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Citation: Dutta, W. (2018). The curating composer: mediating the production, exhibition and dissemination of non-classical music. (Unpublished Doctoral thesis, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance/City, University of London)

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City Research Online

TheCuratingComposer:MediatingtheProduction,

ExhibitionandDisseminationofNon-ClassicalMusic

WillDutta

SubmittedfortheDegreeofDoctorofPhilosophyatTrinityLabanConservatoireof

MusicandDanceforPhDinCreativePractice,Music

SubmittedtoCity,UniversityofLondon,NorthamptonSquare,LondonEC1V0HB

ResearchconductedatTrinityLabanConservatoireofMusicandDance,LabanBuilding,

Creekside,LondonSE83DZ

April2018

2

TableofContents

TABLEOFMATERIALS 4

TABLEOFILLUSTRATIONS 5

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 7

DECLARATION 8

ABSTRACT 9

INTRODUCTION 10

ASTYLISTICANALYSISOFNON-CLASSICALMUSIC 13

CHAPTER1.EXHIBITION:FRAMINGDEVICESANDMEANINGMAKING 17

MULTI-MEDIAEXPERIENCE 19RISK-TAKINGONTHEWESTCOASTANDTHELOFTSANDGALLERIESOFDOWNTOWNMANHATTAN 21THEBRITISHCONNECTION 24

RESEARCHOUTCOMENO.1:‘BLANKCANVAS17’ 28

CREATINGTHESITUATIONANDGENERATINGIDEASFOR‘BLANKCANVAS17’ 32DESIGNINGTHECURATORIALNARRATIVEINTHEPERFORMANCECONTEXT 36LIMITATIONSANDMEASURINGSUCCESS 38CONCLUDINGREMARKS 41

CHAPTER2.THECURATINGCOMPOSER 43

PART2A.PRODUCTION 43

INTRODUCTION 441.RESEARCHANDPLANNING 452.DEFININGTHESONICENTITIES 483.MODELLING 524.PRODUCTIONANDPRESENTATIONOFTHEFINISHEDWORK 53

PART2B.DISSEMINATION 56

ARTPLUSMUSICEQUALS 56PIRATERADIOREVOLUTION 59MOVINGTOWARDSGREATERENGAGEMENT 61

RESEARCHOUTCOMENO.2:‘BLOOM’ 64

LIMITATIONSANDMEASURINGSUCCESS 76CONCLUDINGREMARKS 77

CONCLUSION 79

APPENDIXI 83

APPENDIXII 84

3

GLOSSARY 85

REFERENCELIST 87

4

TableofMaterials

Folder1:CreativePractice

PartA.‘BlankCanvas17’

i. ShortFilmof‘BlankCanvas6’[USBFlashDrive]

ii. ShortFilmsof‘BlankCanvas17’[DVD]

iii. Programme[Print]

iv. Photography[Print]

v. Ephemera[Print]

PartB.‘bloom’

i. StudioAlbum[LP]

ii. CuratedPlaylist[USBFlashDrive]

iii. ShortFilmof‘bloomLIVE’[USBFlashDrive]

iv. ‘bloomworks’[Online<http://www.bloomworks.art>]

v. Ephemera[Print]

5

TableofIllustrations

Fig.1-1KurtSchwitters’Merzbau.PhotographbyWilhelmRedemann,1933©Wilhelm

Redemann

Fig.1-2aFrontsideofA5flyer.DesignedbyRossClarke(2007)

Fig.1-2bReversesideofA5flyer.DesignedbyRossClarke(2007)

Fig.1-3FrontandreversesidesofA5flyer.DesignedbyRossClarke(2007)

Fig. 1-4Posterof ‘BlankCanvas16’ atVillageUnderground.DesignedbyRossClarke

(2011)

Fig.1-5aFrontsideofA5flyer.DesignedbyMarkFell(2013)

Fig.1-5bReversesideofA5flyerDesignedbyMarkFell(2013)

Fig.1-6VillageUnderground.PhotographbyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©Howard

Melnyczuk

Fig.1-7PlaidDJ-ingat‘BlankCanvas’.PhotographbyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©

HowardMelnyczuk

Fig.1-8Themodifiedstage.PhotographbyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©Howard

Melnyczuk

Fig.1-9Capacityaudience.PhotographybyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©Howard

Melnyczuk

Fig.2-1TonerowforBloume

Fig.2-2Preliminaryarrangementofnotes

Fig.2-3Developmentofthemotif

Fig.2-4Tonerowforwhitingflowre

Fig.2-5Preliminaryarrangementofnotes

Fig.2-6Melodictracingofthephrase‘ahighersenseoftime’

Fig.2-7Theright-handaccompaniment

Fig.2-8MelodicideasforBeautyStill

Fig.2-9LPcoverartworkforTerryRiley’sInCbyBillyBryant(1968)

Fig.2-10LPcoverartworkbyWilliamTWiley(1968)

Fig.2-11BerylKorot’sweavingdesign(1978)

Fig.2-12Artworkfor‘bloom’byRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

Fig.2-13‘bloomLIVE’atInstituteofContemporaryArts.PhotographbyMichaelRobert

Williams,2017©MichaelRobertWilliams

6

Fig.2-14(Un)controlledactivityin‘bloomLIVE’.DiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher

(2017)

Fig.2-15(Un)controlledactivityinManifestationA.DiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher

(2017)

Fig.2-16a‘EdgeCulture’newsletter

Fig.2-16bExampleofaguesteditorin‘EdgeCulture’newsletter.PhotographbyTessa

Sollway,2015©TessaSollway

Fig.2-17aDiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

Fig.2-17bDiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

7

Acknowledgements

Iwouldliketothankmysupervisors,DrDominicMurcottandProfessorDanFern.Iam

hugelyindebtedtotheirsharingofexpertise,guidance,patienceandsupport.Iamalso

gratefultomycollaboratorsEdHandley,AndyTurner,EdMacfarlane,ManuelPoletti,

Max de Wardener, Damian Hale, Matt Reed, Tim Exile, Chris Wheeler and Russell

Warren-Fisherwhosecreativity isenormously inspiring.Thanks toDr JonathanClarke

for his assistance early in the process, Phillipa Lowe and my parents for their

encouragement.

Iamfortunatetohavebeensupported inmystudiesbytheNationalPortraitGallery

andIamgratefulfortheirfinancialassistance.IwouldalsoliketothankCreativeworks

London and the Researcher in Residence scheme for hosting my placement at the

Institute of Contemporary Arts. I gratefully acknowledge Arts Council England, PRS

FoundationandHinrichsenFoundationfortheirsupportof‘BlankCanvas’and‘bloom’

and thanks to Gordon Mac, John Metcalfe and Dr John Richards for their unique

insightsandreflections.

Finally, Iwould like to say special thanks toBryonywhosemotivation,patience, love

andsupporthavebeeninvaluable.

8

Declaration

IgrantpowerofdiscretiontotheUniversityLibrariantoallowthethesistobecopiedin

whole or in partwithout further reference tome. This permission covers only single

copiesmadeforstudypurposes,subjecttonormalconditionsofacknowledgement.

9

Abstract

Thisstudypresentsthecuratingcomposerasanewroleintwenty-firstcenturymusicmaking. It transfers and constructively applies curatorial language,methodology andstrategiesfromthedisciplineofvisualartsintothemusicaldomain.The methodology is creative practice and a written commentary. There are tworesearch outcomes: ‘Blank Canvas 17’ is a single-author exhibition platform for newmusic; and ‘bloom’ is a new body of non-classical music presented as a compositepublicoutcome in sixmanifestations. Ineachof theoutcomes I construct the roleofthe curator in music and demonstrate an inter-relationship between the mode ofproductionandanexpandedmodeofexhibition.Ialsoprovidethefirstoutlineofnon-classical music that has developed within the independent classical scene (indie-classical)inLondonsince2003.Theresearchcontextextendstocontemporaryvisualcultureandthesupervisiblerolesof thecuratorandartist-curatoror curartistas independentexhibitionmakers. I alsoexaminea selectionofhistoricalactivity to revealproto-curatingpracticesassociatedwith the public presentation of newmusic. These include AndyWarhol’s ‘ExplodingPlasticInevitable’;earlyminimalismassociatedwithLaMonteYoung,TerryRiley,SteveReichandPhilipGlass;andexperimentalismandpirateradiointheUK.

10

Introduction

Theindependentcuratorcurrentlyoccupiesahighlyvisiblepositioninthedisciplineof

visualarts. Inthelastdecadealonetherehasbeenaregularflowofcritical literature

reexamining his or her shifting role (Obrist, 2008;Wade, 2009;O’Neill, 2012; Balzer,

2014)andPaulO’Neill (2012,p.32)neatlycategorises this into threedistinctperiods:

‘from demystification in the 1960s to visibility in the 1980s to supervisibility of the

curator in the1990s’. Scoresof journals and symposiaplus the legionsof graduating

studentswellversedinthecuratorialturnhelptomaintainthisnowhighlyprofessional

careerpath.

The contemporary understanding of the curator has its foundations in the early

twentiethcentury.ArtistsanddesignerssuchasMarcelDuchamp,KurtSchwittersand

PietMondrianattemptedtosubverttraditionalmodesofartproductionandexhibition

forthefirsttime.O’Neill(2012,p.10)saysitwastheseartistswho‘begantocriticizeart

asaninstitutioninneedofcounterattackandconfrontation’. Indoingsotheysetthe

stage for a modulation from the autonomous curator-as-carer within the institution

(Lichty,2008,p.164) toan independentexhibitionmaker.AmelieNordenfeltandPer

Hüttner (2003, no page number) argue this was one of the important changes for

contemporaryart,‘tostepoutofthewhitecubetosearchfornewchallenges,toclaim

morespace,newcontextsandtoreworkideas’.

More recently a distinction has beenmade between the discursive and the practical

within the art institution (as seen by the respective positioning of curator and

practitionerintheschoolsofhumanitiesandfinearts).Thisservestohighlightaforkin

anunevenroad;thatisthecuratorisdominatingcontemporarycultureoverandabove

theartist (Borelli,2013).DavidBalzer (2014,p.26)asks thequestion ‘if thecurator is

present, is the artist necessarily absent, i.e., disempowered and negated?’ A

counteraction to this possible imbalance is the phenomenon of the artist-curator or

curartist,whose impact firstgatheredmomentuminthe1980s(O’Neill,2007a,p.16),

onlytobefullyrealisedinGavinWade’stext‘Artist+Curator=’(O’Neill,2012,p.105).

Whilestillseenasasubdominantformofexhibitionmaker(BirchallandMabaso,2013,

p.64),artists,curators,artist-curatorsorcurartistsandcuratorialcollectivesareallnow

stakeholdersinbringingaboutinstitutionalreinvention.

11

Inthefieldofmusic(andperformingartsmoregenerally)therehasbeenadistinctlack

ofliterature,modellingandpracticalapplicationofthesameroledespiteoldformsof

creationandmediationseeminglylosingtheirlegitimacy(Malzacher,TupajićandZanki,

2010, p.2). The conservatoire has seen no such bifurcation between the producer

(composerand/orperformer)anditsdiscursiveother.Moreover,theinstitutionofart

music, that is the predominance of the concert hall model (including its associated

etiquettes,practicesandephemera),hasreceivedsurprisinglylimitedcritiquefromits

producers historically. However, in the last fifteen years, there has been some

movement towards a discourse on curating music (Andrewes, 2014, pp.103-105;

Rutherford-Johnson, 2017, p.136) and it is a profile that is only just gaining traction.

This has come about, in part, because there have been some considerable

developments in the independent classical scene (indie-classical1 herein) as a ‘do-it-

yourself’culture.

Thisstudyseekstoaddressthefollowingthreequestionsthroughcreativepracticeand

theprovisionofawrittencommentary:

( 1 ) What does contemporary visual culture offer the development of the role of

curatorinmusic?

(2)Whatmighttheconstructionofthisoriginalrolelooklike?

(3)WhichcuratorialpracticeshaveIfavouredandwhy?

In order to curate any process-led art, Sarah Cook (2008, p.45) highlights the

importanceoffocusingontheartwork’sproductionandmediation.Assuchthisstudy

featurestworesearchoutcomesthat investigatemodesofproduction,exhibitionand

dissemination. Interactions with composers, curators and audiences are carefully

documented to supportmy critical evaluation and they add to curatorial criticism at

large. Furthermore, it ismy hope that this study acts as a contribution towards the

discussionanddefinitionofnon-classicalmusiccreationandinstitutionalcritique.

The term ‘curating composer’ is presented here as a new role in the field of music

appropriating its terminology andmethodology from contemporary visual culture. A

1Indie-classicaland/oralt-classicalaretermscontrivedbythepresstodescribethisculture(Kozinn,2011;Greene,2012;Mariner,2012,p.31).

12

simpledefinitionofcuratingistheselectionandcompilationofobjectsinrelationtoa

given context (Hüttner, 2003, no page number]. This definition is substantiated and

expandeduponasthecommentaryprogresses.Forthesuccessfulexhibitionofhisor

herwork,and/orthatofanumberofartists,theindependentcuratingcomposermust

look to theartist-runmodels thatemploy innovative curatorial designandexhibition

strategiesinordertoreachhisorheraudienceandengagenewaudiences.Thisisdue,

inpartbutnotexclusively,tothewidelyacknowledgeddeclineinaudienceattendance

atconcerthalls forartmusicandbyassociationnewmusicperformances (Benjamin,

2009, p.7).Moreover, the practitioner, aided by advancing technologies, can create,

promoteanddisseminatehisorherworksothecurator-as-mediatoror ‘middleman’,

as Lars Bang Larsen and Søren Andreasen describe, is particularly pertinent (O’Neill,

2007a,pp.20-30).

Atthisearlystage,itisworthconsideringthetensionbetweentherolesofcuratorand

programmer. Paul Couillard (2009, p.85) describes it as a crudebut useful binary ‘to

recognize that they are distinct methodologies that will affect not only what

performance art gets shown, but also how that work is understood’. He offers a

curatedprogrammetobe ‘anauthoredselectionguidedbygoalsofanalytic inquiry…

toprivilegenotionsof coherenceand interrelationship’ (Couillard,2009,p.84),whilst

programming prioritises entertainment over theoretical framework; events engage

audienceswithasetofexperiences.

InChapter1,‘Exhibition:FramingDevicesandMeaningMaking’,Ibegintheprocessof

constructing the role of curator in the first research outcome, ‘Blank Canvas 17’. I

founded‘BlankCanvas’in2007asanexhibitionplatformfornewmusicandtherehave

been sixteen editions prior to the most recent under investigation. I demonstrate

learning by employing framing mechanisms, narratives and other curatorial design

featuresandthismarksadivergenceinapproachtoearliereditions.Iprefacethiswith

an interrogation of historical modes of exhibition in which I aim to reveal proto-

curatorial practices associatedwith the public presentation of newmusic. These are

Andy Warhol’s ‘Exploding Plastic Inevitable’; early minimalism associated with

composers La Monte Young, Terry Riley, Steve Reich and Phillip Glass; and

experimentalismintheUK.Ialsodiscussatlengththeflourishingindie-classicalscene

wherenon-classicalmusichasbeenencounteredbyitsfirstlarge-scaleaudiencebefore

13

beingconsideredbythetraditionalconcerthallsandconcerthall-goingpublic.

Chapter2,‘TheCuratingComposer’,addressestheapplicationofexpandedexhibition

formatstoincludethephysicalandvirtualinthesecondresearchoutcome,‘bloom’.I

havedividedthechapterintotwosections.Part2A.‘Production’isacriticalreflection

on themode of production inwhich idiomatically led artistic creation and curatorial

processes converge. The outcome here is a new body of work I have composed (or

initiated) in collaboration with electronic music duo Plaid (Ed Handley and Andy

Turner),computer-musicdesignerManuelPolettiandcomposerMaxdeWardener.In

Part 2B. ‘Dissemination: CompositeMaterial’, I investigate howmodes ofmediation

have changed over three time periods to demonstrate how new technologies have

empowered artists to engage audiences beyond the physical experience. I use this

learning together with two curatorial methodologies to exhibit ‘bloom’ in six

manifestations.IndoingsoIseektoestablishadynamicsystemofinteractionbetween

themodesofproductionandpresentation.

Astylisticanalysisofnon-classicalmusic

Oneof the first issues toconsider ina studyof thiskind is the rangeofmusicunder

research. I use the nomenclature ‘non-classicalmusic’ throughout and it is a name I

have inherited from the composer Gabriel Prokofiev (Andrewes, 2014, p.12). I have

adapted the usage (and spelling) to reference a particular musical style that has its

beginningsintherecordlabelwiththesamename(spelt‘Nonclassical’)andIuseitas

anumbrellafortheworkofaselectgroupofcomposers.BydoingthisIamclaiminga

position: it ismy contention that there is an inter-relationshipbetweennon-classical

musicanditsexhibitioninaclubcontextandthishasleddirectlytogerminalcurating

practices.Moreover,thisismystartingpointthatleadstothediscoveryofthecurating

composer.

