Background: Westwater Photochoreography

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Westwater
Background & Rationale

James Westwater answers questions about photochoreography...

What is photochoreography and how does it work?
"Photochoreography is an innovative art form that is simultaneously expanding the boundaries of creative expression and helping today's orchestras bring the joy of classical music to larger, more diverse audiences. Photochoreography literally means 'dance of light,' 'the art of dancing light' or 'the composing of dances of light.' In my context, 'the dance of light' consists of the performance of my multi-image projected photography choreographed to the live performance of classical music. Over the course of a typical concert, hundreds of breathtaking images, precisely choreographed to the music, flow across an immense panoramic screen, suspended above the orchestra: images emerging, blending, overlaying, fading; creating compositions, relationships, impressions, meanings and more.

The MAIN COMPONENTS in a photochoreographic concert are (1) the live performance of one or more specifically selected classical scores and (2) the live visual performance of projected photographic images, some of which combine when projected to form multiple-image panoramas. The projection equipment typically includes six slide projectors, two dissolve control units, one programming unit and three 10.5' x 14' screens joined to form an immense, three-panel, 441 sq. ft. panoramic screen. I usually front project.

The PERFORMANCE TECHNIQUE is as follows: under the direction of the orchestra's conductor, the orchestra performs the selected musical score(s) in the dark with stand light illumination. During the musical performance, I project my photography, precisely choreographed to the music, onto the giant screens that are suspended above and in front of the orchestra. I have entered into the programming unit's memory exactly what I have designed to happen visually, but not when. I personally direct the performance of my photography to each specific live performance of the music. The conductor and musicians devote full energies to the musical performance. I concentrate on the precise integration of music and photography. The projection is performed to the music, not the reverse. However, as in most choreography, there are desired tempi." Click here to see an image of an orchestra performing photochoreography.

What is the purpose of photochoreography?
"Generally speaking, like other art forms, the purpose of photochoreography is to convey the ideas, attitudes, emotions or impressions of the artist by means of the properties of the media involved. I believe the ultimate purpose of art is to serve Life. I believe that art, like any aspect of human endeavor, is only truly valuable to the degree to which it serves Life. Specifically, the purpose of photochoreography is to communicate the above through the integrated performance of two art forms, music and photography. Music, of its nature, tends to be abstract. Photography, of its nature, tends to be representational, specific and rooted in the world we can see. By combining the two art forms in a synergistic 'dance of light,' it is possible to draw upon the properties and strengths of both media to communicate unique artistic expressions and impressions that neither art form can do by itself."

What are the benefits and what is the significance of photochoreography?
"For art? Photochoreography adds to the pallet of creative possibilities by allowing for the expression of what would otherwise be impossible to convey with either music or photography alone.

For audiences and for Life? Photochoreography adds engaging, enriching and relevant dimensions to the classical concert experience and allows for unique and effective ways to touch people's minds and hearts and to lift their spirits in ways that can be helpful to Life.

For orchestras? Photochoreography has many useful qualities which can be helpful to orchestras, especially today. Photochoreography is attractive and engaging to a much wider audience than normally attends symphony concerts because (1) it's visual as well as musical; it engages both senses, (2) it's about subjects that are broadly appealing and are perceived as

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relevant by today's audiences, (3) it's understandable without being intimidating to audiences who may lack musical knowledge, (4) it's beautiful and enjoyable (audiences love it), (5) it's set to great works of classical music, and (6) it's both innovative and unique. Photochoreography adds new dimensions, new audiences, new relevance, partnering opportunities and community support to orchestras. Photochoreography can be customized to an orchestra's community. New pieces of photochoreography can be commissioned to portray or celebrate special aspects of a country, region, state, province or city.

Our new Kids, Cameras & Classics™ and Community, Cameras & Classics™ programs afford excellent opportunities for orchestras to engage, partner, collaborate with and involve their communities in community-enriching ways that help build community support for the orchestra. Photochoreography can help orchestras "build bridges" to segments of the community that have traditionally not been involved with the orchestra.

Furthermore, photochoreography (1) is not reproducible at home--it can only be experienced in the concert hall, (2) is self-contained; typically all the projection equipment is provided, (3) is readily salable, (4) is straight forward to produce, and (5) photochoreography is significantly less costly to produce than most other projection formats, such as video, live television or larger-format motion picture projection. In short, photochoreography is an innovative art form that is both audience and orchestra friendly."

How unique is symphonic photochoreography?
"I have been performing my photochoreography with symphony and chamber orchestras for over a quarter century. From time to time, other individuals have combined the projection of visual images with the performance of music, but I know of no one else anywhere who creates and performs photochoreography live with symphony and chamber orchestras as a profession."

