Mandala Music
I attended the Art Chicago 2008 show today, now under the umbrella title 'Artropolis". The show is utterly exhausting, as one tries to consume as much eye candy as one can within a limited time. Ultimately this is a detriment to the artists, that don't want you to thin slice, but rather to spend a big chunk of contemplative time with their work.
One artist that really grabbed my attention was French artist Julien Collieux, represented by Galerie5213 (Berlin). I loved the piece "The Star Spangled Banner" which consisted of a mandala-shaped score with the six parts notated in a radial pattern which the musician follows as the score rotates. What is more interesting is that the featured instrument is an acoustic guitar sliced into six pieces, one string per section. (A truly extreme alternate tuning!)
If there is social commentary in this piece it is opaque, perhaps intentionally. Even if it is arbitrary, its inventiveness overshadows its opinions. But it is good to see that there are artists that continue to explore these aleatory techniques.
One artist that really grabbed my attention was French artist Julien Collieux, represented by Galerie5213 (Berlin). I loved the piece "The Star Spangled Banner" which consisted of a mandala-shaped score with the six parts notated in a radial pattern which the musician follows as the score rotates. What is more interesting is that the featured instrument is an acoustic guitar sliced into six pieces, one string per section. (A truly extreme alternate tuning!)
If there is social commentary in this piece it is opaque, perhaps intentionally. Even if it is arbitrary, its inventiveness overshadows its opinions. But it is good to see that there are artists that continue to explore these aleatory techniques.