Inhisarticleonminimalism,TimothyA.Johnson(1994,pp.742-773)arguesforittobe

understood as an aesthetic, style and technique; ‘each ofwhich has been a suitable

description of the term at certain points in the development of minimal music’

(Johnson,1994,p.742).Hisdefinitionispossibleinlightofawiderangeofmusicaltexts

andalimited,butnotaltogethersparse,setofcriticalliteratureathisdisposal(Nyman,

1974;Strickland,1993).IfviewedunderJohnson’slens,atthistime,non-classicalmusic

14

is far from integrated into themusic landscape,marketand literature so itwouldbe

too early to explore it as a technique. Is it then a new aesthetic? Thom Andrewes

(2014, p.53) suggests ‘the Nonclassical [sic] aesthetic is all about displacement…

displacingonestyleofmusicintotheframeorcontextofanother’.However,hedoes

notsuggestitrequiresanewwayoflistening.Forexample,itisnotmusicasagradual

process (Reich, 2002, pp.34-36) althoughelementsofminimalist techniqueareoften

employed. See, for example, the secondmovementof JohnRichards’Suite for Piano

andElectronicswherethepianoistreatedlikearesonatingchambertocreateadrone

or ‘meditativestate,wherethe listener isgraduallydrawnintotheresultingtextures’

(Richards,2006,nopagenumber). Ingeneral,non-classicalmusiccanbedescribedas

teleological ‘inwhichgoalsareestablished, themusicprogresses toward thesegoals,

and the listener travels on a journey among and between different musical areas’

(Johnson,1994,p.744).Therefore,itisnotanewaesthetic.

In the following section, I analyse the stylistic features of non-classical music with

referencetomusicaltextsbyGabrielProkofiev,JohnRichards,MaxdeWardenerand

my own work. I use as a framework form, rhythm, harmony, melody and texture

(RobertPascall,1984,p.316) todiscoverwhether it isastyleof itsown. (I frequently

drawonthesesamefeaturesasaresourcetomakeimportantcuratorialdecisionslater

inthecommentary.)

It is importanttonotethatthecomposers’textsunderdiscussionareallnotatedand

thecomposershaveundergonesomeformalmusicaltraining,topostgraduatelevelin

manycases.Arguably,notationisapre-requisiteofnon-classicalmusic,asatypeofart

music. Moreover, the notion of a style as a school of composition (Johnson, 1994

p.747), isgivensomedegreeofweightbecauseProkofiev,RichardsanddeWardener

overlapped as students at the University of York2 between 1993 and 1997 (and the

performersassociatedwiththeseearlyworks,ElysianQuartet,GéNIAandI,studiedat

TrinityLabanConservatoireofMusicandDancebetween2000and2004).

Form

Theshapeorstructureofnon-classicalcompositionsisorganised,logicalandcoherent.

The metre, tempo and rhythmic characteristics of electronic club music are often

2FormoreinformationabouthowProkofiev,RichardsanddeWardenerfirstmet,seeAppendixI

15

quoted directly or present in abstraction. See, for example, Jerk Driver (Prokofiev,

2011)andOvercolour(Dutta,2012a).Ofteninmulti-movements,ternaryandvariation

formsareevidentinPianoConcerto(deWardener,2013)andConcertoforTurntables

and Orchestra (Prokofiev, 2006). In general, however, form is traditionally used and

composersavoidmorerecentdevelopments,suchasmobileormomentforms.

Rhythm

Iobservehowtherhythmiclanguageofelectronicclubmusicisimplicitand/orexplicit

in a range of non-classical texts. See, for example, String Quartet No. 1 (Prokofiev,

2003). The violins open the second movement with an unusual syncopation, which

becomesmore irregular as the four-barphrase repeats. I am remindedof theoften-

unusualsnareplacementsanddrumaccentsfound in2-stepgaragemusic.Thestring

techniquesfrequentlychange,fromcollegnotospiccato,arcotopizzicato.Repetition

and timbral varietyareessential toelectronic clubmusicandareusedasdeveloping

tools to maintain listener interest (Sherburne, 2004, p.320). Philip Sherburne (Ibid.,

p.322) describes the unique corporeal experience of the beat and Prokofiev

acknowledgesthisinhisoriginalintention‘todoacontemporaryclassicalquartet…and

actuallyhavepeopledancingtoit’(Andrewes,2014,p.12).

Harmony

Inallthetextssurveyedtheharmonyistraditionalinitsfunctionandthisparallelswith

electronicclubmusic.Attimes, it ishighlychromaticorextended, forexample inthe

firstmovementofStringQuartetNo.2(Prokofiev,2006)andthesecondmovementof

PianoConcerto,but it is invariablytonalwithfamiliartriads,seventh,ninthandother

compound chords. In the same pieces, harmonic movement is mostly strong: the

alternating harmonies are brought to the fore in String Quartet No. 2 where they

contrastwitheachother,helpingtopropelthemusicforwardandshapeitscharacter.

Melody

Thereisarangeofmelodicinventioninthetexts,fromtherepetitionofasinglenotein

theopeningofProkofiev’ssecondquartettoanelaborateandfast-movingfirstsubject

indeWardener’sconcerto.OnlyinthesecondmovementofRichards’SuiteforPiano

andElectronicsismelodytotallyabsent.

16

Texture

The works under investigation are for string quartet, solo instrument and chamber

orchestraand/orsoloinstrumentandelectronics.Iobserveavarietytexture,including

homophony,polyphonyandpolyrhythms.Inaddition,whensoftwaretechnologiesare

used theyaddanextra stratumto thecomposition’s textureoftenbeingvery rich in

theirdesign.See,forexample,Aerophobia(deWardener,2012).

FromtheanalysisaboveIconcludethatnon-classicaltextsarerelativelytraditional in

form, harmony and melody, especially when one considers other contemporaneous

works. Even tempo instructions are often in Italian; the conventional, though not

exclusive,methodused since the 1600s (Scholes,Nagley and Latham, 2002, p.1264).

Rhythm and texture provide the focal points in the style and as a result the texts

reflect,inpart,thecontinuinginfluenceofnotatedminimalismoncomposersandtheir

works(Johnson,1994,pp.768-770).

Ipositionnon-classicalmusiconthecontinuumofmusicalpostmodernism,whichhas

itsrootsinthecounter-cultureofthe1960sandinturnonexperimentalismintheUK.

Much has beenwritten of a free exchange (Sande, 2010; Lolavar, 2011; Rutherford-

Johnson,2013;Andrewes,2014).SoosanLolavar(2011,p.4)attributesthisto‘alargely

pluralisticapproachtomusicaspartofaneweraof“culturalpostmodernism”which

has broken down hitherto boundaries of style, genre, aesthetic value and audience

appreciation’. The critic Alex Ross (2007, p.542) describes the ‘great fusion’ as one

possible destination for twenty-first century music with ‘intelligent pop artists and

extrovertedcomposersspeakingmoreorlessthesamelanguage’.Theinventionwithin

non-classicalmusicarisesinitssharedcharacteristicswithelectronicclubmusicand,as

Isetouttoshow,thesymbioticrelationshipbetweenthisparticularmusicmakingand

itsexhibitionspace.Thecomposersarenotusingelectronicclubmusicasanoccasional

effect, such as Thomas Adès (1999) and Dai Fujikura (2006) might or as crossover

(Rutherford-Johnson,2017,pp.75-78). It is idiomaticof their compositional language,

which is informedasmuchby their roles asproducers. See, for example, Prokofiev’s

workunderhisguises‘Medasyn’and‘GabrielOlegavich’forgrimeMCLadySovereign,

‘PublicWarning’(2006)and‘Jigsaw’(2009),ordeWardener’ssoloalbum,‘WhereIam

Today’(2004).

17

Chapter1.Exhibition:FramingDevicesandMeaningMaking

In his history of the art exhibition, the curator Hans Ulrich Obrist (2014, pp.26-29)

identifiestheinnovationofthegalleryasframingdeviceaspivotaltothedevelopment

of the curator. This process started in the early twentieth century when a range of

artists, including Marcel Duchamp, ‘began to innovate and invent display features

within thisexpanded format’ (Ibid.,p.29).They took itupon themselves to challenge

what they saw as the rigid institutional framework within which works of art were

displayedandcritiqued.

Duchamp questioned the very nature of what constitutes a work of art in his

readymadesBottleRack (1914)andFountain (1917).Hisevent-basedinstallationMile

ofString(1942)‘treatedtheexhibitionitselfastherelevantcarrierofmeaning’(Ibid.).

Kurt Schwitters’ invention of ‘Merz’ to describe his collage and assemblage works

blurredtheboundaryforthefirsttimebetweenfineartandpopularculture;andboth

Schwitters and Piet Mondrian rejected completely the idea of exhibiting pictures in

traditional gallery spaces. Schwitters’ Merzbau (Fig. 1-1) is an example of a total

environment.

18

Fig.1-1KurtSchwitters’Merzbau.PhotographbyWilhelmRedemann,1933©WilhelmRedemann

Theseartistsforeshadowedthecontemporaryunderstandingofcontextasanidea‘to

serveastheartworkbyitself’(MoMA,2014).Thepregnancyofthishassincebecome

oneofthecurator’smost importantdevices intheirarmouryofstorytelling,meaning

makingandanalytic inquiry.Thisaspectof themodel informssomeofmychoices in

thetworesearchoutcomes.

The ever-increasing numbers of artists who have become active simultaneously as

curators is, therefore, a logical outcome of this learning. The authorWinfried Stürzl

(2013,p.6)saysthe foundationofa largenumberofprojectspacesoroff-spaces isa

clear sign of intent by this now omnipresent phenomenon. One such example is

EastsideProjectsinBirmingham(UK),co-foundedin2008byartistsGavinWade,Ruth

Claxton,SimonandTomBoor,designerJamesLangdonandarchitectCelineCondorelli.

Eastside Projects (n.d) describes itself as ‘an artist-run multiverse, commissioning,

producingandpresentingexperimentalartpracticesanddemonstratingwaysinwhich

art may be useful as part of society’. They providematerial infrastructure for local,

national and international artists and present a national public art programme. In

describing the evolving model of Eastside Projects, Gavin Wade says ‘we don’t call

19

ourselvesa“collaborativecuratorialplatform”butitmayapply’(BirchallandMabaso,

2013,p.65).

Artist-runprojectsandoffspacesthencontinuetochallenge,critiqueandreinventthe

oftenformal, institutionalgalleryapparatuswhere,asPaulO’Neill (2007b,p.15)says,

art is traditionally mediated, experienced and historicised. These are some of the

ambitionsIseektotransferfromcontemporaryvisualcultureinconstructingtherole

ofcuratorinmusic.

Inthenextsection,aselectionofhistoricalprecedentsisexaminedbecausetherewere

occasional turns towards expanding the context of newmusic during the twentieth

century. Someof thesewere led by visual artists and arewell documented. See, for

example, Hugo Ball’s ‘Cabaret Voltaire’ and ‘Galerie Dada’, Allan Kaprow and Adrian

Henri’s ‘Happenings’ and George Maciunas’ ‘Fluxconcerts or Aktionen’. However,

pertinent to this study are the progressive countercultural trends in art and music

associatedwiththe1960sontheWestandEastCoastsofAmericaandtheireffecton

experimental practices in the UK. These reveal new approaches to music-making,

proto-curatingprocessesandinstitutionalcritiquethatleadtothedevelopmentofmy

ownartisticandcuratorialvoice.Theyalsodemonstrateaninter-relationshipbetween

themusic’sproductionandperformancescenario.

Inthefinalsectionofthechapter,Idiscussthefirstoutcomeoftheresearchprocess,

‘BlankCanvas17’.HereIshowthedevelopmentofasingle-authorcuratorialplatform

inwhichIsetupasituationandinviteresponsesfromtwocomposers. Idemonstrate

an application of curatorial design thinking and the contemporary understanding of

contexttocreateanovelplatformformediatingandexperiencingnewmusic.Lastly,I

showhow‘BlankCanvas’isanextensionofmyownartwork.

Multi-mediaexperience

Andy Warhol’s ‘Exploding Plastic Inevitable’ (herein referred to as the ‘EPI’) is a

valuable resource to review and critique in the study of expanded formats and

development of the artist-curator or curartist. It lies approximately halfway on the

continuum of contextual inquiry begun by Duchamp where in this instance a non-

20

galleryspaceisusedasaframingdeviceandtheartistsandspectatorsarethemselves

theartobject.

CuratorsandtheoristsCorneliaandHolgerLund(2009,p.181)describethe ‘EPI’as ‘a

new kind of hybrid event positioned somewhere between art and party’. This fulfills

Claire Doherty’s (2007, p.107) assertion that ‘the un-stated aim of any curatorial

endeavour is to produce a situation like no other’. How did this novel platform first

comeabout?

The ‘EPI’ had its beginnings in a residency at the Film-Makers Cinematheque in

February 1966, entitled ‘Andy Warhol, Up-Tight’. During this weeklong residency,

Warhol presented The Velvet Underground and Nico for the first time. Each show

featured slide and film projections byWarhol and PaulMorrissey, lighting by Danny

Williams,anddancesbyGerardMalangaandEdieSedgwickamongothers.Following

itssuccess,Warholtouredtheeventtoseveraluniversitycampuses. InApril1966,he

signed a one-month lease on the Dom in New York’s East Village and the ‘EPI’ was

born.

‘Therock’n’rollmusicgetslouder,thedancersgetmorefrantic,andthelightsstart

goingonandofflikecrazy…youdon’tthinkthenoisecangetanylouder,andthen

itdoes,untilthereisonebigrhythmictidalwaveofsound…allofitfusedtogether

intoonemagnificentmomentofhysteria’(BockrisandMalanga,1983,p.50).

The authorship of ‘Andy Warhol, Up-Tight’ and the ‘EPI’ is contentious and this is

particularly strikingbecauseof the valueplacedonauthorial distinctionby artworld

institutions (BirchallandMabaso,2013,p.66).LouReedsaidtheuniquepresentation

was indicative of what The Velvets and others had been doing at the time, ‘so

everybody thought of it’ (Bockris and Malanga, 1983, p.35). However, Bockris and

Malanga(Ibid.,p.52)recognise‘itwasundoubtedly[Warhol’s]presencethatgavethe

discordantproductionscohesion’.Theysuggestthe‘EPI’wasanextensionofhiswork

as a portrait artist. In this light, it is possible to say thatWarhol’s community of art

producers and spectators were framed in the nightclub space and given meaning

through their exhibition. Therefore, the ‘EPI’ as Warhol’s artwork was mediated

21

primarilythroughthephysicalexperience(withsecondarymediationthroughastudio

albumandlaterthrougharchivefilm).

The ‘EPI’usedmany innovative techniquesandplacednewmusicat thecentreof its

curatorialdesign.CorneliaLund(2009,p.181)explains:

‘The party extracted visual music from the cinematic context in which it had

hithertolargelybeenembedded,andthentransplanteditnotonlyontothestage,

butontotheentirevenue,spectatorsincluded’.

CuratorHenryGeldzahlerrecallsthethrillingeffectofthis;‘Iwasmoreimpressedwith

the music than with the other effects, but it was enhanced by the combination’

(BockrisandMalanga,p.3).Theuniquevisualpresentationwentagainsttheaccepted

rock mores of the time. At the end of April 1966, the ‘EPI’ closed at the Dom and

Dohertylaments‘theywouldneverplayinsuchaperfectartrockculturalconfiguration

timesetagain’(Ibid.,p.57).

Risk-takingontheWestCoastandtheloftsandgalleriesofdowntown

Manhattan

Manyofthecreativeprinciplesofthe‘EPI’(lightshows,interdisciplinarycollaboration)

cameoutoftheexperimentalpracticesinSanFranciscoatthebeginningofthedecade.

TheSanFranciscoTapeMusicCenter isanexampleofanautonomouscomposer-led

organisationthatwasunaffiliatedtoanyuniversityorcollegeanditrejectedtraditional

concert hall culture (Bernstein, 2008, p.34). Morton Subotnik and Ramon Sender

foundeditin1961‘toprovideagroupoflocalcomposerswithastudioandavenuefor

thepresentationof theirworks’ (Ibid.,p.9). Fromthestart, its conceptually liberated

approachtoartproductionwasreflectiveofthewideravant-gardeartsscenethattook

in theatre, dance andmime (Ibid., p.5). Sender and Pauline Oliveros setup the new

musicseries‘Sonics’inDecember1961topresentcompositionscreatedinthestudio:

‘those involved found themselves in a new relationship to the audience… this

stimulated new concepts in the performance procedures’ (Ibid., p.49). Performances

regularly featured visual environments created by TonyMartin. Arguably, a defining

momentinitsshorthistorywastheworld-premiereofTerryRiley’sInConNovember

4,1964.LaMonteYoung,RileyandSteveReich(whoplayedkeyboardsinRiley’swork

22

and had recently graduated from the nearby Mills College) transferred these

techniquestotheEastCoastandanewscenequicklyestablisheditself.DavidBernstein

(2008,p.34)saysofthemodestfacilitiesoftheTapeMusicCenter:

‘[It] hadmore in commonwith the small presses, underground newspapers, and

filmmakerscollectivesthathadincreasinglyemergedduringthe1950sand1960sas

alternativestocorporatecontrolandcommercializationofthearts’.

