Ars Subtilior: Don Your Scrubs

On June 13 at 6pm at All Saints Church on Westminster, CMW will present the fourth installment of Ars Subtilior, a concert series I curate that focuses on subtlety in experimental music.

In the most recent Ars Subtilior concerts, we have presented works by known experimental music favorites such as John Cage, Morton Feldman, and Alvin Lucier.
This Saturday, we return to the unique work of my good friend André Cormier, whose music gets programmed by a handful of followers around the world. CMW staff, members of Phase II, and participants in the Institute for Musicianship and Public Service will be performing his Libelulles (Dragonflies) and Scrubbing.

How many substantial musical works can be learned, understood, and performed perfectly by mostly strangers with just one rehearsal? If we were going to try and play a Mozart symphony, for instance, it would require hours of preparation and all participating musicians would be expected to have a certain amount of training and understanding of a very particular music making practice. The audience would also be expected to have some knowledge of what a symphony is, recognize consonance and dissonance, and know when to clap.

Scrubbing throws this all out the window. It’s a score that really anyone could read and perform. All it requires are objects that can be scrubbed and a time keeping device. The score tells you when, how loud, and how fast or slow to scrub. It’s just a simple set of instructions but the result can be be quite stunning, with audience members being surrounded by delicate layers of brushing sounds, quietly undulating around them.

Libelulles (Dragonflies) is a little more involved, as it requires actual musical instruments and musicians that can make trilling sounds on those instruments.
But, that’s it. That’s all the audience will hear – little trills varying in timbre, dynamic, and range. The interior of the church will be transformed into a field rich with the sound of fluttering insects -but no bites or sun burn.

I admire the simplicity and unpretentiousness of Andre’s music. It allows everyone to enter the concert hall at the same level. Performers and audience members from all walks of life are allowed to have a meaningful and shared experience together.
There are no expectations, just (hopefully) pleasant surprises for all.

–Laura Cetilia