Based on
the existentialist short story by Jean Paul Sartre:
Breaking boundaries of
sound and space, John M. Kennedy’s avant-garde composition poetically mirrors
the dark and unexpected realities of Sartre’s world. Alicia Tycer’s libretto deconstructs the
original linear narrative to reflect the multiplicity of space and time, while
director Tanya Kane-Parry and members of her cutting-edge performance group,
Opera del Espacio, create startling physical imagery, all supported by the
Chamber Players of Los Angeles music ensemble. Students from the Department of
Music, Theatre and Dance at Cal State L.A. participated in the development and
workshop performances of this exciting new piece, working along side faculty
and professional performing artists and designers, including famed
international opera singer, Nicholas Isherwood; member of Urban Bush Women and
Head of Dance at Cal Poly Pomona, Gayle Fekete; video designer E. Martin
Gimenez (LA Opera, Cirque du Soliel, The Industry).
Background: Sartre constructed a story of
three men taken prisoner by the fascists during the Spanish Civil War as his
backdrop to explore his questions of existence, purpose, meaning, and
ultimately, choice. As the three prisoners await execution, one is given the
opportunity to spare his own life by giving up the location of his comrade.
Forces, memories and emotions pull him to make a choice – the only true freedom
we have.
First workshop presentation: State Playhouse, Cal State L.A., Jan 30-Feb 1, 2014.
The Composer’s Thoughts on “The
Wall”:
Artists
often encounter those moments when they envision a work, inspired by a thought,
a time or a place, and hold on to it, waiting for that right time to bring the
inspiration from the back of their mind to fruition. It’s been about 20 years
since I first read Sartre’s “The Wall”. The piece grabbed me in such a unique
way, that I chose not to re-read the story for years, so the impact of the
final paragraphs would remain fresh and only in my memory. In my conversations
with Tanya Kane-Parry, it was clear that our approach to art is very similar,
and that some sort of collaboration was in order.
This
“Musical Misdeed” includes mutual fascinations of things ranging from
existentialist writing to Fibonacci numbers. The script, concept of the piece
and musical ideas allow us to redefine conventional concepts of musical sound,
performance space and memory. The multi-faceted richness of the work would have
never come to fruition were it not for the retelling of Sartre through Alicia
Tycer’s adaptation, and Martin Gimenez’ video and spatialization experience.
Noise
Noise is
not a bad thing. It will play a key role in the music of this piece. Any sound,
vibration of air, etc., can be organized into a musical expression. At this
moment, a jet passed by overhead. That sound can be music, even by itself. The
motorcycle, which just now blurted by on my street, is in counterpoint to the
jet sound. So now I have the ideas for a musical expression reflecting my
neighborhood at 9:49AM, December 6, 2013. Now I can choose. Follow a Romantic
muse, using a clean high pitch for the jet, and a low grumbly pitch for the
motorcycle. Or use a Modern expression of getting the jet and motorcycle sounds
out of the voices and instruments. Or a Post-modern expression of somewhere in
between these two ideas. Whichever I choose, I am using the basics of musical
expression, the juxtapositions of high/low, long/short, loud/soft, time line,
etc., to form an organized expression of the events I heard.
Our Shared Image
The first
meeting we had, Tanya presented a brilliant image among the palette of ideas.
The work by Picasso, “Guernica”, reminded me of the poignancy of a moment in
history that informs a certain portion my work. The image itself has a special
meaning to me as well. In the prelude to the second US invasion of Iraq,
justifications and denials were often floated to the public in press
conferences from the UN. Those press conferences were held in the area of the
UN where “Guernica” is displayed. Someone noticed the stark display of the
justification of war, WMD, etc., being broadcast in front of Picassos’
masterpiece. When our Secretary of State
came to the podium, a curtain was drawn over the Picasso (http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2003/02/guer-f08.html).
The image and disdain I have for this gesture informed several works of mine
including an anti-war oratorio and ideas of another “misdeeds” based on the
Bush family.
There will
be times when the singers must “improvise” on cues I construct for this piece. These
cues are all informed by the terror and absurdity implicit in Picasso’s work,
which stares me in the face daily as I compose.
