. The piece simply dissolved..

SFCMP, ‘Natural Phenomena’

(#1 on google search for 'natural phenomena')

Last Monday’s concert by the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players left me in a daze. In less than two hours, I had a deeper understanding of five important composers: Michael Jarrell, Oscar Bianchi, Helmut Lachenmann, Matthias Pintscher, and Brian Ferneyhough. More importantly, I have come to value the musicians of the ensemble more than ever before. No question, a concert like this is a challenge. But it’s priceless and a thrill. Talk to people around you, and you’ll realize just how much there is to say. What follows are just some thoughts on each performance and each composer. They are very critical, but only because this is what I find missing these days.

Michael Jarrell shines as a large-ensemble composer. His gestures, though effectively conveyed in . . . more leaves. . . , is derived from his Viola Concerto. The electronics too often sounded like an orchestrational band-aid for an ensemble that was clearly too small. That, combined with a lack of amplification of the ensemble and a sound engineer, left me with an impression that this music lies in a strange world in between the live experience and the recording. Nanci Severance, the violist, played very well. I hadn’t heard her in a solistic context, and I was very encouraged.

Oscar Bianchi’s Zaffiro was a much more inspired piece. The writing was clearly a result of a profound understanding of how each instrument works, and an inherently dramatic intent. While Jarrell quickly defaulted to trills as a sort of attempt at creating an unnecessarily large sound, Zaffiro began and continued with a frailty best embodied between Nanci’s soft, brittle lines- followed by silence. The overall form wasn’t notable except for just how sensitive the musical pacing was in regard to arriving at multiple climactic moments. Oscar’s music often goes through a transformation of attention from individual details in the beginning towards social explorations of musical material within the ensemble (cooperation/conflct); this is inherently dramatic, and it was clearly understood well by the players and conductor.

Helmut Lachenmann’s Trio Fluido is a historical gem in that, throughout the listening experience, one is struck by an incredible array of moments that could be the entire subject- or territory- for later works, such as Allegro Sostenuto, Gran Torso, or even percussive moments from his opera Das Mädchen mit den Schwefelhölzern (sticks on marimbas). While I don’t personally find much value in such a judgement, I must say that this piece doesn’t achieve the same intense, introspective moments for just this reason: Lachenmann discovered later on just how much lies within the relationship between two singular events. This is why he became such an incredible composer. In regard to the interpretation, I must say that it was clouded by what seemed to be an almost schizophrenic relationship between Graeme and Willy. Only in this piece was I left wondering if the players were somewhat limited in their interpretation because of time constraints.

Matthias Pintscher’s nemeton, frankly was the most perplexing work I heard in a long time, by the fact that almost everyone loved it! Honestly, I have little to say about the piece except snootish composer remarks (1: Loud chimes does not a form make, 2: No matter how many dazzling, well-written, virtuosic phrases one writes, it isn’t a piece, 3: if you want a heightened interpretation from a musician, don’t bog them down with so much else to do). Regardless, this piece was the crowd pleaser. Chris Froh clearly worked so hard to find the piece that truly did not exist. Only through his sheer determination and unrivaled musicality did he manage to create an experience that was truly pleasing to most non-composers in the audience. And that’s fine. This is part of a larger discussion.

Brian Ferneyhough’s Flurries was unremarkable in its virtuosity, and in need more than any other piece for a second hearing. Only then would I have found what so many of the musicians said was an incredible piece. A pity that this was not also played during the contemporary insights concert to give the public a chance. I must say that here I was most impressed by Brad Lubman’s command of the ensemble as well as one incredible horn player: Kevin Rivard. Finally, I couldn’t help but feel that I would much more prefer to hear works by one of Brian’s very gifted students. Perhaps, say, Jason Federmeyer or Christopher Moore.

There is much to talk about with this concert. I want to know what value people place on the chance of hearing pieces of music that they would never otherwise have a chance to hear live; from composers they seldom hear at a symphony concert; played by musicians who rarely get afforded the opportunity to spend so much time interpreting new works, and a guest conductor who should come to the bay area more often. All in all, between sfsound, earplay, and sfcmp, last weekend was a great weekend for new music in the bay area.

Akhe Group, “Gobo.Digital.Glossary”

It’s been so long since I was lucky enough to find myself at the May 31st, 2009 performance of “Gobo.Digital.Glossary” by St. Petersburg-based Akhe Group. I can’t let this slide. The following are loose strands, just whats left, besides a very strong feeling that I saw something special.