SouthofCarnegieHallandLincolnCenter for thePerformingArts, ‘freeofmodernist

angst and inflected with pop optimism’ (Alex Ross, 2008, p.475), a scene of purely

Americanartwasbrewing in the lofts andgalleriesof 1960’s SoHoandTriBeCa. The

filmmaker,actorandperformanceartistJackSmithreferstotheseartist-runspacesin

Manhattanas‘rentedisland’andmuchofthis‘objecttheater’,‘loftperformance’and

‘newpsychodrama’hasonlyrecentlybeencatalogued(Sanders,2013,pp.9-39).

For composers La Monte Young, Dennis Johnson and Terry Riley limited financial

resourcesplayedan important role in theseperformancescenarios.TheauthorKeith

Potter(2000,p.18)explains:

‘TheManhattanartisticcommunitythatspawnedmanyoftheartisticdevelopments

which have fed into the continuing story of musical minimalism and “post-

minimalism”inpartoweditsexistencetopurelypracticalaspects:thelowrentsfor

large loft spaces available in downtown Manhattan in 1960s and 1970s for

instance’.

Arguablythecomposers’tendencytowardsextremedynamicsandextendedduration,

thatis‘ofmaximal-lengthminimal-action’(Ibid.,p.164),couldnotbesuitablymanaged

in the concerthall either. Insteadapremiereof Johnson’sPiece forTwoSaxophones

tookplaceatYokoOno’sloftonChambersStreet.Inthewinterof1960-61,Youngtook

overcuratorialdutiesfortheseriesthatPotter(2000,p.50)describesas‘perhapsone

of the first to take place in a loft in New York City, thus representing one of the

beginningsofalternativeperformancespaces’.

23

Thedesegregationofperformersandaudiencewasa frequent featureof theseearly

minimalistworks and a continuationof JohnCage’s experiments a decade earlier. In

Young’s Composition 1960, the lights are turned off for a stated duration and once

restored theaudience isadvised that theperformance isoverandtheiractivitiesare

thecomposition. In ‘DreamHouse’,Youngandhispartner, theartistMarianZazeela,

setuptheirfirstcontinuoussoundandlightenvironmentinaloftonChurchStreetthat

ran from1966-70. The conceptof ‘stasis’ served as the artwork itself. The ‘EPI’ took

inspiration from the multi-media experiments of Young and Zazeela. She pioneered

several lighting techniques, including theprojectingontoperformers’ clothing,which

wouldbeseenlaterinthe‘EPI’.BillyLinich(lateranassistanttoWarhol)andJohnCale

(founding member of The Velvet Underground) both played in Young’s ensemble

between1963-65.

The two examples above show how spatial co-presence is fundamental to their

experience.Author TimRutherford-Johnson (2017, p.55) describes this as reinserting

the body into music ‘to reinstate the listener as the site of meaning making and

pleasure’. Consequently, there are few official recordings of Young’s music – David

Grubbs (2014) writes extensively on the difficult relationship of recording and

experimental music practices – and in the current version of ‘Dream House’ (1993-

present) filming and photography are strictly forbidden. Thus, both artworks are

primarilymediatedthroughtheirphysicalexhibition.

WhitecubegalleryspacesandloftswereoftentheframingmechanismsforReichand

Glass’ earlymotoric processmusic. Glasswas present atOno’s Chambers Street loft

seriesthroughout1960-61andingeneral‘gravitatedmoretoartthantomusiccircles’

(Strickland,1993,p.203).BothheandReichhadprofessionalandpersonalfriendships

withanumberofvisualartists,notablyMinimalistsRobertRauschenberg,SolLeWitt,

RichardSerraandMichaelSnow,andbyextensionaccesstoartworldapparatusand

importantfinancialaid(Reich,BerkeleyandBryars,1986).Potter(2000,p.174)says:

‘Thepersonal,aswellasaesthetic,connectionshemadewiththeartworld inthe

1960s allowedReich access to art galleries as performance spaces longbeforehe

becameacceptedinWesternclassicalmusiccircles,andaudiencesforhisworkwho

wereoftenwell-informedaboutitsintentions’.

24

The two composers distance themselves from direct comparisons between their

artwork and Minimalism as a visual art form (Reich, Berkeley and Bryars, 1986).

However, galleries and museums inclined towards Minimalist art were the most

welcomingofandreceptive to theirmusic (see, forexample,AnEveningofMusicby

Steve Reich or An Evening of Music by Philip Glass and the exhibition ‘Anti-Illusion:

Procedures/Materials’atWhitneyMuseumofAmericanArtin1969).Arguablythiswas

a radical act to situatemusicalandvisualmaterial alongsideoneanother in thisway

(andthisisdiscussedfurtherinChapter2,Part2B).Oneofthefirstartistcooperatives

in New York, Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc., played a particularly

importantroleinthisrespect.Itattractedaprogressiveaudiencewhoexperiencedthe

premiereperformancesofsomeofReich’sfirstlivepieces(Reich,BerkeleyandBryars,

1986).This findsaparallelwith the receptionofnon-classicalmusicdiscussedearlier

anditisathemewhichisinvestigatedinmoredetailin‘BlankCanvas17’.

TheBritishconnection

In theUK,Reich’s rigorousapproach inspired theexperimentalmusic sceneowing in

part to his friendship with composers Michael Nyman, Gavin Bryars and Cornelius

Cardew.HisandGlass’composer-ledgroupswere importantmodels foranumberof

Britishcomposerswhowereexperimentingwithandre-evaluatingsonicconceptsand

extendedformatsawayfromtheartmusic institution (see, forexample,TheMichael

NymanBandandTheGavinBryarsEnsembleand laterTheSteveMartlandBandand

The Fitkin Band). Their artistic and political concerns challenged established

authorities; ‘traditionally passive onlookers (listeners, audience) could now be

empowered participants, as performers, composers and conductors’ (Gregory, 2004,

p.20). This is evident in groups such as the Scratch Orchestra (founded by Cardew,

MichaelParsonsandHowardSkempton)andPortsmouthSinfonia(foundedbyBryars).

Brian Eno (1999, p.xi) says that ‘by and large, the music colleges were not at all

interested, whereas the art colleges – with their interest in happenings, pop and

performance – were soaking it up’. Sean Gregory (2004, p.29) explains the

conservatoires’reluctance:

‘Widerculturalawarenessandconnecting toavarietyofcontexts isoftenseenat

best as fringe activity and at worse as an irrelevance to the core business of

traditionalvocationalartstraining’.

25

Itis,perhaps,unsurprisingthatmuchoftheScratchOrchestra’sexperimentationtook

placeatoneoftheUK’sleadingcentresofadulteducation,MorleyCollegeinLondon,

orthatBryarstaughtatPortsmouthCollegeofArtratherthanaconservatoire.

Thehistoricalprecedentssofarexaminedrevealsmallcollectivesandcommunitiesof

composers and performers actively, or inadvertently, critiquing rigid institutional

frameworks in a Duchampian mould. They show how new forms of creation, often

resultingfromashiftingunderstandingofcontext,wenthandinhandwithalternative

modesof presentation. In the faceof existinghierarchies and limitations, composers

and performers had to develop new skills to achieve editorial control. It is in this

expandedrolethatproto-curatorialpracticesinallbutnamecanbeidentified.

The arrival of the so-called classical club nights in 1998 onwards is a uniquely

contemporary response to many of the same institutional challenges cited in the

previoussections.Someoftheseriesnolongerexistandothershavetakentheirplace

buttheyarethefoundationsoftheindie-classicalscenethatisactivelargelyinLondon

andNewYorknow.ThomAndrewes(2014,pp.134-43)providesalistofnotableevents

inLondonfrom2004-2014.Individualmotivations,scalesofproductionandthestyleof

artisticdirectionvaryyetcommonpracticescanbeidentified.Theseare:

• Composerorperformer-led(singleorgroup)artisticdirection

• Alternativeandinformalperformancecontexts

• Do-it-yourselfethosandgrassroots

• Short performances and DJ sets: music spans electronic club music, existing

modernistandexperimentalmusicandcoreclassicalrepertoire

• Limited financial resources requiring support from corporate sponsorship,

publicandprivatetrustsandfoundations.

I identify divergent approaches in these platforms, however. The agenda of someof

the classical clubnights is to findnew relevance forartmusicperformanceand they

privilegeinformality.Thefollowingexamplesarearepresentativesample:

‘[TheLittleProms]missionistomakeitaseasytogotoaclassicalconcertasitisto

gotoanindiegig’(TheLittleProms,n.d).

26

‘Classical music concerts can be horrible… The Night Shift is all about making

classicalmusiceasytoenjoy’(OAE,n.d).

‘[YellowLounge]bringsclassicalmusicbangup-to-date,leavingatrailoftwin-sets,

pearls and grey suits in itswake… Yellow Lounge fuses the greatest international

performerswithcutting-edgeDJandVJsetsinurbanspaces’(YellowLounge,n.d).

Therecontextualisingofexistingrepertoire,orit’sdisplacingasAndrewes(2014,p.53)

argues, istheprimarygoal. Inmyopinion,thesemotivationssuggestacritiqueofthe

concerthall,and itsetiquettes inparticular, rather than thepositioningofcontextat

theheartofnewartisticcreation.Furthermore,theycanbeseennotasactsofcurating

but programming because they prioritise entertainment (although there is often

slippagebetweenthetwoterms,particularlyinpublicitymaterials).

Thesecondapproachplacesgreatervalueonnewmusicanditisheregenuinecurating

practices areevident.Representativeexamples include ‘LondonContemporaryMusic

Festival’, ‘Kammer Klang’ and some (but not all) ‘Nonclassical’ events (their ongoing

series‘RiseoftheMachines’regularlyfeaturesfirstperformances).Rutherford-Johnson

(2017, p.41) has noticed how performed repertoire at ‘Nonclassical’ events often

privileges‘workswithastrongrhythmicprofileandalouddynamic…asdothosethat

donotrequireconcentratedlisteninginserviceofacontinuousmusicalnarrative’.The

foundersof‘LCMF’aregenerallycautiousabouttheroleofthecuratorasauteur.They

recognize there is a story-telling aspect in their selection process and performance

context (Andrewes, 2014, pp.103-105) but I do not find a symbiotic relationship

between the two. Later in the commentary I show how this differs from my work

(particularly in thesecond researchoutcome, ‘bloom’)because Iestablishand follow

the logicof curatorial principles todevelopnewwork thusdemonstrating adynamic

systemofinter-relatedandinterconnectedactivity.

ThenextsectionexplorestheinitialdevelopmentofmyowncuratorialvoiceandhowI

used curatorial and exhibition design strategies to inform ‘Blank Canvas 17’. I show

how ‘Blank Canvas 17’ inherits and applies its breadth of curating and production

ambitionfromthealreadymentionedhistoricalexamples;thatnewmusiciscreatedin

direct relationship to theperformance space rather than solely repositioningexisting

27

repertoire;andthatanalytic inquiryunderlies theworkondisplay.The learning from

thisprojectfeedsintothesecondresearchoutcome,‘bloom’.

28

ResearchOutcomeNo.1:‘BlankCanvas17’

VillageUnderground,London(UK),September05,2013.CuratedbyWillDutta.Works:ArvoPärtCantusinMemoryofBenjaminBritten,1977/1980MaxdeWardenerPianoConcerto*,2013TimExileBardoEP†,2013DJSets:PlaidLine-up:*WillDutta,pianoManuelPoletti,electronicsrealisations†TimExile,electronicartistFinnMcNicholas,orchestralrealisationsTomTrapp,conductorHeritageOrchestraSeeFolder1,PartAforsupportingmaterials

Displacementandradicalismin‘BlankCanvas’Nos.1-16

The ‘Blank Canvas’ platform originates from a project I initiated and creatively

produced at London’s Scala on 26 July 2007. DJ Yoda (Duncan Beiny) and Heritage

Orchestra gave the first performance of Gabriel Prokofiev’s (2006) Concerto for

Turntables and Orchestra, conducted by Jules Buckley, to a capacity audience. The

billing also featured electronic musicians Plaid (Andy Turner and Ed Handley) in a

collaborativeperformanceoftheirfilmscoreforTekkonkinkreet(Dir:Arias,2006)and

ProkofievandBeinypresentedDJ sets (Figs.1-2aand1.2b).Aprominent reviewer in

TheGuardiannewspaperdescribed it as ‘oneof themostexcitingmusicalpremieres

I’veseen’(Blake,2007).

ScalawasoriginallytheKing’sCrossCinema.Itwasbuiltin1920andusedtoseatover

athousandwithspaceforatwenty-pieceorchestra.Itcameintoeffectasanightclub

in 1999 and its change of function saw the seating replacedwith a dance-floor. The

presence of the HeritageOrchestra in this performance thenwas not exceptional in

itself.However,theclubsituationprovedasignificantcriticalandaudiencesuccessdue

29

totheseeminglyunusual locationforanorchestralperformanceandtheradicalstyle

ofthenewwork.AreviewbyMarkCrabbie(2007)forScala’swebsitereads:

‘As theunfamiliar soundof scratchingwith its orchestral accompanimentbecame

more settled, the performers visibly relaxed into Concerto for Turntables and

Orchestra [sic] and the audience started to relax too, sometimes forgetting to

maintainthepolitesilencethatyouexpectwhenwatchingorchestralwork.Thiswas

a twoedged sword,while itmayhavemade theperformerswork thatbitharder

and blurred the enjoyment of some of the subtler aspects of the music it also

signaledacertainkindofsuccessintheaimofthenight,i.e.tofusethestylesand

culturesofhiphopandclassicalmusic’.

Fig.1-2aFrontsideofA5flyer.DesignedbyRossClarke(2007)

30

Fig.1-2bReversesideofA5flyer.DesignedbyRossClarke(2007)

Idevisedandlaunchedthe‘BlankCanvas’platformsoonafteron20September2007

attheAlchemist,anightclubinBattersea(Fig.1-3).ThesuccessoftheScalaeventgave

me confidence that such a series could thrive although in reality it took time to

establish an audience base. For five editions in year one, I viewed ‘Blank Canvas’

primarily as my own performance platform, in part but not exclusively, because of

limited performance opportunities elsewhere and a frustration with the prevailing

modeofpresentation.However,itwasalsoanopportunitytopresentyoungmusicians

I admired. In the early events, repertoire generally ranged from nineteenth to early

twentiethcenturyRomanticsolopianoorchambermusicalongsideDJsets.Newmusic

didnotfeatureuntilthefourtheventandwhereitdid itwaspre-existingratherthan

beinginitiatedbymyself.Forexample,in‘BlankCanvas6’on9July2008,Ipresented

DominicMurcott’s (2005) Installation forStringQuartet. Ididnothaveknowledgeor

understandingofcuratorialmodelsatthistimesoItendedtoselectandpartnerpieces

by personal taste. After two events, I regularly changed venues in London (taking in

bars,nightclubs,cinemasandconvertedpublictoilet)guidedbyopportunitiestoreach

newaudiencesandincreasecapacity.Someconsideration,althoughnoformalanalysis,

wasgivenastohowthespacewouldaffectthereceptionofawork.

31

On reflection, these early events can be seen through Andrewes’ (2014) prism of

displacementasoutlinedintheprevioussection.Theycritiquedtheconcerthallmodel

(butwithlesspointedlanguagethansomeoftheothernightslistedabove).Igenerally

operated in isolation to the other events (on occasions Iwould collaborate or cross-

promotewith ‘Nonclassical’, ‘Faster Than Sound’, ‘Kammer Klang’ and ‘Arctic Circle’)

andIwasunawareofthehistoricalprecedentsassetoutatthestartofthischapter.

Fig.1-3FrontandreversesidesofA5flyer.DesignedbyRossClarke(2007)

Between the seventh and fifteenth editions, I was collaborating on newmusic with

Plaid and regularly programmed these works-in-progress. At this point I began to

experience (but not fully understand) the inter-relationship between the material

presentedandtheexhibitionspace.Herewasaparticularstyleof(non-classical)music

being framed,mediated and received in urban spaces and in turn affecting how the

musicwascomposed.Thiswasdevelopedfurtherin‘BlankCanvas16’(Fig.1-4)whereI

createdthepartnershipwithVillageUnderground,awarehouseinEastLondon.Inthis

event, I prioritised new music and programmed the UK premiere of Dai Fujikura’s

(2009)PrismSpectraforViolaandElectronics,aselectionofMartinNeukom’s(2007/8)

Studie 18 and Mark Fell’s (2011)Multistability Live. I also commissioned Leafcutter

John’sGraphicScoreNo.2andaspecialpresentationofMultistabilityLiveinatwelve

32

channel, third order ambisonic arrangement where sounds were sequenced in the

space. A significant outcome of this event was a rudimentary understanding of the

radicalnatureofmyfirstprojectatScala:howthecombinationofaparticularstyleof

musicandaspecificspatialcontextcouldcreateauniquesituation.

In‘BlankCanvas17’,theresearchoutcomeconsiderednext, Iapplymylearningfrom

pasteditions,thealreadymentionedhistoricalexamplesandcuratorialtheoryandbest

practice todiscoverwhata constructionof the curator inmusicmight look like. This

respondsdirectlytothesecondresearchquestion.Thenextsectionshouldbereadin

conjunctionwiththematerialsinFolder1,PartA.

