Richard and Eric take a look at an article about the late Robert Shaw composed in 2006 by Peter Phillips (conductor of the Tallis Scholars) entitled "The Cult of the Conductor". Phillips briefly analyzes the methodology of Shaw as well as the choral outcomes that arise from such (perceived) methods. Though they discuss the article in full, the guys primarily focus on Phillips's title and premise. Is there such a thing that can be seen as a "cult of the conductor," and what could that possibly look like? A lot of wonderful choral insights here, woven around two preeminent, contemporary choral conductors.
All in Philosophy
Back after a short summer hiatus Richard and Eric take up the surprisingly controversial topic,"l’art pour l’art" (art for art’s sake), brought back into contemporary consciousness by Yo Yo Ma’s recent Harvard Gazette interview. Made famous by author Théophile Gautier, and argued about in a variety of ways over many (many) years, this concept provides murky swimming waters indeed, particularly in nailing down what the often misrepresented philosophy is truly expressing. What do the guys think of how this has been (and is currently) perceived?
Richard and Eric examine the prevalent human adaptive process called "hedonic adaptation" and its relevance to not only our daily life, but more specifically: choral conducting. What is the hedonic treadmill, and once we understand what it is, is there a way to get off? There must be something more and deeper than just this "pursuit of happiness" thing.
Richard and Eric discuss the now famous Virtual Choir phenomenon and its varying ramifications on not only the choral community but on greater social society. In their critique, they attempt the impossible by unifying seemingly disparate ideas of thinkers and philosophers such as Debord, Baudrillard, Eco, Kierkegaard, all in too short of a time. Is the virtual choir actually a choir? Does the virtual choir share aspects of previously seen social experiments in the recent past? Are there claims the virtual choir makes that could be seen as problematic or illusory? Trying to look deeply at this very popular social art-form proves to be not only challenging but enlightening.
Richard and Eric discuss a recent article from The Spectator by Andrew Mahon, who was critical of Peter Sellars's staging of the St. John Passion of J.S. Bach. The article forms a jumping-off point to examine the role context plays in performance, performance practice, and artistic interpretation. There are a number of relevant issues surrounding the notion of context that play out in the work of the choral musician, with some that are worthy of deep consideration.
In what amounts to a double episode, Richard and Eric are joined by special guest Dr. Jeremiah Cawley, and plunge into the deep end of the pool to discuss the state of criticism and its usefulness in the choral world. What is a critic and what is good criticism? Do we as a culture have a growing distaste, distrust, or maybe misunderstanding of what criticism is? Are there sources of good, impactful criticism that can be relied upon in the choral community? What is the future of this increasingly rare form of art?
Richard and Eric discuss Umberto Eco's short essay ("On unread books") about Pierre Bayard's book entitled "How to Talk About Books You Haven't Read," which expounds upon the concept of unread literature. We as humans, will obviously not be able to read all that we wish we could, and perhaps in the end, it is good that we don't have time to read (or listen to) everything we would like. Can our common categorizations, understanding of archetypes, and appeals to authority help us understand and speak about artistic material we have never read (or heard)? These concepts have fascinating extrapolations into the world of music, as Richard and Eric speak upon the curious notion of "unheard" music.
Eric flies solo for this episode to discuss the phenomena of feeling down after attending the recent National ACDA Convention, though the feeling is most certainly shared by those in many professional fields. How do we cope when we return to our normal lives after experiencing a mountaintop experience? Eric offers a simple image that may prompt some small action and relief.
Richard and Eric discuss the positive and potential negative ramifications of music saturation, which is becoming increasingly evident in modern society. Does this saturation impact how we make ideological choices when it comes to music making and how does the concept of a ‘primary experience’ shield us from the potential harmful effects of music saturation?
It’s been ninety-nine years since the decline of futurism, but those long, aggressive lines still find themselves in today’s buildings, some of which evoke an other-worldly presence.
In this first discussion, Richard and Eric examine "antifragility" (a concept developed by essayist and scholar, Nassim Taleb), and its relevance within a choral context. Can the metaphors and terms used by Taleb regarding antifragility's usefulness in the fields of risk analysis, engineering, economics, and biology create new ways of thinking about a myriad of issues in the choral ensemble?