-the low-fi scrappiness to the electronics (wireless trigger cameras, hacked motors, hot plates) created a linear mise-en-scene, going from one thing to the next in an environment that was a mystery. Circus-like in its essence.

-The way in which the body is the subject upon which each actor was experimented upon, mainly humorous, but allowed the form to open- always in a direction, but absurd as well

-The novelty found in the simplest of things, because the actors just exist. Total honesty. Particularly the rubber bands.

-The sound. How much I felt it needed something beyond incidentalism. If only some sounds could have been conceived and birthed in these ‘kernel scenarios’, with so much else that made this interesting.

-The reading in english. Filler. Purposely too long, purposely making the audience self-conscious? Cheap laughs?

Here is some real information, taken from the SF Intl Arts Festival:

Description

The Akhe Groups latest project, “Gobo.Digital Glossary,” is directed by ensemble veteran Yana Tumina and features founders Pavel Semchenko and Maxim Isaev on stage with the rest of the group operating the multiple hand built props and stage effects that have become Akhe trademarks. “Gobo.Digital Glossary” is Akhes absurdist, surrealist take on the Everyman story told through a collection of semi-mute micro-plots created in different genres and with different techniques, from cinema to shadow play, ironically playing a trick on the average hero of modernity. Absurdist theatre group Akhe from St. Petersburg pushes theatre to its limits. Challenging theatrical creativity with extreme minimalistic props; this avant-garde troupe explodes on stage. Their shows are in a constant state of flux and sometimes change from performance to performance. The constant variable in their work is honesty; which makes for dynamic ritual and mesmerizing visual theatre.  Akhe was founded in St. Petersburg in 1989 by Maxim Isaev and Pavel Semchenko both from a visual art background and fomer members of Boris Ponizovskis Yes-No theatre group. Isaev and Semchenko were joined in 1996 by the actress Yana Tumina and Akhe Russian Engineering Theatre was born. Akhes theatre works with text as an object and creates performances that are true ritual, which offer an image of the world where everything is simultaneously connected and separate. Substances, elements, people, space and surface all cohabit and coexist. Akhes theatre has been describes as a theatre that creates souls for objects and interchanges cause and effect. The artistic and unmistakable Russian chaos of Akhe is a force majeure of the theatre world. The Akhe Group have been nominated for the Russian Golden Mask Award, have achieved cult status in many theatre festivals worldwide.  Their shows are filled with absurd objects and art citations, drawing on an ironic eclecticism that seek to unite the “sublime” with the banal. Their search for contact with fellow humans results in their marching right past one another. Ironic rituals and absurdly eccentric actions are combined mysteriously, allowing the depths of the human soul to shine forth.

some youtube liinks:

g.d.g part II:

vocaallab nederlands, gaudeamus

Old windmills in Zaandam

I’m in a small town called Zaandam, just outside of Amsterdam, in residence and rehearsing a piece with a wonderful ensemble/organization called vocaallab nederlands. The piece is ‘position, influence’ for soprano and electronics. It was first performed by Donatienne Michel-Dansac and now Jennifer Van Der Hart is performing, and doing a phenomenal job.

The center for Vocaallab is a wonderful house and adjoining church. Vocalists and composers pass through and are constantly rehearsing new projects, as well as socializing and eating together.

The performance will be part of the Gaudeamus Music Week, on Tuesday. If anyone is around, do let me know. More info and documentation to follow.

To update quickly, this past summer I’ve done my first installation in Grass Valley, as part of the 6th Poto Festival. It involved two walls of hanging metal sheets (turned into speakers with transducers) and light bulbs, suspended by wires, with a fabric roof. Video projection on one side done by Marcia Scott, Heather Gordon and Michael Newton. There was an industrial fan creating turbulence inside the corridor, causing everything to shake a bit, and the public was able to walk behind the sheets and bend them, changing their timbre. It was a wonderful experience. Soon as I gather materials, I’ll post some documentation- though I plan on doing it again soon in the bay area.

Also, I wrote a new piece for recorder, accordion and percussion, soon to be performed at Berkeley. Performers will be Tosiya Suzuki, Stefan Hussong, and Kuniko Kato.

In addition, I’m living in a new warehouse space in Emeryville. I hope to soon have information about concerts and projects there.

