Geträumte Revolution in Klang
It is quite interesting how much faster something foreign is allowed in art in the modern world than it was 150 years ago, as if the audience expects and assimilates the process more quickly. While most people associate the sound of a Snare Drum with march music, it becomes something foreign when Matthias Spahlinger writes over twenty minutes for six of them outside of this association. Without melody, the ear needs time to grasp the subtle differences in sounds between the drums, much like learning a new language.
As John Cage noted, if you listen to something for a minute and find it boring, you listen to it for two minutes; if it is still boring, you listen for four minutes; if it is still boring, you listen for eight minutes, and after a while, it is no longer boring. That is indeed the process of becoming familiar with the foreignness. Michael Nyman writes simple patterns for metal instruments, a strange motor whose repetitions put the listener into a meditative state. Schoellhorn explores the energy of waves through sounding toy instruments, without recognizable rhythm and melody, or both so slowly that time would need to be slowed down for the human to understand it better. How could one better introduce a revolution of the ears than with a drum march for peace instead of for war by Christian Wolff?
Event by Ensemble S in cooperation with Musik 21 Niedersachsen and Sprengel Museum Hannover
Funded by the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture and the City of Hanover Cultural Office.
Hallo, ich bin Maya.