Fig.1-4Posterof‘BlankCanvas16’atVillageUnderground.DesignedbyRossClarke(2007)

Creatingthesituationandgeneratingideasfor‘BlankCanvas17’

The planning of ‘Blank Canvas 17’ startswith a conversationwith composerMax de

Wardener.Onthisoccasion,Iinitiateandpresentthesituationforhimtorespondto:a

newpiece for piano, electronics and chamber orchestra,where I am soloist and the

HeritageOrchestraistheensemble,tobepresentedatVillageUnderground.Iformed

this ideafromourmostrecentcollaboration:Aerophobia(deWardener,2012)usesa

palette of synthesised sounds and samples mapped to a piano part. In our

33

conversation,wediscuss developing themusical language, describedby critic Steven

Johnson(2012)asa‘miniaturisedidiosyncraticversionofAutechre,asclustersofbeats

and piano splinters fire into each other’, using larger orchestral forces, a more

ambitious structure and flexible electronic arrangement. For the latter, we explore

plans touse software technologies toprocess andmanipulate thepiano in real-time

andIproposemakinganapproachtoManuelPoletti3todesignthetools.Isuggestthat

his technical expertise will contribute much to the commission and provide de

Wardener an opportunity to develop his own computer-music skills. Thereafter

significantartisticfreedomisgiventothecomposer.

OncethecommissionisunderwayImakeanapproachtoTimExilewhoseworkIhave

beenawareofforsometime.Hehasbuiltaconsiderablereputationwithhiselectronic

musicandcustombuilt instrument, the ‘FlowMachine’. Inaddition tohis renownas

improviser,his successwithalbums forWarpRecordsandPlanetMuandactivityon

socialmediameanthathehascultivateda loyalaudiencethatcanbetargetedinthe

marketing campaign. This is also his first show in London in over a year. In our first

meeting,IpresenttheresourcesoftheHeritageOrchestrabutIdonotbringanypre-

conceivedideasofhowhemightusethem.Instead,Iaskhimthequestionofhowhe

mightapproachthis.Wegivesomeconsiderationastohowhispiecemightrelatetoor

contrastwithdeWardener’s.Theconceptstartstotakeformoveranemailexchange

following a performance by Aphex Twin and Heritage Orchestra at the Barbican in

October2012.Bothofus lefttheconcertwiththeopinionthatthecollaborationhad

beenamissedopportunityandjournalistElisaBray(2012)sumsitupthus:

‘Whatitlackedaboveallwasthebeatsthat[AphexTwin]issocelebratedfor.Itwas

almostcompletelydevoidofrhythm…alackoftextureandmomentumlettheideas

withnowheretodevelop.Itwasaninterestingnight,butonethat,musically,could

havebeensomuchmore’.

Our correspondences discuss moving away from a solely ambient texture (Dutta,

2012c)andweagreeheshouldsampleandprocesstheorchestralivethroughhis‘Flow

Machine’.EmphasisisalsoplacedonexploringthebeatsthatAphexTwinleftoutinhis

collaboration.Thetwocomposersarenowgiventimeandspacetocreatethemusic.

3PolettidesignedthesoftwaretechnologiesinFujikura’s(2009)PrismSpectraforViolaandElectronics.

34

Acuratorialnarrativeguidedbyanalyticinquiry

I seek to curate a coherent and composite public outcome in this edition of ‘Blank

Canvas’andIwanttoarticulateinpracticesomeoftheideasandrelationshipsaround

non-classicalmusicasworkedoutintheIntroduction.Todoso,Iemployaframework

ornarrativedevice inwhich tohang these twonewpieces4. I useBrianEno’s (1996,

pp.327-329)conceptof ‘edgeculture’ forthefirst timetocreateacoherentdialogue

between the new and historical. Many curatorial texts (O’Neill, 2007; Obrist, 2014)

supportconnectionstoarthistorybutIthinkEnooffersaparticularly interestingway

toapproachthis.Heprioritisestemporaryconnectionsandvaluesthatarenegotiable,

interchangeableandavoidsinglenarratives(Eno,1996,p.328).

AsthemusicalmaterialindeWardenerandExile’spiecestakesshapeitispossibleto

unpickandrevealrelationshipsbetweentheirsonicconcepts.Inthefirstmovementof

PianoConcerto,deWardenerabstracts ‘therulesanddisciplinesofnorot–astyleof

melodicelaborationplayedonmountedgongscalledthereyong inBalineseGamelan

music’(deWardener,2013a).Thesecondmovementfeaturesadetuningofthepiano

(nine pitches of a whole tone scale detuned by a quartertone) that is manipulated

through resonant comb filters and other software technologies to accentuate the

colouroftheupperregisters.ThefinalmovementreturnstotheGamelansoundworld,

focusing on the spectral possibilities of gongs. Exile’sBardo EP is a singlemovement

workwherea seriesofdisparatemusical states are setupby theorchestra and then

sampled, loopedandmixedthroughthe ‘FlowMachine’.Thesehave ‘stylistichintsof

Andy Stott, Raster Noton, Tim Hecker, Nathan Fake, Jon Hopkins, Holy Other [and]

Blawan’(Exile,2012).

IconcludethattheextendedrhythmiccyclesofGamelanandminimalisttechniques–

Toop, (1995, pp.15-16) suggests a continuum between Gamelan, minimalism and

electronicclubmusic–arecommontobothPianoConcertoandBardoEP.Therefore,

in selectinga thirdpiece that createsa temporary connectionbetween the twonew

worksIshouldseekmusicthatsupportsandhighlightsthisrelationship.Ialsoconsider

theoverallbalanceoftheprogramme,tonalityanddurationandpracticalitiessuchas

rehearsal requirements and instrumentation. I selectCantus inMemory of Benjamin

BrittenbytheEstoniancomposerArvoPärt(1977/1980).ItisanexampleofEuropean 4Itisworthnotingthatin‘BlankCanvas17’Idevelopedthenarrativeposteriortotheproductionofthenewmusicwhereasin‘bloom’Ifolloweditslogicandthisimpacteddirectlyontheworks’production.

35

notatedminimalism(Schwarz,1996,pp.213-214) thatsatisfies theGamelanandnon-

classical requirements. Its tonal and ambient textures and slow moving harmonies

contrastwithPianoConcertoandExile’sdynamicuseoftheorchestra.Atjustoversix

minutes in length, thepiece creates tensionand servesasan introduction toengage

theaudiencewithoutbeingoverlydemanding.Fromapracticalperspective,itdoesnot

requiresignificantrehearsing,whichprovesvitalgiventhetechnicalcomplexitiesofthe

twocommissionsandtherelativelyshortrehearsaltimeavailable.Theinstrumentation

fitswithinthechamberorchestrasetupsonoextraplayersorunusualinstrumentsare

required(whichwouldincreasecosts).

Tocomplete theprogramme, I invitePlaid toDJ.Their setsmovebetweenelectronic

clubmusic,experimentalandminimalistrepertoireandthisstrengthenstheconceptof

‘edge culture’ running throughout ‘Blank Canvas 17’. They also bring an established

audiencebase,whichmakesthefinalline-upanattractiveofferingtopromote(Figs.1-

5aand1-5b).

Fig.1-5aFrontsideofA5flyer.DesignedbyMarkFell(2013)

36

Fig.1-5bReversesideofA5flyer.DesignedbyMarkFell(2013)

Designingthecuratorialnarrativeintheperformancecontext

VillageUnderground isanartist-runperformanceand studio space inEast London. It

sitsoutsideoftheinstitutionalisednetworkofmusicvenues.Inthelastdecade,ithas

emerged as the foremost venue for electronic club music and other subcultures, in

part,becauseofthedeclineofnightclubsbutalsoitsstrikingfeatures(Whitfield,2014).

To give shape to the ‘edge culture’ narrative, I aim to exploit Village Underground’s

urban aesthetic through staging and lighting design (Fig. 1-6). I experimentwith the

ideaofperformer-spectatordesegregationandemphasisingspatialco-presence.

Two staging areas are setup at alternate sides of the venue and there is a bar

underneath an archway. Plaid is situated on the ground level at the front of the

building and spectators aremetwith this encounterwhen they enter (Fig. 1-7). This

drawsthemintothecentrespace.Themainstageisattherearandisheavilymodified,

tieredandextendedtoaccommodatethechamberorchestraandconductor,aconcert

grand piano and Exile’s ‘Flow Machine’ (Fig. 1-8). Lighting Designer Mike Nunn

accentuatestheunusualshapes,texturesandstructuresofthewarehouseandstaging

with various lighting states. The audience appreciates the ‘dimly-lit, high brick walls

37

[and]intimateatmosphere’(Londonist,2013).

Fig.1-6VillageUnderground.PhotographbyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©HowardMelnyczuk

Fig.1-7PlaidDJ-ingat‘BlankCanvas’.PhotographbyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©HowardMelnyczuk

PlaidopenstheeventandDJsuntiltheHeritageOrchestraare inposition.Spectators

38

areincloseproximitytoPlaid,whichisinitselfunusual,sothereissomemovementin

theirpositionastheorchestratakestothemainstage.Thevisualimpactofhavingthe

full orchestra on a tiered stage is dramatic and a spectator describes the opening

performanceasa‘stunningfirstpiece’(Londonist,2013).Ifollowimmediatelywiththe

premiere of Piano Concerto, which features sound design spatialised through ten

channels, and the audience is noticeably still throughout. Once the performance is

complete,IperformashortencoreandthenweleavethestageandPlaidleadswitha

second,more energetic set. At 9.45PM, the Heritage Orchestra returns to themain

stage with Exile and his collaborator, Finn McNicholas, to present Bardo EP. The

audienceresponseisveryenthusiastic;theycheeranddancethroughout.Exileisalso

requestedtoperformanencoreandheweaveswhitenoisefromthesounddeskinto

anup-temposoloimprovisation.Plaidfollowsthisimmediatelywithamoretypicalclub

setaspeoplecontinuetodanceandthisbringstheeventtoacloseat11PM.

Fig.1-8Themodifiedstage.PhotographbyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©HowardMelnyczuk

Limitationsandmeasuringsuccess

Thefirstoutcomeofthisstudyisdeliveredrelativelyearlyintheresearchprocess.Asa

result, it has a number of limitations. Its primary focus is on ‘Blank Canvas 17’ as a

physicalexhibitionplatformso Idonotdiscuss itsdisseminationonlineorprovidean

analysisofsupportingephemera.ItneedstoberestatedthatIdevelopedthecuratorial

39

narrativeposterior to theproductionof thenewmusic (although this showsanother

waythecuratorialvoicecanemerge).Theselimitationsareaddressed,andthelearning

fromthisstudydeveloped,inthesecondresearchoutcome,‘bloom’.

‘BlankCanvas17’reachedacapacityaudienceatVillageUnderground(Fig.1-9).DidI

successfullycommunicate‘edgeculture’andthewidercontextofnon-classicalmusicin

thisedition?Didthedesegregationofperformerswork?Howwasspatialco-presence

emphasised?Themusicalmaterial featured in thiseditiondeliberately reinforced the

continuumofGamelan,minimalismandelectronic clubmusicand I amsatisfied that

theprogrammeembodied the ideaof ‘edge culture’ andprovideda suitable context

for non-classical music. However, I did not produce any interpretive materials

(excluding a double-sided handout, which featured composer notes and

performer/fundercredits)inwhichtomakeexplicit‘edgeculture’asacuratorialdevice

so the success of this ismixed. Inmy opinion the desegregation of performers also

achieveditsaim.Spectatorswereencouragedtomovearoundthespace,asthefocus

shifted from live performance to DJ, but the desegregationwas intentionally limited

andcontrolled(seeChapter2:Part2B,Section7.2foranexpandedapplicationofthis

concept). Spatial co-presence was emphasised through Poletti’s multi-channel

electronic renderings: the live situation was unique from any mediatised versions

becauseof this.Again, thiscouldhavebeenused togreatereffectbecauseBardoEP

wasnotspatialised.

Thepublicresponsecanbemeasuredinqualitativefeedbacktakenfromsocialmedia

andotherpublishedreviews.Asampleofsocialmediacommentsinclude:

‘Yo@will_duttasmasheditlastnight!Lovedthatdetunedvibeonbitsofthepiano’

(LV,2013).

‘IloveBlankCanvasforitsuncompromisingapproach’(Payne,2013).

‘LOVED [sic]MaxdeWardener’spianoconcerto for fab@will_dutta tonight. Lush

orchestraltexturescrunchwithsoniceffect.Powerful’(Nelkin,2013).

40

Anotherusefulsourceofpublicfeedbackcomesfromathree-monthpartnershipIhad

withSoundandMusic.TheUK’snewmusicagency invitedmeto join theirAudience

DevelopmentProgramme inpartnershipwithonlinemagazine ‘Londonist’where five

anonymous ‘Samplers’were sent to attendnewmusic performances. The ‘Samplers’

werereadersofthemagazinewhorespondedtoacall‘tobringnewaudiencestosome

intriguingly creative events… then feedback to us for an honest reader-led review’

(Londonist,2013).Theirreactionis‘overwhelminglypositive’:

‘TimExile’sBardoEPismindblowing!Itbamboozlesitswaythoughmostgenresof

dancemusicwithTim’shandsmovingatablurredpaceacrosshis‘self-made, live-

sampling,beat-looping,sound-manglinginstrument’whilsttheconductorsomehow

knowswhentobringintheorchestratoaddtheirperfectsoundtohisbeats’

‘Iwasparticularly impressedbyTheBardoEP. Itwasabit likeclubbingmeetsfilm

score…itwasaperfectfusionofclassicalorchestrameetselectronica’

‘Anyone who thinks they have eclectic music taste doesn’t until they experience

this’.

Alternative performance contexts bring compromises. Noise from the bar was

particularly noticeable during the quieter moments in the performance; ‘the only

complaint being that the bar was too noisy at times’. Andrewes (2014, p.68)

acknowledgesthatbymovingoutoftheconcerthallmusiciansare ‘trading incertain

dimensionsofacousticcontrol foragreatcontroloverotherparameters’.Thesound

engineer, David Sheppard, gives weight to this: ‘[Village Underground] is basically a

warehouse with a slanted roof… so there’s a lot of acoustic considerations to think

about’(O’Mullane,2013).

Forthecomposersinvolved,‘BlankCanvas17’providedanopportunitytorealiselarge-

scalemusicalambitions.DeWardener(2013b)reflects:

‘BlankCanvasprovidedanamazingopportunity to composea large scalework as

well as devising a fascinating collaboration with IRCAM for the realisation of the

41

electronicelementsofthework.TheprincipalsofsoundspatialisationinparticularI

aimtoexploremorefullyinmyfuturework’.

Membersoftheorchestrasaidthepieceswere‘suitablychallenging…verywellcrafted

[and] of a type of repertoire the orchestra do [sic] not usually perform’ (Heritage

Orchestra,2013).

Fig.1-9Capacityaudience.PhotographbyHowardMelnyczuk,2013©HowardMelnyczuk

Concludingremarks

FromtheoverallsuccessoftheeventIdrawtheconclusionthatVillageUndergroundis

theidealperformancespacefor‘BlankCanvas’andthatitisahybrideventofitsown:

somewherebetweenclubandconcert. It isalsothefirstexample inthisstudyof the

exhibitionspaceaffectingthemodeofmusicmaking(production).Furthermore,Inow

identifyacorrelationbetweenthesituationof ‘BlankCanvas17’andthepremiereof

Prokofiev’sConcertoforTurntablesandOrchestraatScalaandthisaccountsformuch

ofitssuccess.

Obrist believes that curators should follow artists and the suggestion that they are

secularisedartistsinallbutnamegoestoofar(Obrist,2014,p.33).In‘BlankCanvas17’,

Ihavehadtograpplewiththisbecausemyapplicationofcuratorialstrategieshasbeen

42

givenflight,inpart,outofaconcertedefforttodevelopabodyofnon-classicalmusic.

In fact, I view this exhibition platform as an extension of my own artwork and

consequently it is accorded legitimacy (Stürzl, 2013, pp.8-9). It has moved on

significantlyfromearlyeditionswhereItreateditasmyownvehicleforperformance

only. Iamresponsibleforcreatingthesituationforcomposerstorespondto inmuch

the same way Warhol did in the ‘EPI’; I establish the framing mechanism and

performancecontext,inheritingbreadthofprogrammingandeditorialcontrolfromthe

artist and composer-led curatorial initiatives that preceded it; and I provide the

material infrastructure to showcase experimental practices as per Eastside Projects.

Therefore, in answering the second research question, I have begun to transfer

techniques associated with the artist-curator or curartist in contemporary visual

culture into themusicaldomain for the first time. Ihave successfullyused thegroup

exhibitionformatwithoutsubjugatingtheartisticintegrityoftheindividualcomposers.

Inthesingularmomentoftheexhibition,Ihavecommunicatedmyownartisticvoiceas

muchasExileanddeWardenertheirs.

Oncetheradicalanduniquesituationoftheexhibitionhaspastthenewpiecesmust

standupontheirownmerits,justasthe‘EPI’isprimarilyrememberedforTheVelvet

Underground and Nico (Bockris and Malanga, 1983, p.51). Prokofiev’s Concerto for

Turntables and Orchestra has received over fifty performances since its premiere at

Scalaandcontinuestobeprogrammedinvenuesaroundtheworld.InNovember2015,

I gave the secondperformanceofPianoConcertowithOrquesta Sinfónica Juvenil de

Caracas in Venezuela andMatthew Yee-King designed new software technologies to

process the piano. A film of Bardo EP has been viewed over forty thousand times

online.

