The Challenge of Selecting Global Choral Music
Republished from Wisconsin School Musician, January 2013, with permission from the Wisconsin School Music Association
I love attending music conventions/conferences for a variety of reasons, and one of those is the chance to learn new and exciting repertoire. In my book, I feel that I can put a check mark in that box if I find at least one quality choral work that calls my attention and, therefore, that I would like to include in future teaching and/or programming. It is a great feeling, one that inspires me to study the work and share my newfound treasure with the world.
Luckily, I have found many works that way. Like most of us in that situation, I also look at countless other newly published pieces that, for one reason or another, don’t find a place in my choice of literature. Occasionally, however, I have found a few works that also call my attention, but rather in quite a different way:
Our global 21st-century music world finds us in an indisputable multicultural scene, one in which we express a deep interest in getting to know, study and perform works from other cultures, near and far. But as wonderful as this wish is, the task at hand is challenging, and it requires true openness of mind and heart. A warning: it is easy to fall into the trap of conforming to what we think that music from other cultures should be. In this line of thought, then, it would be acceptable to make decisions about style, instrumentation, harmonization, interpretation, language, etc. based on our experience, our knowledge, and our opinion as people who live in the United States in the 21st century and who carry a particular cultural baggage. In doing this, I would argue, we put outselves in a position of superiority, a place from which we give ourselves the right to make decisions that were never in our area of domain in the first place.
As an example, a new work displaying a fun melody in 3/4 + 6/8 meters, including several percussion instruments, lots of hand-clapping, and a very doubtful text in a foreign language (even with some made-up words) does not necessarily create a good or bad choral work of any culture but, most likely, an exercise of rather pitiful and surely questionable music publishing marketing strategy. Basic principles of authenticity are being violated in this situation and, as music educators, we should all feel equipped to distinguish what could be perhaps an innocent interest in offering a cultural filter, or, much worse, an unscrupulous intention to make a name in the music publishing business, from something genuine: a work of art which truly represents a specific culture.
But what defines “authentic” or “genuine” in global choral music? The answer is very difficult, but a good start would be to understand that cultures define themselves, without the interference of outsiders. The idea is to develop interest, love, respect, curiosity and understanding for choral music of other parts of the world, exposing the essence of what they are, where they come from and how they are received by their own people.
We live in very fast times of instant gratification; hence, it is easier to bring global music to our comfort zone when selecting repertoire, rather than stepping out and making an effort to put together the pieces of the puzzle. Works form other cultures may or may not respond to the matrix in which we fit our art. In any case, that does not give composers the right to create a piece that tailors to a stereotype instead of a true culture, nor does it give choral directors, as well-intentioned as we may be, the right to present these works as good examples of a supposed cultural community.
Finding quality works from other cultures is indeed a fascinating journey of discovery that must be taken with profound respect. It takes time, and while the job will prove to be very challenging, it will indeed be immensely gratifying.
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