Terry Riley represents a continuous flow of musical ideas, from "In C" to this enchanting rag that dances and circles and absolves humanity of all evil by turning all thoughts to a state of enlightened delight. My response was to fashion a particle animation "video mandala" that morphs from a "Lawrence Welk on acid" beginning through a rainbow in curved air. -John Sanborn
A meditation on tranquility and the slow emotions of natural change, this composition by Meredith Monk has a bell like clarity of revelation. One note becomes a chorus, and the chorus becomes a mood as small elements shift and alter their place in our vision, until they assemble into a panoramic fresco. Fragments that transform into landscapes of simple beauty and grace reflect each step in the progression. - John Sanborn
This collection of short phrases balances along a line of tension and release -- and as the title states, this is a dance. Using the dynamic duo of Joseph Copley and Margaret Cromwell, the video explores the anxiety between male and female, and the eager dominance of body over mind. - John Sanborn
Writes Sanborn, "When I first heard Kyle Gann's War is Just a Racket, I did not respond to the spoken words or what seemed like a simplistic rant against capitalism. Boy, was I off-base. The text is from a Congressional deposition given by General Smedley Butler, twice honored with the Congressional Medal of Honor, and the first leader of the Marine Expeditionary Force. His perspective is not only unique—he was there—it is the kind of statement that is irrefutable. Only a true American hero can pull off the curtain of motivation and declare that 'war is just a racket.'"
The depth of sorrow, loss and redemption in Phil Kline's contribution to "A Sweeter Music" is the closest to the nerve endings that make us human of all the works. In response I included very personal images that if I lost -- would devastate me and leave me bereft of life. I ordered them so that the final search for a future is a long walk towards hope, but a bleak and painful walk at best. - John Sanborn
One very straightforward interpretation of peace is the tranquility of reflection and centering -- a toning of the soul. Almost Zen, but curiously frustrating and liberating at the same time, for this work I added both standard and offbeat words to speak to the end of a process. - John Sanborn
As they should, The Residents bring a new brand of "character" to their composition which wonders why the world worries about peace when what we need is war. Appearing on screen and adding a recorded vocal element is one of the Residents, floating in a world of empty landscapes and barren emotional promises. With layers of spoken text, and oblique images, the unsettled perspective of this piece is that while many artists look for scapegoats as to why the world is cruel, the Residents know that "we have met the enemy and they are us." - John Sanborn
Writes Sanborn, "The basis of this project was to ask composers to address war and peace—that interpretation frames each work. Composer Jerome Kitzke chose two poets, Walt Whitman and Rumi, to voice 'There is a Field,' making me ask, 'How does an artist interpret such moral themes?'"
Description
Writes John Sanborn, "Sarah Cahill conceived of A Sweeter Music (borrowing a phrase from Dr. King?s Nobel Prize acceptance speech) as an artistic response to the Gulf War. In 2009, Cahill commissioned 18 composers to write on the subject of peace, and she received a diverse collection of reflections on violence, loss, history, pain and enlightenment; all meditations on the meaning of peace. Composers included Yoko Ono, Terry Riley, Fredric Rzewski, The Residents, Kyle Gann, Phil Kline, and Jerome Kitzke. She then asked me (John Sanborn) her husband and video artist to create video projections inspired by each composition as a performance environment to extend the character and tone of each work. I worked with a 3 channel approach, and worked to get inside each composition and Sarah's interpretation and extract visual and story elements that would enrich the experience. Sarah recently recorded 8 of the compositions for CD and I took the source videos for the live performance and conformed them for single channel viewing. The reviews for the CD have been exceptional, with NPR naming it to it's TOP 100 songs of 2013 and highlighted by MSNBC."
Video: John Sanborn. Piano: Sarah Cahill.