In this chapter, I have shown how an artist-run (single author) exhibition platform

mightchallenge,critiqueandhelptoreinventtheinstitutionalartmusicapparatus.Itis

beyond the scope of this study to measure how much the work created for ‘Blank

Canvas’, and its predecessor event at Scala, is part of the ‘brave corrective’ (Balzer,

2014, p.59) required to change the perception of the institution. It is, however, my

contribution.

43

Chapter2.TheCuratingComposerPart2A.Production

Inhiscuratorialproject‘Remote’VinceDziekan(2007)continuestheexpansionofthe

exhibition format to include thevirtual.He calls this ‘dimensioning’ and suggests the

exhibitionisnow‘adynamic,interconnectedsystemofforms,spacesandrelationships’

(Dziekan,2007,nopagenumber).Furthermore,heestablishesasymbioticrelationship

betweenthepublication format (as interactivePDF)andthecontentofhisargument

(production). Inmysecondresearchoutcome, ‘bloom’, Iseektoaddressandtransfer

thedimensioningpossibilitiesofthephysicalandvirtualwheredifferentmanifestations

feedintoadynamicsystemandundergodevelopmentthroughoutthedurationofthe

activity. In doing so I applymodular and iterative curatorialmodels to construct and

nameforthefirsttimethecuratingcomposer.This isasignificantdevelopmentfrom

‘Blank Canvas 17’ where I established and applied curatorial language, theory and

practiceinaphysicalsituationonly.IndoingsoIanswerthesecondandthirdresearch

outcomes.

This chapter is divided into two sections and this should be read alongside the

materials in Folder 1, Part B. Part 2A examines the creation (production) ofmusical

materialforanewbodyofwork.Isetouttheresearchcontext.IndoingsoIintroduce

thecuratorialturnintothecompositionalact.Theframeworkforcriticalreflectionisan

amalgamationofthecomposer IannisXenakis’ (1992,p.22) ‘Fundamentalphasesofa

musicalwork’ andartistDan Fern’s (2015a) ‘Ecologyof process’. The four stages are

‘Research gathering and planning’, ‘Defining the sonic entities’, ‘Modelling’ and

‘Productionandpresentationof the finishedwork’.Themethodology toexaminethe

new compositions is based on textual analysis, as described by Richard Middleton

(2000, pp.104-121). Here notational centricity is avoided in preference of a broader

discussionof texture and form that relate to generic and social function (Middleton,

2000, p.4). Moreover, this corresponds to the stylistic focal points of non-classical

musicassetoutintheIntroduction.

In Part 2B, I address the exhibition of ‘bloom’ as a composite public outcome in six

manifestations.Theseare:

44

1. Recording

2. Performance

3. InteractiveDigitalSpace

4. Newsletter

5. Film

6. Workshop

Introduction

ThesecondresearchoutcomefeaturessixnewworksthatIcomposed(orinitiated)in

collaborationwithpractitionersencountered inthepreviouschapter.Weall sharean

interest in the interactions between software technologies and contemporarymusic

creationandIhavecultivatedtheseprofessionalandpersonalrelationshipsovermany

years. My first curatorial act then is to create a new situation for them to come

together.While there is no direct communication between them they are aware of

eachother’sworkasitprogresses.

I co-wroteAHigher Sense of Time andBeauty Still with British electronicmusic duo

Plaid (Ed Handley and Andy Turner) and Bloume and whiting flowre with French

computer-music designerManuel Poletti. Plaid has released eleven albums onWarp

Recordsoveratwenty-five-yearcareerandHandleyandTurnerhaveatrackrecordof

collaborationwith singers, ensemblesand instrumentalists. I haveworkedwith them

regularly for eleven years, including two pieces formy first album in 2012. Handley

describes this partnership as a rare opportunity to work together over an extended

periodof time resulting in a ‘purer andmoreorganic collaboration’ (Handley, 2016).

Poletti is a composer, consultant for Cycling ’74 and a computer-music designer at

IRCAM in Paris where he regularly creates custom multimedia systems for

contemporarymusic,dance,theatreandart.DeWardenertrainedasacomposerand

completedpostgraduatestudiesinjazzandstudiomusic.Heregularlywritesmusicfor

the concert platform, film and television alongside remix and productionwork for a

varietyofvocalistsandinstrumentalists.

Plaid, Poletti and de Wardener were brought into the creative process at different

times and compositional decisions are unique to the requirements of the six pieces.

Thismeansnotwoprocessesarethesameandconsequentlythewritingcreditsreflect

45

this. My two collaborations with Plaid saw equal creative exchange (50/50). Poletti

designed specific electronic tools in response to a creative brief yet he is alsomade

someimportantcompositionaldecisionssoweagreedtoaproportionallysmallersplit

(80/20).MaxdeWardeneristhesolecomposerofTangramandMortePoint.

1.Researchandplanning

I establish the narrative device at an early stage and I interact with it at regular

moments in the production process. I return again to Brian Eno’s (1996) concept of

‘edgeculture’becauseitallowsmetosetupanintentionallyrichnetworkofreference

points fromwhichtomaketheoreticalconnections.This isvaluablebecause itallows

me to navigate Paul Couillard’s (2009) binary tension between the curatorial and

programmatic encountered in the Introduction.As I show later in the chapter, I also

extract important ideas from this framework ineachof themanifestations.Research

categoriesincludemusic,andtoalesserextent,poetryandfashion.

1.1Constructingmyedgeculturenetwork

Theplanningofthesixpiecesfocusesonthecreativeuseofsoftwaretechnologiesto

manipulatethepropertiesofthepiano.Thereissignificanthistoricalprecedentinthis

fieldwith awide range ofmusical texts and critical literature available. Rather than

providing a full literature review of relevantmusical texts (whichwould obscure the

scopeofthisstudy),thefollowinglistexaminesthoseworksthatformactivenodesin

mynetwork. These include individual compositionsby JonathanHarvey, Paul Lansky,

AlejandroViñao,AphexTwin(RichardD.James)andPlastikman(RichieHawtin).

ThetitleandtextofHarvey’s(1980)compositionfortapeMortuosPlango,VivosVoco

aretakenfromthe inscriptionof thetenorbellatWinchesterCathedral.Twonatural

sounds are used as source material: the bell and the voice of the composer’s son

singingandchantingthetext.Harveyusesspectralanalysisandsynthesistechniquesto

structurethepieceandmovebetweenthespectrumofavocalvowelandthatofthe

bell.SeePatriciaLynnDirks(2007)foradetailedanalysis.

InthecontextofthisstudyMortuosPlango,VivosVoco isparticularlynotableforthe

performance state that Harvey creates. He says ‘the walls of the concert hall are

conceived as the sides of the bell inside which is the audience, and around which

46

(especially in the original 8-channel version) flies the free spirit of the boy’ (Harvey,

1980). This shows Harvey is thinking about the audience in the production and

exhibition processes; reconsidering the concert hall space by using multi-speaker

technology.

Lansky’s three compositions Idle Chatter, just_more_idle_chatter and

notjustmoreidlechatterwerecomposedfrom1984to1988.Heattributeshisdiscovery

of rapmusic as inspiration for them; ‘I particularly enjoyed its lavish use of spoken

language’ (Lansky, 2014). In Idle Chatter (Lansky, 1985), the composer layers up to

thirtyphonemestakenfromarecordingofHannahMacKayreadingCharlotteBrontë’s

novel Jane Eyre to create complex musical rhythms and an almost unintelligible

texture:

‘I invented this texture to solve the problem of listening to electronically made

piecesthatwillalwaysbethesameeverytime. Intheabsenceofperformersthey

canbesaidtomakethelistenerintoaperformerinthathemustleanforwardand

“squint”hisears’(Lansky,2014).

Thistextureissuperimposedontoarelativelysimplisticharmonicprogressionallowing

thelistenertobrowseathisorherleisure. just_more_idle_chatter(Lansky,1987)and

notjustmoreidlechatter(Lansky,1988)pushthistechniquefurther.

Viñao’s(1994)Hildegard’sDreamisforsopranoandtapeandisbasedonthevisionsof

composer,poetandreligious figureof theMiddleAges,HildegardVonBingen.Viñao

usestheoriginalwordsandphrasesinLatinandselectsphonemesfromthesetocreate

a studyon the relationshipbetweenmelodyand timbre inamicrotonal context.The

composersaysofhismusic,‘soundprocessessuchasinterpolationorsound-morphing

have played a central role but never to the exclusion of note to note relationships’

(Fischer,2012).ViñaousesphonemesinquiteadifferentwaytoLanskyandtheresult

isotherworldly:thesopranoduetswithhertransformedother.

Inminipops67[120.2][sourcefieldmix]AphexTwin(2014)createstexturethatisina

stateoffluxandthishasanimportantinfluenceonBloumeandwhitingflowre.Micro

and macro rhythmic variation (Middleton, 2000, pp.105-107) and a large palette of

47

soundspositionedoverawideregistergivetheillusionsofpresenceanddepth.Overall

themusicisunstabledespiteitssteadymetre.ThisisPhilipSherburne’s(2004)avant-

gardeproductionexaminingthenatureofrepetition.

Kriket by Plastikman (1994) is another. Strictly percussive its economy of means is

deceptive:theopeningclicksimitatestridulation(thesoundmadebyrubbingtogether

bodypartscommonlyassociatedwithspeciesofcricketsandgrasshoppers)andform

importantstructuralpointsinthemusic.Thisrepeatsforalmosttwominuteswithout

change. The second percussive figure enters displacing the stridulation to reveal the

aural illusion: the crickets are clicking off the beat. The second figure continues to

developinrhythmiccomplexityoverthestridulationforfourminutesandPlastikman,

as per Aphex Twin above, positions a palette of percussive sounds to create the

illusionsofpresenceanddepth.Oncethesecondfigurestopsthestridulationactsas

anoutroforoneminute.

Other active nodes in the research network include Stockhausen’sMantra (1970),

SomeiSatoh’s Incarnation II (1977),Harvey’sTombeaudeMessiaen (1994)andJulian

Day’sDarkTwin(2016).Eachpieceusessoftwaretechnologiestotransformthepiano.

The second research category is poetry. The symbolist poetry of the French writer

StéphaneMallarmé(2008) influencesmytextsforAHighersenseofTimeandBeauty

Still. His sensuous andmysterious verse, particularly inPlacet futile and L’Après-midi

d’un faune,provides the ideal texture tosituatemyownwritings tomy then fiancée

(andnowwife).

In the third category, the fashion house of Coco Chanel stimulates useful visual

imagery:inparticular,thedesignandqualityofthematerialsGabrielleChanelusesin

herfirstcollectionoffinejewelleryin1932.Hermotifs(includingthecamelliaandbow)

contributetowardsthelanguageinthetwotexts.

Theresearchnetworkaboveformsthebasisofareciprocalexchangebetweenthefirst

compositionalactstobediscussedinthenextsectionandanemergingcuratorialbrief

thateffectshowtheartworksareexhibited.

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2.Definingthesonicentities

Poletti and Plaid bring distinct methodologies and conceptual approaches to

compositionandIneedtocreatetherightconditionstoachievesuccessfuloutcomes.

Theseincludetheprovisionofabrief,cuesheetsandtimeline.Isetouttocreatefour

single-movement pieces of approximately threeminutes durationwhere rhythmand

texturearethestylisticfocalpointsandthepianoistreatedusingavarietyofsoftware

technologies.

Inthefollowingsubsections,IdefinethesonicentitiesBloumeandwhitingflowre.Iset

Poletti the primary objective to design, develop and apply bespoke software

technologies(specificallythroughAbletonLive9SuitefeaturingMaxforLive)tomodify

the spectral componentsand sonicpropertiesof thepiano in twocompositions. Ina

secondaryobjective I requirea flexiblesystemwherebytheelectronicoutput (that is

the processing of the piano that is heard in live performance) can changewithin set

parameters. This is in reaction tomy experience of performingworks for piano and

tapewhere there is inherent inflexibility. (InPart2B,Section8.2 Idevelopa suitable

modeofdisseminationthatallowsmetomediatethisflexibilityintheartworkfurther.

Iviewthisisacuratorialact.)

2.1Bloume

Thecompositionalactbeginswithasketchonpaperofthedesiredmusicalshapeand

this is followed by a period of improvisation at the keyboard to find the harmonic

language and a possible layout among the hands. At this point, there is no fixed

conceptinmind(otherthanthesketchedshape)andimprovisationistheprimarytool

in generating ideas. The outcomes of these sessions are a tone row (Fig. 2-1) and

preliminary arrangement of these notes as a motif (Fig. 2-2). I want to enlarge the

phrase and create a state of flux so certain pitches are rearranged (Fig. 2-3). The

resultanttwo-barphraseexpandsacrossthefullrangeofthekeyboardandprovidesa

varietyofpitchesandregistersforPolettitoworkwith.

Thetwo-barphraseundergoesfurtherrearrangementfollowedbyaharmonicchange

thatprovidesanimportantstructuralmoment.

49

Fig.2-1TonerowforBloume

Fig.2-2Preliminaryarrangementofnotes

Fig.2-3Developmentofthemotif

Themainbodyof themusical textusesa longpassageofrepetitiontoprovidespace

for the software technologies to modify and augment the texture ahead of the

recapitulation. Poletti (2015) describes his treatments here as ‘allowing the effects

time to express themselves’. This is put to further use in the opening and closing

sectionswhereIdividethemainharmonicideaamongthehandsasalternatingchords

for an extended duration. This forms section A and bookends themain body of the

50

music (section B) in traditional ternary form. In doing this I deliberately reference

Kriket.

2.2whitingflowre

Ibeginbyimprovisingatthekeyboardtogenerateharmonicandmelodicideas(Figs.2-

4and2-5). Iwant thispiece to share similar characteristicswithBloume tomaintain

cohesionwithinthepairofcollaborationsandthewiderbodyofwork.Thismeansthe

piano writing uses similar techniques introduced above: using displacement as a

developing tool – rhythmic and pitch displacement – and passages of repetition to

bringfocustothesoftwaretechnologies.

Fig.2-4Tonerowforwhitingflowre

Fig.2-5Preliminaryarrangementofnotes

In thenextsubsections Idefine thesonicentitiesAHigherSenseofTimeandBeauty

StillandprovideaninsightintothecollaborativeprocesswithPlaid.

2.3AHigherSenseofTime

Theprocessofcompositionstartsatthekeyboardwithamelodictracingofthephrase

‘ahighersenseoftime’(Fig.2-6),adaptedfromanintroductorytexttoN.N.N.N.byThe

Forsythe Company (2013). A repeating right-hand accompaniment (Fig. 2-7) is

composedduringtheperiodof improvisation. Isendthesetwo ideasasascore,midi

andaudiofilestoPlaidandabriefsuggestingasoundpalette(industrialoverorganic,a

preferenceformetallicandtunedbreak-beatpercussion,alargedynamicrange).

51

Fig.2-6Melodictracingofthephrase‘ahighersenseoftime’

Fig.2-7Theright-handaccompaniment

OnceabasicmusicalshapeisinplaceIwritelyricsaroundChanel’semblem,thebow

(or‘ruban’inFrench),usingsymbolistlanguageandimagery:

‘Elevate,highersenseoftime.

ComesValentina

Vision,witharuban

DidIloveadream?’

2.4BeautyStill

Inspired by Lansky’s trio of pieces I use the voice as the starting point for the

composition based on the following original material (based on another of Chanel’s

emblems,thecamellia):

‘Inagardenofcamélias,

Lacedinwhite,hairdressedbygoldsmithdeities,

Youarrestmyattentionintheseblissfulrevelries:

Youmakemekeeperofyoursmiles.‘

MybriefinstructsPlaidtoabstractthematerialanduselayersofphonemestocreate

rhythmswithdifferinglengthstounsettlethemetre.Handley(2017)explains:

‘Will gaveme his poem and some ideas about a voice driven piece that iterates

throughthetext.Weinitiallytriedusingasyntheticvoicebutultimatelypreferred

thedepthandvarietyofarealvoiceprocessedinMelodyneandgranulated.’

52

UsingPlaid’sprocessedspokenwordasaguideshort,Iimprovisemelodicideasatthe

keyboard (Fig. 2-8) and developed using additive techniques associated with

minimalism (Johnson,1994).Thesephrasesareadaptedanddeveloped to followthe

contractionandexpansionofthegranulatedvoice.

Fig.2-8MelodicideasforBeautyStill

3.Modelling

3.1Bloumeandwhitingflowre

Polettidevelopsamodelofeachpiecebuildingavarietyoftoolscontrolledbyamaster

instrument. These include filters, resonators, spectral transformation, delays, ring

modulatorsandmicrotonaltransposition.Poletti(2017)describestheinstrumentas:

‘Extending the natural timbre of the piano through relatively classical effects in a

dynamicandorganicfashion,givingtheelectronicsitsownlife.Insteadofapplying

oneeffecttoonesoundeventratherwethinkoftheliveelectronicsasamatrixof

availabletimbraldeviationsandthecontrolsweepsacrossthematrix(thedynamic)

withfreedomintheselectionoftheeffects.Atanytime,whatyouget isamixof

effects and it is always different (the organic). The composer can control the

amountofdynamicmovementandthemakeupofthemix’.