Berkeley Dance Project 2009

After many hours of soldering, metal sheet assembly, amplifier 
research, etc, I’m happy to say that tonight is the premiere of my 
first live electronic performance for the Cunningham piece at 
Zellerbach Playhouse, as part of the Berkeley Dance Project. There’s 
three racks of ’speaking’ sheets of metals

Below here is a photo of two of the racks when I was working on them at CNMAT:

 

Speaking Metals

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The performances are Fridays, April 17th and 24th, Saturdays April 18th and 25th at 8pm. Sundays April 19th and 26th at 2pm.

Location: Zellerbach Playhouse, Berkeley

More info can be found here

october, end

 

 

logo, world music days/ISCM

 

 

Vilnius, Lithuania is pulling off an amazing feat, and its still going on, until November 8th! This is the first international festival in the baltics, and it is truly a large event. These ‘international events’ are very problematic, perplexing, and purposefully-so. It is extremely difficult to compare such different pieces programmed right next to each other. The best one can hope for is that this is useful for others. Personally I felt that the ‘procession’ concert that I was a part of was extremely unique and exciting, but the festival deserves better credit for the other concerts, including the symphony orchestra, and bringing in guest ensembles such as Ens. Modern, Conjunto Iberico, and Percussion Strasbourg

Once again, enormous thanks to three wonderful musicians that I had the pleasure of working with, despite for just one day! Soprano/Composer Rita Maciliunaite, Trumpetist Laurynas Lape, and flutist Andrius Radziukynas. With the given circumstances (a very late night performance!) they did an incredible job. 

Also thanks to the US embassy for making the trip possible. And thanks to the music academy for having me as their guest. I had a wonderful time speaking with the composers there. Thanks for such enthusiasm. I hope that I might have a chance to come back to lithuania, there is a great energy there and many great musicians.

october, beginning

 

cover image of debord's 'society of the spectacle'

 

 

October 1st and 2nd finally arrived. The performances at the Pompidou Center, despite some technical misfortunes, went very well. Baritone Lionel Peintre, Cellist Severine Ballon, and Percussionist Daniel Ciampolini did a wonderful job with this new shorter version of the piece. The piece uses texts of isidore isou and Guy Debord. It is a rather personal piece, dealing with historical and contemporary issues in a rather obscure way. From my program notes:

Why do we create art and what do we expect it to do? This is the question posed in ‘68′. In the beginning we witness the creative act: a poet, writing and speaking out the earliest fragments of his poems; discovering through experiment his voice, both physically and figuratively. It alludes to Isidore Isou, a romanian-born poet who, in 1942, at the age of 17, moved to Paris and wrote a manifesto on ‘lettrisme’, sparking a movement. With each creative moment, our poet’s own energy and imagination are embodied in the actions of the percussion, violoncelle, and the mise-en-scene.

But what of society? What of government? Our poet realizes that his artistic actions have no way of changing society unless he confronts social and economic issues, at the expense of artistic vision. Our poet decides that his art must not simply discover and create and describe, it must enact.
Guy Debord’s Societe du Spectacle, a work whose message is as relevant today as it was leading up to Mai 68, is central to this decision. Our poet accosts us, the audience, urging us to see the spectacle for what it is, and how it is not real society.
Throughout the piece we see the works of Jacques Villegle, constantly putting the mirror to the moment- and in so doing, they make us aware of our present moment. 

 

In addition to these comments, the big issue that I am contemplating is the fact that so many artistic opportunities are facilitated by institutions. So many of us young composers are constantly working within the walls of institutions. How can I reconcile the difference between my surroundings with my influences such as Isou and Debord who are adamantly at odds with this? My resolve was to criticize the institution from within. This line of Debord for me was particularly effective for my protagonist/poet:

(excerpt verse 189)

As all the art of the past comes to be recognized and appreciated historically, and is retrospectively reclassified as phases of a single “world art,” it is incorporated into a global disorder that can itself be seen as a sort of baroque structure at a higher level, a structure that absorbs baroque art itself along with all its possible revivals. For the first time in history the arts of all ages and civilizations can be known and accepted together, and the fact that it has become possible to collect and recollect all these art-historical memories marks the end of the world of art. In this age of museums in which artistic communication is no longer possible, all the previous expressions of art can be accepted equally, because whatever particular communication problems they may have had are eclipsed by all the present-day obstacles to communication in general.

 

I’ll get the copy of the piece (video and audio). Not sure about putting it online, as its long- but maybe excerpts..

