Performance Arts |
Posted: August 12, 2013 |
Performance Arts--Following the Edge of the Wave Performance arts move through time. This means that unlike our appreciation of other art forms such as books or paintings, we do not have the luxury of staring at a section of a performance for a long time nor returning to it. This is because it keeps moving, never staying the same from minute to minute. A song being sung by a performer, a stage play, and a dance performance, for example, all flow endlessly on. Of course, modern technology has made it possible for us to view again such performances. And it always has been possible to have more than one viewing of a play by reading it, a song by reading its music, and a dance by reading dance notes. However, there is little to compare to an original performance by an artist on a stage. We do not have to imagine the play, the music, or the dance, for it is right in front of us. In addition, part of the artistry of a performance piece is not just the original score, written play, or dance notes, but also--and sometimes more importantly--the special artistry that the performers themselves bring to it. Great works of performance art may be easily performed well by anyone of even modest talent. However, it also is true that average works of art sometimes become great in the talented interpretations given to them by a Nureyev or Barishnikov, a Dustin Hoffman or Jane Fonda, or a Chuck Berry or Janis Joplin. Sometimes it even happens that an obscure or even poorly respected performance piece finally becomes recognized as the masterpiece it is, only because it has been performed well by a great performing artist and given a special, unique interpretation by that artist. In any case, the time-bound nature of performance art requires that we develop a different sensibility as a viewer. Because we cannot simply stare or reread it, we must have a heightened attention in order to catch the nuances. Samuel Thompson, a twentieth-century philosopher, suggests that we adopt a listening attitude toward music, one that works well for all performance arts. Thompson, a professor at Monmouth College in Illinois, had a small house near the campus and perhaps the best and largest music system in the town. He would close all his doors and windows and then turn up the sound so that it was as loud as a rock band's music, and then he would play pieces from his collection of classical music. Thompson's method of listening was this: music is like a constant wave of sound--we should listen to it by focusing on the front edge of the wave. In other words, we must always listen to what is coming out of the sound system--or the performance--at that very instant. We must always stay in the present, and he suggested we do so by pretending the sound is a wave and that we always focus on its leading edge. This method works well, in fact, for performance art of all kinds. The problem in viewing or listening to such art is that our attention may stray, and when our focus on the performance returns, the sound or sight might be so different that we are no longer sure of what is happening--of what the structure is, and what that moment means in relation to other moments. This method of concentration helps the problem with focus to some extent. Of course, we must realize that focusing consistently and well is a problem for all audience members, even those who are expert: live performance art often demands a more intense focus (and often, for this reason, performances tend to be shorter) than does reading a book or watching a favorite movie at home. Like anything else, becoming good at focusing on a performance requires a mixture of concentration, alertness, and knowledge of the art form and/or story line. One of the most important elements of viewing live performances is learning to focus on them well. To do so--for the best experience possible--it is wise to prepare for them ahead of time by being awake and rested, reading any available information (such as program notes) ahead of time, and practicing your focusing technique. Music History Some cultural anthropologists suggest that the first languages may have been songs. Human beings, they say, may have chanted songs to each other using repeated rhythms and notes and changing words. That is, language was born, perhaps, as a regular mixture of both words and musical notes. Whether true or not, it is clear that singing is an ancient art form. It is endemic to almost all cultures throughout the world, ancient and highly advanced. Musical instruments were developed early in the history of humankind, as well. Several thousand years before the advent of the first high cultures, possibly many tens of thousands of years ago, people first fashioned instruments from gut strings, reeds, horns, and other natural objects and used them as a complement to their singing. By the time high cultures and written records appeared in Egypt, Africa, the Middle East, and the Far East, well made instruments of varying kinds were a part of those cultures.
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