I recordanumberof iterationsfromasimulationofthepianotogeneratematerial. I

select preferred outcomes and edit these into a finalmix. Conceived as awhole the

dynamicandorganicelectronicprocessesunderminethestabilityofthepulse.

3.2AHigherSenseofTime

HandleyusesLogicProXtoarrangethepieceandhostvariousplugininstrumentsand

effects.Hedescribesthevarioustools:

‘Falcon is themain synthesiser, providing some of the percussive elements using

samples,wavetableandsubtractivesynthesisandphysicalmodelling.Alchemyalso

53

provides percussion mainly using additive synthesis. The mallet instruments are

provided by Pianoteq, which physically models each note for a richer and more

complexsoundthanasample.VariousGRMToolsareusedforreal-timeprocessing

of thevoiceandpiano.Cantor isasimple formant/additivestylevoicesynthesiser

thatallowstheusertoeditthecharacteristicsofeachphonemeofatypedtext.InA

Higher Sense of Time, it is used to follow EdMacfarlane’s vocal recording. Lastly,

Alter/EgoisaformantbasedvoicesynthesiserlikeCantorandusedtolayeroverthe

voice’(Handley,2017).

Severalarrangementsaredevelopedand Iprovidecuesheetswithspecific feedback.

Oncethebasicstructure isagreedEdMacfarlanerecordsthe lyrics:hisbreathyvoice

emphasisesthedreamlikestate.

3.3BeautyStill

Handley structures the piano phrases into the poem for further refinement and

processing. Logic Pro X is used again to arrange the piece and host the plugins. He

explainshowspecifictoolsaffectthetext:

‘EachwordinthepoemusesmultipleinstancesofFalcon’sIRCAMgranulatorwhich

is themain tool for the vocal granulation. It provides automatable access to the

important parameters of a granular sampler. Melodyne is used to even out and

correct the pitch modulation in the recorded voice. This gives the effect of a

synthetic voice whilst still retaining some of the complexity and depth of a

recording. Stutter (GRM Tools) adds another layer of time based processing to

sectionsofthevoicebyreorderingsampledfragmentsrandomly’(Handley,2017).

4.Productionandpresentationofthefinishedwork

Once the compositionperiodhas concluded I prepare for the final recording.At this

point I initiate the commissioningof twonewpiecesbyMaxdeWardener. I provide

himwith the researchcontextandmodelsof the fournewworks. Similarly to ‘Blank

Canvas’Isuggestourpartnershipcontinuestoexploresonicconceptsassociatedwith

Balinese and Javanese Gamelan and electronic club music. De Wardener (2017)

explainstheideasbehindTangramandMortePoint:

54

‘Tangram is built around a simple-seven beat rhythm… [with] subtle layers of

pulsingresampledpianotopropelthemusicforward.Allthesound[inMortePoint]

isderivedfromtimestretchingandfilteringofthepiano.Bothpiecesarewrittento

beplayedwithonehandandthenloopedtocreatedensertextures.Theideaarose

to give Will more freedom to manipulate the sound electronically with the

redundantplayinghandwhenperformingthepieceslive’.

4.1Names

Inthisinstancethetitlesofthepiecesandstudioalbumcomeabouttowardstheend

of theperiodof composition. Innaming the studioalbum, I reflectupon theoriginal

research network; I give consideration to the musical characteristics; the emotional

imprintofthemusicwhenlistenedtoasawhole;modesofdissemination(howmight

thetitleadaptacrossothermanifestations?Isitmemorable?);andthedesignaesthetic

(whatmightthevisualimagerylooklike?).

‘bloom’suggestsdevelopment,growthor floweringand ithasthepotential forother

meanings.ThiscorrelateswithhowIusesoftwaretechnologiestomodifyandaugment

thepiano.Moreover,itcapturesthebroaderadditiveconceptofthealbumascurated

playlist (see Part 2B, Subsection 6.2) and it is a short and recognisable title to

communicate on digital platforms. There is no danger of mispronunciation or

understanding (although its potential for multiple meanings creates depth of

interpretation)anditdoesnotcreateabarrierforthelistener.

Thealternativeandnowobsoletespelling‘bloume’datestothefifteenthcentury.Why

use alternative spellings as both track and album title? The practice of using a song

name to title thealbum is commonpractice inpopularmusic and so it followshere.

However, the alternative spelling is playful and invites the listener to consider this

separation.Someof themusicalcharacteristicsandstructureofBloumehavealready

been paralleledwithKriket in the sections above so its namingmirrors Plastikman’s

alteredspelling.

‘Flowre’ is another obsolete spelling fromMiddle English to sixteenth century (OED,

2016). Chanel’s camellia is a white flower: ‘flowering white’ reintroduces ideas of

55

movementand this is reordered tobecomewhiting flowre. Its lowercase references

AphexTwin’sownnamingsystemofminipops67[120.2][sourcefieldmix].

AHigherSenseofTimetakesitsnamefromthemaintextthatgivesrisetotheprimary

motifonthepiano.BeautyStilldrawsonMallarmé’ssensuouswritingstyleand isan

auralplayon‘beautiful’.

Thefinalpublicpresentationofthemusicalmaterialisinsixmanifestationsandthese

arediscussednextinPart2B.

56

Part2B.Dissemination

In the first chapter, I presented material exhibition strategies as a distinct mode of

dissemination through which the curator mediates the artwork. What are the

dimensioningpossibilitiesofothermodesofdissemination(physicalandvirtual)?How

can I shape the curatorial construct in response to these and present a unified

outcome? InPart2Bof thecommentary, Iaddressasetofdisseminationmodes ina

quest to expandmy answers to the second and third research questions. I go on to

demonstrateanapplicationofthislearninginthesecondresearchoutcome,‘bloom’.

Inthelastdecadescomposershavesuccessfullyexploitedtechnologicalinnovationsto

disseminate their work and engage audiences far beyond the live encounter. In the

1960s visual artists and composers collaborated for the first time on high quality

artwork for LP releases onmajor record labels. This revolutionised theway inwhich

audiencesexperiencednewmusic.Inthe1980smusiciansandDJsintheUKusedradio

technology tobroadcastblackandotheralternativemusiconpirate radiostations to

reach a previously marginalised audience. This had a considerable impact on urban

culture. Since 1999 a variety of digital technologies have dramatically changed and

shaped viewing and listening habits while offering creative practitioners immediate

access to a global audience. The three distinct modes of dissemination under

discussioninthefollowingsectionsrevealvaluablemethodologiesformyconstruction

ofthecuratingcomposer.

Artplusmusicequals

Inthelate1960s,majorrecordlabelsnoticedtheexperimentsofminimalistcomposers

TerryRiley,SteveReich,PhilipGlassetal.AtthistimetheLPwastheprimarymodeof

disseminating music. These composers were quick to recognise that if they

collaborated with their art colleagues they could best exploit this multidisciplinary

format: ‘therecordpresenteditselfasamediumforsound,butalsoasamediumfor

text,art,designandageneralconfrontationwiththeworld’(Grubbs,2014,p.xi).

57

Fig.2-9LPcoverartworkforTerryRiley’sInCbyBillyBryant(1968)

Fig.2-10LPcoverartworkbyWilliamTWiley(1968)

KeithPotteridentifiestheLPreleaseofRiley’s(1968)InCasaseminalmomentinnew

music ‘packagedinastyleredolentoftheperiodwhentheideaofarockalbumwith

integralaspirationswasstillnew’(Potter,2000,p.149).Seefig.2-9.TheartistWilliamT

Wiley created original designs for the release of Reich’s first album in 1968,

Live/Electric Music, (Fig. 2-10). These close associations (Reich and Wiley had a

professionalandpersonalrelationshipthroughParkPlace,TheGalleryofArtResearch,

Inc. in New York) helped to create a particularly strong design aesthetic. This was

58

revolutionaryatatimewhenmostclassicalmusicwaspackagedwithreproductionsof

oldmasterpaintingsand/orausterephotography.This setaprecedent foralbumsof

thiskind.Forexample,SolLeWittdesignedthesleeveforGlass’MusicinTwelveParts

(Part One and Two) released in 1976, and Beryl Korot and Roy Lichtenstein later

workedwithReich.

AnotherseminalmomentforthismodecamewiththereleaseofReich’s(1978)Music

for18MusiciansontheNewSeriesimprintofECMRecords(Potter,2000,pp.209-210).

The cover featuresKorot’sweavingnotation (Fig.2-11).Over ten thousandcopiesof

the LP were sold and mainstream magazines, including Rolling Stone and Billboard,

wrote enthusiastic reviews. Manfred Eicher founded ECM Records (Edition of

Contemporary Music) in Munich in 1969. It became highly regarded for its design

philosophy, which valued abstract designs and imaginative typography over artist

portraits. ECM Records was enormously influential on contemporary classical labels

such as Kranky and TouchMusic. It also demonstrated a track record in successfully

promoting experimental jazz and other ‘difficult music’ to non-traditional audiences

(Potter,2000,p.209).

Fig.2-11BerylKorot’sweavingdesign(1978)

John Metcalfe, founder of the Factory Classical imprint of Factory Records in 1989,

desired it tobe ‘artist-ledandartist-based inaway thatFactory [Records]wasdoing

withNewOrder’(Metcalfe,2014).Reflectingonthestatusquoatthetimehesays:

59

‘Backthenyoueitherhadterribleoutoffocuspicturesofwhoeverithappenstobe

inwhitetieoraterribleballgown…oryouhadsomerandomphotographofsome

flowers… perhaps therewas amaster painter. I found it boring, unimaginative; it

didn’t connect with me at all… it was creating a keep out sign for a younger

audience’(Ibid.).

MetcalfeandthewiderteamatFactoryRecordswereobsessive intheirstandardsof

design(seeRobertson,2007).PeterSaville,CentralStationDesignand8vodeveloped

their own visual language alongside the music and today their artwork is widely

recognised and imitated. Other notable collaborations during this period include

RussellMills’designsforBrianEno,MichaelNymanandHaroldBudd.SeeAppendixII

fornewlydocumentedinsightsintothefoundingofFactoryClassical.

Pirateradiorevolution

In the previous section, I showed how a new mode of dissemination (because of

technological advances) provided composers with a greater opportunity to reach

audiences. Often these emergent technologies were used in unexpected ways. For

example, Tony Conrad was an early adopter of analogue video when it became

commerciallyavailablein1965.ThenamemberofLaMonteYoung’sTheatreofEternal

Music he created important works for this new medium, which could record

simultaneously imageandsound.Thisallowed foramoresophisticatedcollaboration

betweenmusiciansandartistsandprovidedanewcreativecontext inwhichtoreach

audiences.

The 1980s saw a rise in the number of pirate radio stations across theUK owing to

changes in the cost and availability of broadcasting equipment, and antenna in

particular. Pirate radio stations such asDreadBroadcastingCorporation (DBC), Radio

Invicta and Kiss 94.5 FM became essential tools for disseminating black and urban

musicatatimewhenthesestylesweremarginalisedbymainstreamradio.Musicthat

might have been heard by relatively small groups at illegal blues parties or sound

systemeventswassuddenlyavailableforawideraudiencetohear.Thisinturnfuelled

agrowthinindependentrecordshopsandliveevents(includingKiss94.5FM’snights

at The Wag) and very quickly the music disseminated into wider culture (see, for

60

example,streetart,graffiti,skateboardingandfashion).Thisisanexampleofamusical

ecologyordynamicsystem.

ManyproducersandDJsofelectronicclubmusicdevelopedtheirskillsontheseillegal

broadcasters and the MC’s verbal jockeying has since entered the vernacular. Paul

Sullivan (2014) provides a comprehensive analysis of the relationships between dub,

soundsystemcultureandpirateradioandIhavewrittenonthesubject(Dutta,2015).

ThemusicalritualsinheritedfromKingstoncontinuetoinfluenceBritishelectronicclub

music in what Simon Reynolds (1998) calls the ‘hardcore continuum’. (In Part 2B,

Sections6.2and7.1,thisguidessomeofmycuratorialchoicesofmusicinthecurated

playlistandlivesetaccordingly.)

ThefounderofKiss94.5FM,GordonMac,wasexposedtoSoul,DiscoandReggaeata

veryyoungageandhehadhisfirstDJ-ingresidencyatalocalchurchbytheageoften.

‘WhenIwas10mymumanddadmovedtoAnerleynearCrystalPalaceandgotin

withthelocalsoundsystemguys,soeveryFridaynight,everySaturdaynight,there

wouldbeanillegalbluesintheshopunderneath.Itwasaneye-openertohavethis

massivesoundsystemwithalltheserumbarrelswithspeakersinandjustonelittle

lightinthewholeplace…ItwasatotallydifferentculturebutonethatIloved’(Mac,

2015).

Mac launched Kiss 94.5 FM in 1985 and he describes it as a community of interest

station for those into House, Reggae or Rare-Groove or your dancemusic of choice

(Ibid.).HispolicyofhiringDJswasbasedpurelyontheirloveoftheirspecialistinterest.

Their internal journey towards legalisation startedwithina yearofbeingonair.Mac

bought out his original partners (Tosca,George Power and Pyres Easton) because of

divergentinterests.HeresoldtheirsharesbacktosomeoftheDJsandthisboughthim

enoughtransmitterstobeonairforuptotwelveweeksinwhichtimehecouldstartto

makemoney.DJssuchasTimWestwood,NormanJay,JonathanMoore(Coldcut)and

TrevorNelsonwerenowincentivisedtopromotethestationandtheKissFMnightsat

DingwallsandBarRumbainLondonreinforcedthestation’smusicalethos.Flourishing

audiencefigureshelpedtosupporttheirapplicationforalicenseandthiswasgranted

ontheirsecondattempt.

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Pirate radio generated a do-it-yourself (DIY) methodology and ethos, which was

communityfocussed.Ihavenoticedhowthissensibilityhasreturnedinthedisruptive

technologiesofpresentandintheindie-classicalscenesetoutinthepreviouschapter.

Movingtowardsgreaterengagement

Arguablyadefiningmoment,whenlisteninghabitsdramaticallychangedagain,wasin

May1999whenthepeer-to-peerfile-sharingserviceNapsterlaunched.Apple’siTunes

andiPodsoonfollowedin2001andthemusical landscapewasalteredirrevocably.In

seventeenyearsaudienceconsumptionshiftedfromphysicalmediatoadownloadand

ownershipmodeltoastreamingandaccessone(PRSforMusic,2014).WillPage(2006,

p.2)shows‘howrecordedmusichas longsince lostanynotionofbeing“pureprivate

good” and now risks becoming a “pure public good”’ owing in part to these game-

changing digital services. According to PRS for Music, the popularity of on-demand

streamingservicesovertookthedownloadmarketforthefirsttimein2014,withmore

thantwohundredandfiftybillionusagesofmusicbeingprocessedinaone-yearperiod

(PRS for Music, 2014, p.18). This figure accounts for a plethora of audio and visual

platforms.

Theoverwhelminguncertaintyastohowthemarketwouldevolveatthestartofthis

newperiodledtosomenotableexperimentswiththisnewmodeofdissemination.In

2011 the Icelandic singer-songwriter Björk released ‘Biophilia’, a multimedia project

comprising of a studio album, an interactive and educational hybrid software

application (app) and a live tour. The app (the first of its kind) features interactive

graphics, animations and musical scoring for each of the ten songs. It invites user

engagement. The app developed into an educational project in 2014 led by Björk,

ReykjavíkCityand theUniversityof Icelandwithaglobal reach: she completedeight

six-week residencies during her ‘Biophilia’ tour. The app has since entered the

mainstreamschoolcurriculumintheNordiccountriesandbeeninductedintoMoMA’s

permanent collection. Anglo-American singer-songwriter, Beatie Wolfe, has

experimentedwithmaterialisingthevirtualexperienceofhermusic.See,forexample,

her‘NFCAlbumDeck(MontaguSquare)’(2015).Astrikingcounteractiontomusicasa

pure public good sawAmerican hip-hop groupWu-Tang Clan auction online a single

edition album-as-art-object in 2015. The elaborately designed ‘OnceUpon a Time in

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Shaolin’ sold for a reported $2million and camewith a legal agreement: the album

couldnotbecommerciallyexploiteduntil2103buttheownercouldreleaseitforfree

or play it at listening parties. This example begs the question, is it anachronistic to

makeamediuminherentlyreproductiveaone-off?

Atthismomentintimethereisaproliferationofdigitalcontentproviders.Theonline

mediumaffectswhatwechoosetocommunicate:certainplatformslendthemselvesto

rapidcommunicationandotherstolongform.Practitioners,labelsandpublishershave

adopted an armoury of digital tools to share new music and generate audience

engagement.WebsitessuchasBandcampallowfanstobuydirectlyfromtheartist;on

Soundcloud there are hours of remixes where stems of original tracks have been

released to fans who in turn rework them in competitions that celebrate user

creativity; videogameplatformshavebecomecollaborativewebprojectswhere fans

buildandremixsongsusinganimatedobjects,structuresandshapes.See,forexample,

Plaid’s(2016)‘TheDiggingRemedy’<http://www.thediggingremedy.com>.

