AN
AUDIENCE WITH THE TREES presents a 'performance' of VIVALDI'S
MENAGERIE, a concerto for violin and strings that I wrote for
the
Orchestra of St John's in 2003. The music of the concerto reworks
melodic material from Vivaldi's FOUR
SEASONS. AN AUDIENCE WITH THE
TREES takes electronic samples of birdsong, recorded in rural
Oxford,
and distributes them across the range of each instrumental part from
VIVALDI'S MENAGERIE (solo
violin, first violin, second violin, viola,
cello, bass), using a unique bird-call for each part. Thus, each of
these six 'birds' gives a 'performance' of one of the individual parts
of VIVALDI'S MENAGERIE.
The installation 'reverses' a process of representation that
underwrites live performances of Vivaldi's famous concertos. Instead of
string players imitating the songs of birds in order to create a
musical performance, visitors walking past the birdboxes hanging on the
trees hear an avian ensemble imitating the melodic parts of an existing
piece of music for string sextet. AN
AUDIENCE WITH THE TREES seeks to
'return' Vivaldi's FOUR SEASONS
to nature and resolve its mimetic
aspeirations. After all, why make a violin sound like a bird? The
absence of the solo violin (to be found nearby, at a separate location)
from the accompanying ensemble expands this general theme of
ontological restitution as the bird-soloist seeks to return to the
unity of the flock-ensemble. Finally, through its present site at the
foot of raked seating, the installation makes a parody of the concert
experience, particularly the acts of sitting still, facing a single
direction, listening to music.
copyright © N.G.Brown 2007