Beth Anderson Interview Initiates A New Artist's Forum

mosc

**Beth Anderson**

Beth Anderson has been a vibrant force on the contemporary music scene since the mid 1970's. A student of such revolutionaries as John Cage and Robert Ashley, she has stunned the music world by turning to a more traditional musical style based on the expression of beauty. Her music was recently performed at a one-composer concert in New York at Carnagie Hall. She has two new CD releases.

We have started an artist's forum to provide information about and to discuss Beth's music. To inaugurate this forum, we are publishing an interview with her in which she discusses her unique musical journey. You can read the interview by clicking here. We have also have posted some mp3 samples of Beth's music, as well as announcements of her upcoming activities. We are very pleased to welcome Beth Anderson to the electro-music.com community of musicians and artists.

You can find more about Beth at her web site: http://www.beand.com/ or, of course, by visiting her forum: https://electro-music.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=42

bachus · Posted: Mon Mar 08, 2004 11:33 am Post subject:

Hi!

Many thanks to the two of you for a great interview. Both entertaining and in formative as they say. Much enjoyed.

Howard I can't resist. Very Happy

"It was a music with modality and rhythm in which one used segments of a musical idea repeatedly if desired."

So much for "Once, maybe twice, but never thrice." Yea Beth!

bachus · Posted: Thu Mar 11, 2004 4:48 am Post subject:

As no one else is taking advantage of this resource at this time, digging into it more deeply won't make me feel too selfish.

"Andrew got me writing instrumental music again but the music itself had to be entirely different to suit the NYC lack of interest in everything I had been doing prior to that."

Perhaps I misunderstand this. But it seems to imply adopting an aesthetic to suit a situation. I can see accepting a form or an ensemble, or mood or a text. But an aesthetic? I find that, well, shocking, as I had always assumed that the essential of an aesthetic came from the inner most reaches of one's soul (if an atheist can use that term). Though I readily accept that a soul may be sufficiently complex to contain multiple aesthetics.

beand · Joined: Jan 12, 2004 Posts: 19 Location: Brooklyn, New York

Since the performers in NYC seemed to need notes on staves with every dynamic specified and every tempo change specified, the notation requirements alone had a profound influence on my aesthetic. In California I had provided pitches with instruction for their use and specified electronics. I created an opportunity for performers to collaborate with me and to make each performance unique. In NYC the performers didn't want to collaborate. They wanted to be told what to do in the most efficient way possible.

mosc · Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2005 8:47 pm Post subject:

Great to see you one here, Beth. Good to see you posting even after a year.

zynthetix · Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2005 9:08 pm Post subject:

I have some difficulty comprehending this and why the mentality would be so different. I would be more inclined to notate openly with room for interpretation by the performer. If the composer didn't specify every absolute detail, especially if this was done intentionally, it should be assumed that the performer is allowed to or should take some artistic liscence and add a bit of themselves to the composition's performance. What is to be done if a peice is scored generically for electronic instruments? There is no formally accepted syntax/notation for every detail of an unspecified electronic instrument, so the perfomer's interpretation may be essential. What would happen if these performers were handed some of Mr. Cage's open scores and told to play them? Would they refuse to play?