Creativity in the orchestral world can be kind of a black box. As an audience member, the only preparation you often get for a new piece is the notation “World Premiere” next to a piece’s title in the program. Very people know an actual composer, and indeed this type of creative life seems very far afield for most of us. Some of us may sing or play an instrument, but very few of us have ever taken pen to paper (or mouse to mousepad?) to actually write music.
That’s why I loved these posts from Hannah Lash documenting the recent goings on at the Minnesota Orchestra/American Composers Forum annual Composer Institute. She writes openly and engagingly about the experience — hearing her music for played for the first time, public speaking lessons, the nice house where she got to meet some of the program’s financial backers and her decision to manage all this with a one-month-old in tow.
Here are the posts:
- Warming Things Up in Minneapolis – day 1
- Talking About Our Music – day 2
- The Addictive Roller Coaster Rider – day 3
- The Big Day – day 4
The short videos and images from each composer’s score adds to the sense of being there — and better yet, being there accompanied by an enthusiastic, knowledgeable friend. It’s certainly an interesting way to take some of the mystery out of the creative process.