Umwelt

Here are two links of excerpts of the dance piece “Umwelt” by choreographer Maguy Marin. She’s the artistic dir at Centre Choregraphique nat’l de Rillieux-la-pape in France. The piece, though highly attractive and stylized, has such an incredible economy of elements- objects, movement, situations, sound, etc that she achieves the general form of what i’ll call here for lack of a better term, “uncomfortable hypnotism”. It’s clear she put a great amount of time into the timing of return, combination, and variation of her various objects for the ensemble- plastic silver reflective crowns, pieces of meat, whistles, flashlights, buckets of rocks, bunny hats, etc. There was clearly a notion of repetition varied between consecutive and very long-term. There was weak material, and material meant to break up ideas of continuity for stronger material. In addition there were many different changes of clothing for each time they’d appear, going with or against the objects. All in all there was a large-scale progression of debris with some objects being left downstage. The full-time noise and large fans were a very clear situation, and they barely changed throughout- although there was some curious stuff w/the music, it was well-done in my opinion.

With such detail given to the smaller elements, and a refusal to move beyond the well-plotted scope of the piece, the real question was how was the energy to be sustained for an hour? With so many hyper-stylized elements, it could help get you only so far…and I’d say that the variations in movement created brief interpersonal relationships (always through repetition of dance phrase). This, combined with overall faster movement and energy, allowed us to achieve a form a lot more interesting than some gradual increase of energy and ensemble leading to a climactic moment-rather, it was all done very sensitively despite the overall intense situation of the piece.

In any case, here are the links- I saw it at the Joyce Theatre June 19th. The audience was disappointing… 

transition

In my last two years in paris I’ve had the experience of working within an institution, IRCAM

This was an experience very new to me, yet in some ways familiar terrain. Composing for me isn’t an investigation just in sound, it consists of pondering material, whatever it may be. The possibility of technology or ‘electronics’ permits new situations, but this idea of material can’t be ignored just to find something ‘new’, or ‘innovative’. Experimentation is necessary no matter what material it is being explored. 

In general my work has taken hold of theatre, working with space and performers in a way that deals with musical movement and theatrical movement as related and overlapping elements. This direction is moving me towards different work. Of enormous influence have been political issues and social issues of late 40’s-late 60’s and beyond. Individuals such as Isidore Isou, Maurice LeMaitre, Jacques Villegle, Guy Debord, and Henry Chopin are of particular importance. Movements such as situationisme, lettrisme, and poesie sonore have had enormous influence in addition to historical elements in the late sixties in Paris. 

 

All my Thanks:

I’ve had the privilege to work with and learn from many inspiring people, especially Mikhail Malt, Emmanuel Jourdan, Jean Lochard, three very gifted pedagogues. Researchers such as Arshia Cont, Emmanuel Flety, Diemo Schwarz, Greg Beller, Nicolas Rasamimanana, Frederic Bevilacqua, and Norbert Schnell. Yan Maresz, as a composer and as a teacher has helped me in countless ways. Pedagogy director Cyril Beros has supported me and given me enormous space in finding the result that I desire- such enthusiasm and encouragement is very rare. Through him I’ve had the enormous privilege to work with Thierry Bordereau, an incredible theatre director. It has been a joy to find the links between contemporary music and theatre with him.

Many thanks to Sophie Duplaix at the pompidou center. Her interest in my work and that of Jacques Villegle, among others, is greatly appreciated.

 

The production team here has allowed me to realize one project (position, influence) as well as a second piece for October (68). Many thanks go to Pascale Bondu, Joachim Olaya and Maxime Le Saux.

Most importantly are my classmates, each composers of great gift, always inspiring and supportive: Marco Suarez Cifuentes, David Hudry, Mandy Fang, Inaki Estrada Torio, Piet Johan Meyer, Roque Rivas, Matteo Francescini, and Yann Robin. My second year I had the joy to get to know yet even more composers who arrived to study here. 

And yet the most important are the musicians, without whom nothing is possible. I’ve had great fortune to work with Donatienne Michel-Dansac, Severine Ballon, Daniel Ciampolini, and Lionel Peintre. They have taught me so much.

Finally I must thank those who have made these last two years possible, those at Berkeley, California. I will thank them in person: Edmund Campion, David Wessel, David Milnes, Cindy Cox, and the rest of the gang.

 

 

 

 

return

last couple of months: putting together the piece ‘68′. There is always more work to do, and it’ll continue while I’m back in the bay area, starting in July.

last couple of years: living here in Paris. I’ve met some really important people and have had some great experiences. I’ll be juggling Paris and the bay area for some time I’m sure.

next couple of weeks: I’ll see Berlin for the first time, and then I’ll be in new jersey. Then I arrive to the bay area the 28th of June. Looking forward to getting back!