Inthisnewenvironment,theprimarychallengeismonetisationbutwhataretherisks

associatedwithdigitaldissemination?Grubbs(2014,p.xxi)says‘historicalcontextcan

become a casualty of online listening, especially owing to incomplete and often

mistakeninformationattachedtoaudiofilescirculatingontheweb’.Thehistoricaland

listening context of albums andbodies ofwork (for example suites and symphonies)

are reductively fragmented when purchased or streamed separately. Moreover, a

critical context is often missing entirely. This should be a pressing concern for the

curatorwhoseoriginalfunctionwastocarefortheartobject.

Furthermore,incontemporaryvisualculture,mostpeopleexperienceaworkofartin

hybridforms;that is incountlesscontexts inthedigitaldomain,asposters,postcards

or in books. These forms are reductive in someway; colours, sizes and textures are

transformed; and a reproduction becomes part of the endless global flow of visual

information. Dan Fern (2015b) likens an original art work or artefact as a genetic

precursor; ‘it spawns a new species, in a billion reproductions it will remain

recognisable,thoughit[will]becomemoreandmoredistant,andwillacquireitsown

different features. It will have mutated into something else, in a million different

forms’. It is in these hybrid forms that dimensioning possibilities are to be exploited

63

and they form an important part of the curator’s dynamic system. The question of

status of the original in a culture ofmassmediatisation is beyond the scope of this

studybutitisworthmentioningcriticalliteratureonthetopicexists(Auslander,1999;

Grubbs,2014;ReasonandLindelof;2016).

MediatheoristLevManovichandchoreographerWilliamForsythepushstandardweb

browser technology in their interactive project websites. They create new archiving,

reinterpreting andexhibiting (i.e. dimensioning) possibilitieswhere imagery, filmand

supporting text are embedded in striking ways. See, for example, ‘On Boadway’

<http://on-broadway.nyc> and ‘Synchronous Objects’

<http://synchronousobjects.osu.edu>. The two projects are experienced in web

applicationsandinteractiveinstallations.Theuserisprovidedwithavarietyoftoolsto

interactwithandaltertheperceptionofeachprojectandthishaspedagogic,research

andinterpretivefunctions.Here,thedigitalplatformscountertheriskoflossofcontext

andgivepowerback to thepractitioners topresent theirworkauthoritativelyandat

thequalityoftheirchoosing.(IadaptthisinPart2B,Section8.)

Howcanmusicpractitionersplacetheirworkinacontextthatdoesjusticetoitsquality

and where it is presented alongside material of equal standard and merit? Digital

journals exist in the visual arts: ‘The Design Observer’ <http://designobserver.com>

features critical essays and peer reviewed scholarship. Another risk with online

dissemination is audience fragmentation. Online distribution is rhizomatic and Tim

Benjamin (2009, p.80) explains how ‘social groups form from social networks on a

highly transient and temporary basis and can grow (and disappear) very quickly’. Is

thereanopportunityforacollaborativecuratorialplatformtoestablishadigitaljournal

aspartoftheirdynamicsystem?(IexperimentwiththisideainPart2B,Section9.1.)

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ResearchOutcomeNo.2:‘bloom’

In the previous section, I described how the means of dissemination changed over

three timeperiods and that thesewent hand in handwith technological advances. I

nowseektoanswerthethirdresearchquestion.Idemonstrateinmypracticeandthis

commentaryhereinanapplicationoftwocuratorialmodels(modularanditerative)to

navigate the complexities of delivering amixedmedia dissemination strategy. I have

chosentoexhibit‘bloom’asacompositepublicoutcomeinsixmanifestations,threeof

whichareancillaryinfunction(D-F).Theseare:

A. Recording

B. Performance

C. InteractiveDigitalSpace

D. Newsletter

E. Film

F. Workshop

Inthefollowingsections,Ipresentandcriticallyevaluateeachmanifestation.Indoing

soIaimtorealiseDziekan’s(2007)dimensioningsothatthetotalityoftheexhibition

extendstothephysicalandvirtual.Inordertodothis,Ichoosetoemployanexhibition

structure that is modular. This curatorial working method (Paul, 2008, pp.41-43)

enables me to drop or defer any problematic modules in the event of unforeseen

difficulties. The delivery of this strategy requires significant funding support.

Fortunately,Iamabletomeetmyfundraisingtargetandthusdeliverthefirstphaseof

activity.At theendof this section I suggestadditionalmodules suitable fora second

phaseofactivitybuttheirdeliveryisoutsidethescopeofthisstudy.

6. ManifestationA:Recording

Irelease‘bloom’asarecordingintwostages.Stageoneisthestudioalbumindigital

andLPformatsanditlaunchedon2November2017.Stagetwofocusesonthedigital

mediumonly.Here Iexploit the streaming format toexpand thestudioalbum intoa

curated playlist. This is an open-ended process that launches on Spotify and Apple

Musiclaterin2018.Ichoosetosetupmyownrecordlabeltomanagethedeliveryand

65

executionof this strategy. Iuseexistingdigitalplatforms thathavedemocratised the

oncecostlyprocess.

6.1CastingthestudioalbumforitsreleaseasLPandDownload

Theproduction andmanufacturing processes are not relevant to this study so I only

includeabriefoverview.Irecordpianopartsforthesixnewpiecesinasinglesession

withCurtisSchwartzathisstudioinWestSussex.Idistributetherecordingstoeachof

thecollaboratorsandwepreparethepre-mastercopies.Themasteringsessiontakes

placeovertwodayswithGuyDavieandChrisPotteratElectricMastering inLondon.

They cut theacetates in-houseand the vinyl ismanufacturedatGZ inHolland. I use

two digital services to manage distribution (<https://www.landr.com> and

<http://studiowilldutta.bandcamp.com>).

Morepertinent to this studyare the curatorialdecisions Imake in fixing the running

orderofthestudioalbum.IdothisinbetweenthetwomasteringsessionsandIfollow

similarcriteriatothosein‘BlankCanvas17’:Iconsidertheshapeandflow,tonalityand

balanceofdurationsof thecomplete listeningexperience. Importantly, I refer to the

stylisticfeaturesofnon-classicalmusicandprepareanewrecordingofthiswaswritten

byhand(Lang,2003)asanexampleofnotatedminimalism.Ithasarestlesscharacter

andthestutteredrhythmsechothebreak-beatsinAHigherSenseofTime.Theslowly

thinningtextureofthelasteighteenbarsactsasanaturaloutrosoIpositionitatthe

endofthestudioalbum.Thefinalrunningorderis:

1. whitingflowre

2. Tangram

3. Bloume

4. AHigherSenseofTime

5. BeautyStill

6. MortePoint

7. thiswaswrittenbyhand

6.2Albumascuratedplaylist

Historically the public release of the studio album would complete this first

manifestation. However, Gavin Wade says the artist-curator or curartist applies

66

‘curatorial strategies as a way of presenting themselves, alongside other artists, to

create composite public outcomes’ (O’Neill, 2012, p.105). I consider how I might

transfer this strategy in themediation of the recording: I discover that by exploiting

streamingtechnologyIcandeveloptheconceptof‘bloom’asacuratedplaylist.Iselect

existing and record additional material (guided again by the research network, the

curatorialframeof‘edgeculture’andstylisticfeaturesofnon-classicalmusic)toextend

the listening experience of the original studio album and widen the context and

historicityof theworkspresented.This isanopen-endedprocess. Indoingso Imake

visibleaseriesoftemporaryconnectionsbetweenpiecesthatarenegotiableandavoid

notions of absolute value – the listener may decide to construct their own running

orderorindividualpiecesmightfindaplaceonotherplaylists.

Forthepurposeofthisstudy,InowdiscussacuratedplaylistsampleprovidedinFolder

1,PartB. The first addition ismypreviouslyun-released recordingof Ina Landscape

(Cage,1948).IwishtodissipatetheenergyofBloumeandAHigherSenseofTimeand

return the focus back to the instrument without any electronic manipulation. The

ambientandhypnoticmusicaltexture,itssimplebutoccasionallysurprisingharmonies

and longform‘invitesthe listenertowardastateof tranquility’ (Drury,1995).Next, I

select my recording of Overcolour (Dutta, 2012b), taken from my first album, to

transitionbacktothenon-classicalsoundworld.Itsbeat-drivenfinalegraduallybuilds

theshapeofthesetandtheintensitypeakswiththreemusicalworksbyFlyingLotus

(2014),ScratchaDVA(2012)andKode9(2013).Here,thehistoricityofelectronicclub

music(andReynolds’hardcorecontinuum)ismostclearlyaudible. Ifollowthiswitha

secondpreviouslyunreleasedrecording,PianoofPleasure(Richards,2010),whichisa

pieceIinitiatedwithJohnRichardsanditisanotherexampleofnon-classicalmusic.My

preferredrunningorderis:

1. whitingflowre

2. Tangram

3. Bloume

4. AHigherSenseofTime

5. InaLandscape(Cage,1948)

6. Overcolour

7. NeverCatchMe(FlyingLotusfeat.KendrickLamar,2014)

67

8. FlyJuice(ScratchaDVA,2012)

9. Uh(Kode9,2013)

10. PianoofPleasure(Richards,2010)

11. BeautyStill

12. MortePoint

13. thiswaswrittenbyhand(Lang,2003)

6.3Artwork

I approached Russell Warren-Fisher to lead the art direction for this project on the

recommendation of Professor Dan Fern. Warren-Fisher has experience in album

artwork,havingdesignedsleevesforGavinBryarsandTheMichaelNymanBandamong

others.Ipresenthimwiththesituationandmodelsofthepiecesinaninitialmeeting

andallowhimartisticfreedominhisresponse.Hisconceptfortheleadimage(Fig.2-

12) is intended to be flexible across media (and the other manifestations). Here he

describestheprocess:

‘Creating a design that echoed the complexities and subtle audible cues evident

within “bloom” began by creating a list of descriptive words associated with the

sounds.Noticeably,someofthewordsonthislistwerecontradictingoneanother–

words like chaotic, precision, static, fluid, simple, layered. Theseoxymoronic style

pairingsledmetothinkthat“contradiction”orlookingforapointatwhichcontrol

andrandomnessmeetcouldbepartofthecreativesolution.

By dropping black diluted Indian ink onto white paper from a variety of pre-

determinedheights Ipurposefully relinquishedsomeof thecontrol Ihadover the

mark-making so that the introduction of gravity and the medium itself became

equally responsible for the outcome.While I had certain expectations in how ink

may behave as it fell through space to eventually arrive on the page, its exact

appearance or behavior could never be fully predicted and it was within this

formalised chaos that the design for the album cover emerged’ (Warren-Fisher,

2017).

68

Fig.2-12Artworkfor‘bloom’byRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

7. ManifestationB:Performance

Myconceptionof thesecondmanifestation is toprovidematerial shapetothe ‘edge

culture’ narrative. Todo this I use an iterative curatingmodel (Paul, 2008, pp.39-40)

where outcomes and feedback from othermanifestations (workshops and seminars,

forexample)orpreviousperformancesasversionshaveadynamiceffectonthenext

performance. ‘bloom LIVE’ shifts and morphs over time giving life to Eno’s (1996)

temporary,negotiableandinterchangeableconnections.

7.1‘bloomLIVE’:audio-visualperformance

IinviteDamianHaleatTreatmentStudiotoleadthecreativedirectionof‘bloomLIVE’

atanearlystageintheproject.Hebringssignificantexperienceindesigninglarge-scale

audio-visualstageshowsandwehaveanexistingprofessionalrelationship.Inourfirst

meeting Ipresenthimwithdraftsof themusicandWarren-Fisher’sartworkconcept.

Wealsodiscuss the importanceofhaving flexibility in thevisual footage in thesame

way I sought to achieve in Bloume and whiting flowre. Hale (2017) describes the

processofdevelopingthevisuallanguage:

‘Mostoftheshowcontentisdrivenbysomething“real”whichaddsanelementof

warmth to the final output, even when it’s buried beneath layers of digital

processing.Footage filmed inourstudio,outandaboutwithcamerasandphones

test1:Layout 1 24/1/17 17:52 Page 1

69

andfoundfootagebecomethebuildingblocksforAfterEffectswheretheyarecut

up,layered,effectedandmadeintosequenceswhicharethenloadedintoNotchfor

playback.

Notch isareallypowerful tool forus,aswellastriggeringthesequencesviamidi,

weuseittoaddanotherlayerofeffects,orgeneratecontentfromscratch.Thiscan

bedonemanuallyorbyusinganinputsuchasliveaudioorcameradatatocontrol

theparameters,meaningwecanrespondtowhatishappeningmusicallyandeach

showbecomesunique’.

Once the visuals are underway, he brings inMatt Reed to design the set.Our initial

meetingresultsinthebasicideaofagauzestructureinfrontofthepianoontowhich

visuals are mapped (Fig. 2-13). Logistical necessities dictate the structure must be

transportable,quickandsimpleto(de)rigandfitmoststages.HaleandReeddrawon

GabrielleChanel’sfinejewellerycollectiontodesigntheunusuallyshapedstructure.

Fig.2-13‘bloomLIVE’atInstituteofContemporaryArts.PhotographbyMichaelRobertWilliams,2017©Michael

RobertWilliams

Performancecontextprovidesanotheropportunitytoreinforce‘edgeculture’andthe

historicityof thenewbodyofworkandvisual language. Iseekblack-boxvenuesthat

70

aremultidisciplinary in their programming and offer scope for research sharingwith

students andearly careerpractitioners (seeManifestation F). The resulting four-date

touroftheUKis:

• 12.10.17InstituteofContemporaryArts,London

• 08.11.17DeMontfortUniversity,Leicester

• 22.11.17CentreforContemporaryArts,Glasgow

• 29.11.17TheHouse,Plymouth

ThroughoutthetourIreconfiguretheset listforeachperformance.Thenewbodyof

work is shaped by temporary connections with club culture, minimalism and

experimentalmusicpracticesinthesamemannerasthecuratedplaylist.Forexample,

thesetlistfor‘bloomLIVE’atTheHousemirrorstheplaylistsampleinPart2B,Section

6.2.However,inthelivesituation,theextramaterialismixedintoasingle,continuous

DJsetexperience.

7.2(Un)controlledactivity

Inthesixmanifestations,Iconsiderhowmuchoftheactivityiscontrolledornot.Each

can be given two axes where the activity on the vertical axis is controlled and the

horizontaluncontrolled(unregulated).Forexample,in‘bloomLIVE’muchoftheevent

is regulated by the activity taking place on the stage. However, the interactions

between performer-spectator and spectator-spectator are unique, unregulated and

specifictothelivemoment.Spatialco-presenceisfundamentaltotheexperience.Fig.

2.14showsthisinmoredetail.

71

Fig.2-14(Un)controlledactivityin‘bloomLIVE’.DiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

Mycuratorialimpulseistobalancecontrolledanduncontrolledactivity.Toocontrolled

and it becomesapassiveexperience.Conversely, toomuchunregulatedactivity, see

forexampleLaMonteYoung’sComposition1960,tendstotheextreme.

Theurbansprawlofmusicfeaturedin‘bloomLIVE’inter-relateswiththeactivitytaking

placeinManifestationsAandC.Newmaterialisgraduallyintroducedintoperformance

(which folds back into the playlist) and this continues in turn to strengthen the

curatorialnarrative.

8. ManifestationC:InteractiveDigitalSpace

‘bloomworks’ <http://www.bloomworks.art> is ‘the technologized interface between

physical and virtual spaces’ (Dziekan, 2007, no page number) and as such it is the

centralhuboftheproject.Ithasfourprimaryfunctionsanditisdesignedandbuiltby

Warren-FisherandMarcusStephens:

• Documentation(presentingmaterialsintheiroptimumformat)

• Research(providingcriticalandhistoricalcontexttocreatemeaning)

• Pedagogy(examiningorganisingstructuresoftheprojectandselectworks)

• Interpretation(invitinguserinteractionandengagement)

72

Howistherelationshipbetweencommunicationandmeaningandsocialparticipation

curated?Inthefirstinstance,accesstothesiteiscommunicatedthroughtheprovision

ofapostcard.VisualartistRobertaSmith(1993)describessuchephemeraasancillary

andcollectiveartworksthatpreparethereceiverforthemainthing.

8.1Thearchitectureof‘bloomworks’

The architecture of the site avoids unnecessarily complex structures. Instead, it is

designed around the provision of text and imagery giving meaning to the project

(‘About’and‘Explore’)andtoolstoinvitesocialparticipation(‘Interact’).Thefirsttwo

categoriesallowmetocommunicatemuchofthecontextcoveredinthisstudyalready

andIdothisthroughacombinationofdiagrams,photography(includingphotoessays

on select topics) and text (for example, academic essays and creative processes – I

privilege the latteroverbiographical informationbecause it quicklydates and Iwant

thesitetofunctionasadigitalarchiveoncetheprojectends).Ishowhowthisactivity

isself-reflexive(itiscuratingaboutcurating).

