Home: Westwater Photochoreography

The Photochoreography of
James Westwater

Connecting Today's Orchestras
with Today's Audiences™

An Original Art Form
Photochoreography literally means "dance of light." It's the dynamic fusion of two art forms: the live orchestral performance of great works of classical music blended with the live performance of giant-screen multi-image photographic essays that honor the music and move today's audiences. It's great music with a new vision.

Westwater photochoreography is programmed for classics, light classics, pops, family, educational, outdoor and chamber music concerts.more >

• New Photochoreography to
Honor Boulder's Unsung Heroes:
Its Non-Profit Organizations and Volunteers

The Boulder Philharmonic will perform a concert featuring a new Westwater photochoreography commissioned to honor Boulder's non-profit organizations. It's part of Westwater's Community Cameras and Classics™ program to help orchestras connect with their communities.more >

• Westwater Photochoreography
Celebrates Singapore

Westwater photochoreography was recently selected by the Singapore Chinese Orchestra to celebrate the nation's culture and heritage.more >
Photos © SPH

• Westwater Photochoreography
Featured in SYMPHONY Magazine

SYMPHONY magazine highlights how orchestras utilize multimedia, such as Westwater's photochoreography, to attract today's audiences.more >

The Minnesota Orchestra performs Westwater's piece, A Love for the Land, set to Appalachian Spring. The triptych of photos at the top of this page is from Westwater's piece, Yellowstone.

• Washington Post– "the images magnified the music" at Westwater's sold out concert with the National Symphony
• LA Times– "the photography was spectacular"
• Cleveland Plain Dealer– "splendid... breathtakingly beautiful"
• The Charlotte Observer– "The merging of sound and image was exquisite."
• School Teacher, Portland, ME– "Wow! The power of music and photography! We left the concert hall as changed people, enriched! ... It was a life changing experience"more >

Connecting Orchestras & Audiences
For over 30 years, James Westwater has been sharing his artistic vision and helping orchestras bring the joy, beauty and wonder of classical music to today's more visually oriented audiences while expanding horizons for traditional concertgoers. Programming Westwater photochoreography can bring these benefits to your orchestra:

• Present-day relevance
• New, younger audiences
• Hands-on community involvement
• New artistic dimensions
• New partnering and sponsorship
opportunities

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How Photochoreography Works
Over the course of a typical performance, James Westwater personally projects hundreds of his images onto an immense 3-panel panoramic screen suspended above the orchestra. Seamless image transitions are precisely choreographed to your orchestra's musical performance under the direction of your conductor.

The performance fee normally includes all projection equipment as well as Westwater's supervision of the setup and takedown. Westwater photochoreography works in all kinds of venues, from auditoriums and theaters to concert halls and outdoors.

For much more background information, to see what the equipment setup looks like, and for answers to questions about photochoreography, clickmore >

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, Singapore and over 150more >

For repertoire, booking and
more information:

Westwater Arts
877-ARTS-WEST (278-7937)
WestwaterArts.com
info@WestwaterArts.com

©1997-2010 WestwaterArts.com
All Rights Reserved

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

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Dr. James Westwater is the pioneer of photochoreography. During his 30 year career, Westwater has performed with over 150 orchestras across North America and abroad. His creative work has taken him from the cliff dwellings of the Anasazi and the vanishing rainforests of Central America, to the expansive solitude of Antarctica and the warm simplicity of Amish country.

A two-time National Endowment for the Arts resident artist, Westwater has created photochoreography in collaboration with the National Geographic Society, the Byrd Polar Research Center and the National Science Foundation. In addition to his orchestral appearances, Westwater has performed before the National Academy of Science and the World Congress of Local Governments.
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