A Personal View (in Lieu of a Humanifesto)

Joseph Zitt

"I think one of the things that distinguishes music from the other arts is that music often requires other people. The performance of music is a public occasion or a social occasion. This brings it about that the performance of a piece of music can be a metaphor of society, of how we want society to be. Though we are not now living in a society which we consider good, we could make a piece of music in which we are willing to live. I don't mean that literally; I mean it metaphorically. You can think of the piece of music as a representation of a society in which you would be willing to live."

John Cage, I-VI, pp. 177-178 (punctuation added)

In any group project, each member of the group may have a distinct agenda or ax to grind. At best, most of these goals correspond with those of the other members; for the group to function, those goals that are not shared by all must conflict as little as possible.

I entered into Question Authority, The, with certain sounds in mind (the way that waves of conversation form a rhythm apart from their content; the way that chanting in a synagogue begins in unison, drifts into individual murmurs, then joins in unison again; the way that the grownups' voices sound through the bedroom wall when you're a child, sent to bed too early on a too warm night) and wanting to see certain models of action and interaction in the group's performance.

The ensemble consists of people with a wide range of talents and limitations, from trained musicians to those who are limited in their singing ability, from those who can remember long texts to those (including me) who can't quite keep the words of a haiku straight, from those who can handle multiple complex simultaneous processes to those who are best at doing one straightforward task at a time. The challenge in creating pieces with this ensemble (as it should be in composing responsibly for any group) is to create situations in which people are stimulated and freed to do their best work.

In composing for Question Authority, The, I have set myself a series of goals to which I aspire in creating each new piece. The degree to which the pieces meet these goals vary, as do the goals which other members of the group may have set for themselves in their composing, and the goals of the group compositions which are becoming more frequent. I try to achieve the following:

Clarity

The score describes and explains the materials and processes that are used in the piece. Unusual terms used in the score are explained within it.

Enjoyability

The piece is fun, both for the performers and for the audience.

Performability

Performers of the piece do not have to be virtuosi in any field. Each piece benefits from skillful performance, but anyone who understands how the piece works can perform it.

Accessibility

While a person's enjoyment of the piece is enhanced by knowing how the piece works, an audience with no knowledge of the piece can also enjoy it.

Memorability

The piece is easy for the performers to remember. Processes are simple and consistent; texts are brief. If the piece requires an aid to memory, such as a printed text, its distribution, use, and collection are incorporated as an intentional part of the performance.

Identifiability

Someone familiar with the pieces can tell which piece is being performed by hearing a small portion of it.

Variability

Performances of the piece can vary widely, containing elements that surprise the audience and performers.

Recoverability

A performance of the piece can survive and continue past an accidental departure from the scores by any performer, incorporating the accidental material as if it were intentional.

Multiplicity

The piece incorporates text (or phonemic material), rhythm, structure, dynamics, gesture, movement, and the handling of the performance space and timing as aspects of a whole, each facet complementing the others.

Portability

The piece requires little, if any, equipment or props. The performers can launch into any piece easily without the need for previous setup.

The Option of Silence

At any point within the piece, any performer may silently listen to what the others are doing, then reenter the piece in an appropriate way.

My dream for the group is that we will achieve a common language as fluid as speech, in which we will be able to shift among compositions, materials, and processes without warning in the course of a performance, as easily as a normal conversation shifts among nodes and topics.

Much of what we hear in the poetry around us is done in an attempt to shock, in the belief that simply repeating the sounds and words of what is ugly and hateful in our world will awaken people to the existence of these ills. Perhaps people are awakened, but these simple restatements leave unclear what is to be done. As we have learned from people's reactions to popular culture and people's interactions in electronic media, clarity in irony is hard to achieve. Too often what is intended as a portrayal of evil is viewed as its endorsement.

Those of us who take upon ourselves the responsibilities of publication and performance share responsibility for the worlds of thought and action we project and inspire. Through the work we do in this ensemble, I hope that we can help enable people, through entertainment and inspiration,

not to be afraid to trust
not to be afraid to have fun
not to be afraid to be creative
not to be afraid to fail
not to be afraid to try.

Newark - Louisville - Houston - Dallas, April 1996