Contemporary Classical Music

Coming from a classical music cradle, I can’t deny my roots – being soon of the best brazilian classical singer of 1987 (even tho voice is not my best genetic skill). My childhood was filled with concertos, symphonies, operas and cantatas. Of course during the teenage hood, got lost on track, as everybody does, even tho i kept eye on it. In these past few years, I’ve seen a little transformation on the classical music scene. It’s getting more technologic, more avant-garde (as it once was), more hype. Not only counting the huge approach the soundtracks on movies have on the mob, but also with young musicians, maestros and composers that are renewing the approach on the most ‘elite-zed’ genre of music. Taking back the concept that what counts in music is the emotion.

Let’s take for example this version of Siegfried, that took place in Valencia, Spain, using 5 hours of video, with 14 projectors playing simultaneously during the Opera. I think it’s the perfect example of how classical music should behave in this new century. The music itself is sublime, but the productions at some time, lost the will to get in another level. Thanks to this experiments, it’s becoming again, a full experience in the contemporary scene.

In 2006, Muti Randolph was invited to create the scenography for I Capuleti e I Montechi, exploring the greatness of the theater in Rio de Janeiro. Using LEDs and lights – exactly like any a great concert was supposed to be, classy and subtle at the same time.

Also in the meantime, I’ve discovered a few new composers, like Nico Muhly, which is only 29 y.o. and already have some interesting releases under his name, such as I Drink the Air Before Me and Mothertongue, which is more inclined to minimalism and experimentalism, both characteristics of a new aeon. Following the same line, we have Hauschka (aka Volker Bertelmann), a german composer based in Düsseldorf, that drinks from the same bottle John Cage drank. Experimenting with prepared pianos and great compositions.

At the same time, we experimented from all these years, excellent works for movies, coming from minds like Clint Mansell, the eternal Hans Zimmer, which brought an excellent release this years with Inception, and also with Harry Gregson-Williams. Those being even requested to compose music for games – which now have the same budget as movies. We got even the french duo Daft Punk making a crossover with classical music in their TRON soundtrack.

At the same time mainstream music is rotten and doomed to be filled with garbage, we still have people with neurons maintaining the good music alive, and showing that’s not only for the elite.