8.2Remixingasopensourcemusicmaking

The invitation toparticipateandco-create is communicated throughanon-goingcall

forremixesofBloume.(SeeChapter2,Part2A,Section2.)ManuelPolettiandIbuilta

system of real-time processing that is inherently flexible. However, at the point of

recordingitbecomesfixed.TonavigatethisIusethevirtualspaceasasuitablemode

ofmediation: I inviteuserstosubmittheirownremixesofthepiece.Theycaneither

use the stems from Poletti’s software technologies or they can create their own

following a similar aesthetic approach. This gets around the problem of a fixed

recordingbecausethereisnowaselectionofversionsofequalvaluetolistento.The

original is the genetic precursor (Fern, 2015b) and the remixes are many different

forms (mutations). This is another example of themode of dissemination impacting

uponthecompositionalact. It isasmall-scaleopensourceresponsetomusicmaking

and there is growing discourse on remixing as an object, process and postmodernist

culture(Lolavar,2011;Andrewes,2014;Sullivan,2014).Iselectanduploadremixesto

the site over the lifespan of the project and in return users get their own page and

revolving vinyl. There is further scope to arrange remixes into live versions and fold

thembackinto‘bloomLIVE’.Fig.2-15showsexamplesofcontrolledanduncontrolled

activityintherecordedworks.

73

Fig.2-15(Un)controlledactivityinManifestationA.DiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

9. ManifestationD:Newsletter

Imaketheideologicaldecisiontoavoidusingsocialmediachannelsinordertocontrol

thedesignoftheprimarymeansofcommunication(thefirstancillarymanifestation).I

create twonewsletter templates (designedandbuiltbyWarren-FisherandStephens)

usinganexistingdigitalprovider:‘EdgeCulture’and‘StudioTalk’.

9.1‘EdgeCulture’

ThisisalongformjournalthatIusetocommunicateideasandcontextdirectlytomy

subscribers. Each journal is edited jointly with a featured guest. I choose the guest

basedonwhethertheircreativepracticefitswithintheresearchnetworkestablishedin

Part2A.Furthermore,itisadeliberatedecisiontomakeexplicittheframingnarrative

inthenamingofthejournal.Subjectsunderdiscussionincludenewmedia,technology-

ledperformance,electronicclubmusic,urbancultureandcontemporaryvisualculture,

forexample.Theactivityisunregulated(itsitsontheuncontrolledaxis)becauseonce

thetopic isagreedguesteditorsareresponsibleforsourcingmaterialandwritingthe

text. I am responsible for the formatting only. This is an example of a collaborative

curatorialplatform.SeeFigs.2-16aand2-16b.

74

9.2‘StudioTalk’

I use this newsletter template to communicate topics directly related to the project.

Theseincludeupcomingperformancesof‘bloomLIVE’,specialoffersandinsightsinto

therecordingandmanufacturingprocess.

Fig.2-16a‘EdgeCulture’newsletter

75

Fig.2-16bExampleofaguesteditorin‘EdgeCulture’newsletter.PhotographbyTessaSollway,2015©TessaSollway

10. ManifestationE:Film

I use film as an alternative medium to communicate the framing narrative of this

project. This is the second ancillary manifestation and it disseminates my work

indirectly.AseriesofshortfilmsareproducedwithfilmmakerNicoleeTsin.Theseries

covers‘Dub,MigrationsandUKSoundSystemCulture’,‘1960sNewYork’,‘PirateRadio

andUrban Culture’ and ‘Experimentalism in theUK’. In each episode, I interview an

academicand/orartisticcontributor.

11. ManifestationF:Workshop

The third ancillarymanifestation is the ‘CuratingMusic’workshop that goes hand in

handwithperformancesof‘bloomLIVE’.Theseareuptothreehoursindurationand

76

takeplaceatpartnerHigherEducationInstitutions(HEI).Theyaretargetedatstudents

and early career practitioners. I establish a workshop structure that allows me to

deliver an introduction to the curator through the prism of ‘bloom’. I also use the

iterativecuratingmodel toexplorewithattendeeshowtheothermanifestationscan

bedeveloped throughout theproject. These ideasprovide further instruction for the

developmentofthemainproject.

Limitationsandmeasuringsuccess

In the following section I discuss some of the limitations and successes of the

manifestations so far. I also provide an overview of optional modules for a second

phase of activity. It is too early to measure the success of the project in terms of

audienceengagementandinanycasethisisbeyondthescopeofthestudy.However,

apreliminaryanalysisofcumulativestatisticsshowsthatthereisaproportionallyhigh

level of referral activity (interaction) among userswithin the sixmanifestations. This

showsitisadynamicsystem.

The regional tour of ‘bloom LIVE’ reached over 375 spectators and a review says

‘[Dutta’s] piano compositions were elegant and masterfully minimal, paired with

electronictonesasseamlesslyasthewholethingpairedwiththeimagery’(Reinbach,

2017). Approximately ten percent of spectators purchased the vinyl record in situ.

Thosewhopurchased the record viamy storewere added to the subscriber lists for

‘Edge Culture’ and ‘Studio Talk’ and continue to engagewith the project. Composer

DavidLang(2017)says‘listeningtoyouralbum…soundsgreat…IloveLPssothanksfor

makingone’.FiveofthesixmanifestationshaveaninternationalreachandtheUK,US

and Japan are the largest markets. According to cumulative statistics from my

distributors, ‘bloom’ has received over 3.8k streams since its launch in November.

According to Google Analytics, just over 1k unique users have visited ‘bloomworks’

withatotalofover3.6kviewssinceitslaunchinSeptember2017.Theaveragesession

duration is approximately 2.5 minutes (with a peak of 6 minutes) and this

demonstrates a proportionally high level of engagement from those visiting the site.

According to MailChimp analytics, the average open rate of ‘Edge Culture’ is 52.8%

(MailChimp’sindustryaverageis16.4%).Areadercomments:

77

‘Lovingit.Greatformat.Effortlesslyaddscontexttoyourwork,andinthebroader

processaddsmeaningandagreatervarietyofaccesspointsforabroaderaudience’

(Paterson,2017).

In the second phase of activity I plan to increase responses to the remix offer (by

forging links with specialist HEIs), deliver the curated playlist activity on Spotify and

Apple Music and secure further national and international performances of ‘bloom

LIVE’andsupportingworkshops.Subjecttoadditional funding,thefollowingmodules

canbeincluded:

Virtualrealityexperienceanddownload

DamianHaleandhis teamatTreatmentStudioare interested indevelopingavirtual

reality(VR)renderingofthefilmtoBeautyStill.Thiswouldbepresentedasapremium

experience, using HTC Vive, and could feature in ‘bloom LIVE’ (before and after the

performance) and other VR festivals and pop-up locations, in the UK and

internationally. Once the premium VR experience has been successfully toured, a

second version is made available to Google Cardboard users via ‘bloomworks’. This

would be a secondary invitation to social participationon the site. A holdingpage is

currentlyinoperationonthewebsite.

Onlinebroadcastsof‘bloomLIVE’

At the timeofwriting, theBBC isdevelopinganaugmentedvideoplayerand Iam in

discussionstotrialandhost iton ‘bloomworks’.Theobjective is toofferonlineusers

interactivevisualisations,additional footageand interferencesunique to themedium

duringlivebroadcasts.Iseethisreturningrivalryandexcludability(Page,2006)tothe

online experience. This module was originally dropped from the project owing to

unforeseen circumstances. However, with a longer lead in time this could be

reinstated.

Concludingremarks

In this chapter I set out to show the dimensioning possibilities of the extended

exhibitionformatforanewbodyofwork. Itransferredcuratorialtheoryandpractice

from contemporary visual culture into the musical domain and in doing so I

constructed a new role that I name ‘curating composer’. I developed material and

78

immaterial infrastructure to create the second research outcome. I consider each of

the six manifestations of ‘bloom’ its own artistic product, or work in its own right,

situated in a dynamic system of reciprocal exchange. I have deliberately made any

potential hierarchies redundant. In carrying out this research outcome I have now

answeredallthreeresearchquestions.

79

Conclusion

Throughout this study, and in response to the first research question, I thoroughly

investigated contemporary visual culture and how independent curators, artist-

curators and curartists shaped dynamic systems of art production, exhibition and

dissemination. I uncovered valuable language,workingmethodologies and strategies

andtransferredthesefromonedisciplinetoanother.

Idiscoveredandpresentedthecuratingcomposerasanimportantnewroleintwenty-

first century music making. To answer the second and third research questions, I

constructively applied the curating composer over the course of two research

outcomes,‘BlankCanvas17’and‘bloom’.Imademicroandmacrocuratorialdecisions

to affect how thematerial was produced, exhibited and disseminated. I showed art

music and curatorial practice converging. The following diagrams (Figs. 2-17a and 2-

17b) show howmy approach to ‘bloom’moved on significantly frommy first studio

album,‘Parergon’(Dutta,2012b).ThedegreetowhichIcurateactivityhasincreasedin

linewiththeresearchprocess.

Fig.2-17aDiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

80

Fig.2-17bDiagrambyRussellWarren-Fisher(2017)

A third outcome of this research is the first outline of non-classical music that has

developedinthelastfifteenyears.Inmyanalysis,Ishowedittobeanewstyleofart

music,groundedinacontextofnotatedminimalismandelectronicclubmusic,where

rhythm and texture are the stylistic focal points and a postmodernist attitude to

aestheticsandinstitutionsprevails.Furthermore,Idemonstratedaninter-relationship

betweenitsmodeofproductionandexhibition.

At this point it is pertinent to highlight an unexpected strand of rebelliousness and

subversionthatispresentinthestudy.Inthehistoricalandiconoclasticexamples,the

practitioners rebelled out of necessity from the seemingly fixed or impenetrable

institutionalsystems.Similarly,composerandperformer-ledplatformsassociatedwith

the indie-classicalscenechosetodo it themselvesbecauseopportunitieswereeither

notavailable to themor theywanted to confront the institutionof artmusicand its

associated ephemera and etiquettes. Institutional critique is at once progressive and

subversive.

Another unexpected outcome and potential research project in the future is the

relationship between the institutional critique discussed in this study and pedagogy

andpreparationofmusicstudents intheconservatoire.Howcancuratorialmodelling

besuccessfullyembeddedinandappliedtoconservatoireandHEItrainingwithoutthe

81

bifurcation between the practical and theoretical that has taken place in the art

school? In the UK, Guildhall School of Music and Drama and Trinity Laban

Conservatoire of Music and Dance already offer dedicated programmes in creative

practice(withtheawardsofBachelorofArtsandMasterofFineArtsrespectively)and

others(includingtheRoyalNorthernCollegeofMusic)havespecialistoptionsavailable

to undergraduate and postgraduate students. Internationally, Codarts Rotterdam is

developing a new undergraduate curriculum that includes aspects of curatorial

practice.FiveHEIshavecometogethertodeviseanddeliverthe‘MusicMasterforNew

AudiencesandInnovativePractice’orNAIPEuropeanMasterofMusic.Arguablymany

ofthesemodulesandprogrammescouldgosignificantlyfurtheringrapplingwithsome

of the themes explored in this study. As a consequence of this I plan to share my

research with these conservatoires. There is certainly applicability beyond Trinity

Laban. Lastly, formal musical training needs to embrace and take on board how

contemporarypractitionersareproducingnotableartworksfromlittleornoformalised

learning. How can conservatoires understand this and adapt accordingly? Guildhall

School of Music and Drama’s BA (Hons) Performance & Creative Enterprise in

collaborationwiththeBarbicanhasbegunthisprocessbyhavingacoursedeliveredby

some of these creative practitioners together with tutors from the School’s roster

fosteringamorediverseandcollaborativeenvironmentwithintheconservatoire.

Whatmightthecuratingcomposerlooklikeinthefuture?Heorshewilllikelycontinue

to expand the dimensioning possibilities of the rapidly changing technological

landscape (imminent new technologies such as augmented and virtual reality and

blockchain offer exciting and as of yet unexplored opportunities). There is also

significant space to explore beyond the fixed walls of a building. Away from

consumerism and commodity, what function will live and mediatised performances

have? There is a growing international discourse on the artist as citizen (see, for

example,the5thinternational‘ReflectiveConservatoireConference’atGuildhallSchool

ofMusicandDrama)andIbelievethecuratingcomposerwillhaveanimportantpart

toplay.

I have shown the construction of the curator in music to be significant in historical

termsandconservatoiresignorehimorherattheirperil.Itisvitalanewgenerationof

curating composers are created who can provide aesthetic, mediation and

82

entrepreneurialdirectiontomusiciansinwhathasbecomeabewilderinglyfragmented

landscape. Fundamentally, however the curating composer chooses to incorporate

dimensioning strategies, at any given time let them make exciting temporal

connectionstochallengeandengageaudiencesandbeacreativeforceintwenty-first

centurynewmusicculture.

83

AppendixI

Composer John Richards explains how hemet deWardener throughmutual friends

Hilary JefferyandRowanOliver.Asdoublebassists, theywere ‘pressganged intothe

orchestra (both beingmore interested in contemporarymusic and improvisation) so

wehadsomefuninthebasssection’(Richards,2014).ProkofievcametoYorkin1997:

‘thepost-grad community thenwas still quite small andwe shared a lot of interests

andbecamefriends.Weorganisedquiteafewgigsofelectronicmusictogetherunder

themoniker“nerve8”.Theseconcertswere inmoreunusual locations’.Richardssays

thedepartmentwasfullofinterestingcomposersandperformersduringthelate1990s

andmanyarenowassociatedwiththeindie-classicalscene.Theseincludecomposers

Anna Meredith and Emily Hall (founding members of ‘Camberwell Composers

Collective’),LauraMoody(cellistinElysianQuartet)andSarahDacey(sopranoinjuice

vocalensemble),amongothers.

84

AppendixII

JohnMetcalfe founded FactoryClassical andbecame its project coordinator in 1989.

Metcalfe says that while a student at the Royal Northern College of Music in

Manchesterhewasunawareofthewidercontemporaryclassicallandscape:

‘AllthatIknewaboutwasJoyDivision,Durutti[Column]andtheHaçienda...allthe

music I was listening to was Post Punk, New Wave, some electronic music

[including]Kraftwerk.Icertainlydidn’tknowaboutSteveReichorPhilipGlassorany

ofthestuffgoingoninNewYork’(Metcalfe,2014).

He citeshismotivations for settingup the imprint as adirect resultof the industry’s

resistancetochange:

‘Ifoundmyself inasituation,trainingtobeaclassicalmusician,withthepotential

toembarkonacareer inanenvironmentIdidn’tparticularly like... Iwantedtodo

somethingthatwasrelativelyyoung,notnewforthesakeofit,butsomethingthat

mighthaveaconnectionwithpeoplemyageandwithmyoutlook’.

He initially launched Factory Classical at the Diorama Arts Centre in London after

deliberatelyrulingouttheestablishedconcerthalls;‘therewasnointentioneverforit

tobeintheWigmore[Hall]’.Thiswasdue,inpart,totheassociationsaudienceswould

makewiththeirsurroundings, ‘associatingcertainvenueswithacertainmixofmusic

andstyles’andtheoctagonalspacefit‘withthepost-industrialvibethatFactoryhad’.

Metcalfesaysthathewasnottryingtobreakdownbarriers;ratherhe‘wasfedupwith

thestatusquo’.

85

Glossary

Throughout this study I have made reference to and expanded upon a number of

concepts,someofwhichIhavetransferredfromthedisciplineofvisualarts. Indoing

so I have claimeda curatorialposition. The followingglossary is a listof terminology

withtheirmeaningsexplainedinthecontextofthisstudy.Togethertheyformulatemy

personalconstructionofthecuratingcomposer.

Artist-Curator/Curartist

A creative practitioner who uses the physical and intellectual experience of an

exhibitiontopresentthemselvesalongsideotherartists.

ArtMusic

Notated music that takes an established form to a lessor or greater extent to

communicateartisticexpression.

Curate

Toauthoritativelyselectobjects in relationship toagivencontextprioritisinganalytic

inquiryandtheoreticalcoherence.

CuratorialDesign

Contemporarycuratingfeaturesthataffecttheaestheticexperienceoftheexhibition.

Digital

Used to subsume the full range of new technologies around computers and the

Internet.

Dimensioning

AtermusedbyVinceDziekan todescribe theenlargingof theexhibitionplatformto

coverphysicalandvirtualspaces.

EdgeCulture

A term created by Brian Eno to describe an alternative approach to art history that

avoidsnotionsofabsolutevalue.

86

Exhibition

A temporary public platform within which an overarching curatorial framework is

provided.

InstitutionofArt

Theapparatusforproducinganddistributingartandartideasthatprevailatanygiven

timeanddeterminethereceptionofworks.

InstitutionalCritique

Criticalexaminationoftheparametersandapparatusoftheinstitutionofart.

Mediation

Incontemporaryvisualculture,thetermmediationisusedtorefertoeducationbased

practices and/or the provision of ephemera ahead of and during exhibitions that

include ongoing cultural dialogue between curators, artists and audiences. In the

discipline of music, it has taken on a slightly different meaning. Tim Rutherford-

Johnsonappliesittothetransmissionofmusicfromoriginatortolistenerviaoneform

ofmediaoranother.

Mediatisation

Transference from one medium to another and often associated with artistic

disseminationanddistribution.

Non-ClassicalMusic

Anewstyleofartmusic,groundedinacontextofnotatedminimalismandelectronic

clubmusic,whererhythmandtexturearethestylisticfocalpointsandapostmodernist

attitudetoaestheticsandinstitutionsprevails.

Programme

To select objects or musical works that privilege entertainment over theoretical

inquiry.

87

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