FULL-TEXT AVAILABLE IN PRINT EDITION ONLY. Every musician in the world produces invisible waves when making music—such is the nature of sound. Relatively few musicians, however, are concerned with those waves once they are absorbed and processed by the auditory system of the listener. Kristen Roos is an artist who exploits the power of invisibleContinue reading “Kristen Roos”
Author Archives: Musicworks
Milan
FULL-TEXT AVAILABLE IN PRINT EDITION ONLY A sonic spectre is haunting Milan’s music scene. That ghostly presence is Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901), Italy’s best-known composer of romantic operas, who moved to the city when young, shot to fame with Nabucco in 1842, and whose repertoire has been a staple of Teatro alla Scala ever since. Verdi,Continue reading “Milan”
James Rolfe
FULL-TEXT AVAILABLE IN PRINT EDITION ONLY. I first met James Rolfe nearly twenty years ago, when we were finalists in the 1990 edition of the CBC National Radio Competition for Young Composers. As a frequent visitor to Rolfe’s Toronto apartment at that time, I was afforded an insider’s view of the creative process behind many ofContinue reading “James Rolfe”
Tom Zé
FULL-TEXT AVAILABLE IN PRINT EDITION ONLY The romantic Brazil—the one that ensnares tourists—does not include the Brazilian Northeast. Miles from Rio de Janeiro, this place is worlds removed from the urban sophisticates that dwell in the south. To Brazilians and northerners alike, the Northeast has its own mythology. Its interior, the sertão, is aContinue reading “Tom Zé”
Micachu & The Shapes
FULL-TEXT AVAILABLE IN PRINT EDITION ONLY Growing up on the outskirts of London, kids are drawn to the city by any number of attractions, from shops to sport matches, from galleries to gangsta posing. For Mica Levi, it was classical-music concerts. Growing up in an intensely musical family, that was a typical weekend excursion.Continue reading “Micachu & The Shapes”
Ian Battenfield Headley
“Working with John Chowning at MusicAcoustica in Beijing was like touching history,” confesses a reverent Ian Battenfield Headley during our Skype call. “I had this image of him being this serious composer who doesn’t take time to speak to underlings, but he’s actually incredibly nice. The thing is, he has tinnitus, so he doesn’t knowContinue reading “Ian Battenfield Headley”
In Praise Of Spectacle
It’s October, and that means that Torontonians have just survived another annual, all-night, bacchanalian, contemporary-art binge called Nuit Blanche. Once a year, on the last Saturday in September, contemporary art in all its forms is brought free of charge to the Toronto public, from dusk to dawn. The festival had its beginnings in the ’80sContinue reading “In Praise Of Spectacle”
Change Is Coming, You Can Hear It In The Streets
On a recent trip to Montreal I encountered one of the most exciting pieces of new music I had heard in a long time. The sound came quietly at first, a distant pointillistic, tinny gesture. Granular synthesis? The mixing was superb, from niente to loud surround-sound and back again. At its peak, the timbre wasContinue reading “Change Is Coming, You Can Hear It In The Streets”
From Totalitarianism To Democracy: Wonderful Bad Taste Comes To Experimental Music
Good taste is totalitarian. The art critics, curators, and editors that create taste’s laws also enact those laws; their opinions influence what gets seen and read by the audience. Experimental music operates under it’s own totalitarian regime. Educators, artistic directors, and programmers who influence what we hear and what is commissioned create the rule ofContinue reading “From Totalitarianism To Democracy: Wonderful Bad Taste Comes To Experimental Music”
Writer’s Block, Coming To An Artist Near You
Writer’s block. Google it: 14,100,000 results; it’s popular. Not a problem solely for writers, it could aptly be named creator’s block. Anyone trying to render an idea out of nothingness knows writer’s block’s terrifying implications—missed deadlines, lost revenue, diminished professional reputation. But writer’s block implies more than just threatened livelihood. Ask the creators. The stallingContinue reading “Writer’s Block, Coming To An Artist Near You”