What is the subject matter of your photochoreography?
"My photochoreography is concerned with life. My subject matter includes people, the environment, nature, beauty, regions, special places, lifeways, heritage, different cultures and significant approaches to life."

How do audiences and critics respond to your work?
"Audiences respond very favorably to my photochoreography. I have personally received countless favorable comments including the following: 'Your performance enabled me to hear things in the music I had never heard before' and 'I used to not care for [the composer], but your performance helped me gain a new appreciation for his music.'

The REVIEWS speak for themselves. Some music critics and people in the classical music scene believe that the presence of visual elements in conjunction with the performance of music limits the audience's imagination in perceiving music. I agree. And to a degree, the same can be said of ballet, modern dance, opera, film and other multi-dimensional art forms that incorporate music. On the other hand, it can also be said of photochoreography that the presence of a musical element limits the audience's imagination in perceiving the photography.

So why combine art forms? My purpose in combining art forms is to create artistic expressions about subjects of interest in ways that are aesthetic, unique and uplifting to the Spirit. In my view, although the combined performance of visual and musical art forms gives a more particularized focus to the perception of each separate art form, the integration of art forms (which should be of central importance in a combined-arts performance) allows for the creation of distinct expressions which cannot be achieved by using a single art form alone. Integrating art forms permits the communication of particular ideas, attitudes, impressions and emotions that would not be possible otherwise. In the marriage of music and photography, each participant relinquishes some of its independence in order to share in the creation of unique expressions which go beyond the limitations of either individual medium.

By combining the poetry of Schiller with his own music, Beethoven reached beyond the limits of each art form to create what many feel is the greatest piece of music ever written: Symphony No. 9, the 'Choral Symphony.' Does the unconventional inclusion of words in a symphony limit one's imagination to interpret the music? Yes, it does--but it also expands the creative possibilities for artistic expression. How else could Beethoven have composed a work of the magnitude, depth and power of the Ninth Symphony and still speak so effectively to the notion of the universal brotherhood of mankind?

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Westwater

has performed with the principal orchestras of Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Washington DC, Minneapolis, Dallas, Saint Louis, Baltimore, Milwaukee, Detroit, Cincinnati, Saint Paul, Indianapolis, Houston, Portland, Denver, Columbus, Rochester, Buffalo, Salt Lake City, Vancouver BC and over 100 more >

Photo by Erin Bardonner

For repertoire, booking
and more information contact:

Westwater Arts
877-ARTS-WEST
(toll free 877-278-7937)
WestwaterArts.com

Music alone has its limits, too. Beethoven needed words to give his symphony the particular focus he wanted.

Music certainly exists in its own right and can be experienced fully without any other components. But to hold that only traditional visual components--the view of the conductor, the soloist, the musicians and the hall itself--are legitimate in the concert hall is to limit art, creativity and the orchestral concert's potential appeal to a much broader and deserving audience. On the other hand, if the concert hall experience is to be open to experimentation and the inclusion of non-conventional, innovative elements, then it must be accomplished with care and taste to ensure that what is done is appropriate, artful and honors the music.

Is it legitimate for artists to combine art forms? Beethoven has given us his answer. The world's cultural heritage would be far less meaningful and rich if artists limited their experimentation and concerns to a single art form in order to satisfy the purists. As cellist Yo-yo Ma has said, speaking about his television series combining his performance of Bach with numerous visual art forms, 'the greater the piece of music, the more you can mine its treasures.' Photochoreography, in part, is helping to mine the treasures of great music."

How did photochoreography originate?
"Artists have continually sought to express themselves using more than one art form. The prehistoric cave paintings of Lascaux, painted classical Greek sculpture, illuminated manuscripts, Gothic architecture, opera, ballet, modern dance, musical theater and motion pictures, all go beyond the limits of a single art form.

In the 1970's, I experienced multimedia presentations that impressed me with their potential for effective communication, but they were being used primarily to sell products or merely entertain people. At about the same time, while I was in college, I was learning more about the beauty and depth of classical music. Being drawn to and moved by both multimedia and classical music, it seemed natural to explore what could be done through the creative union of both means of expression. I felt that by combining the visual strength of multimedia (with its large-screen multi-image projection) and the expressive power of symphonic music, a new realm of aesthetic experience could be developed and explored. It seemed to me that integrating the live performance of both art forms would be a natural avenue for unique artistic expression that could entertain, educate and inspire audiences in the concert hall.

My first piece of symphonic photochoreography was performed to Ralph Vaughan Williams' Symphony No. 7, 'The Antarctic.' I created the piece with photography borrowed from the National Geographic Society, the National Science Foundation and The Ohio State University's Office of Polar Programs. I performed the new piece early in 1973 with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra in my home town, Columbus, Ohio. The reception was very enthusiastic! My second piece was premiered with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in Washington in the Spring of 1975. It was also warmly received. A new career was born."