Two composers get superwoke genius grants
UncategorizedAmong the recipients of this year’s $800,000 MacArthur ‘genius’ grants are two American composers.
Courtney Bryan is ‘a composer and pianist whose work draws on contemporary voices and crosses genres’.
Composer and artist Raven Chacon (pictured) ‘blends performance and visual art to interrogate European colonialism of the Americas’.
Does either of them write music for a living?
As a private foundation, the MacArthur Foundation is at perfect liberty to award grants to whomever it chooses. (And, of course, the public is at perfect liberty to comment on those choices.)
The public is also at liberty to judge the commentary.
Yes, obviously both of them do, you brainless, potstirring hack of a journalist. A simple google search shows that Chacon has more than 11 albums to his name and a Pulitzer Prize. Bryan is published by Boosey and a works list is easily accessible. But of course you don’t care about facts.
but why the insults?
Woke Derangement Syndrome.
Because the entire post is an insult and deserves to be responded to as such.
I find “wokery” to be reprehensible, but I would hate to think the awarding of grants to people from minorities is automatically derided as “woke.” it implies that anything done by any member of a non-white community is automatically suspect, and I do not think that is yet the case.
Courtney Bryan’s work strikes me as interesting. The rhetoric is annoying wherever it is analysed, but anyone who has read a lifetime’s worth of programme notes realises that these things develop a vocabulary of their own. In the matter of new musical strikes, it might be preferable if more attention were paid to trying to avoid the new stereotypes.
As for Mr. Chacon: I daresay there is an audience for this sort of thing. Having tried to listen to that Voiceless Mass, let alone some of his other bangings and scrapings, all I can say is that I will not be a part of it. But that does not delegitimise his efforts, which some others may have found more merit in that I do, and I do not think that his interest in the history of his own people automatically deems him a member of the “woke” brigade.
Wokery represents an assault on culture — the one most of the contributors her share, I imagine. People from other communities using their art to speak to their own culture and its interface with what is the majority strikes me as a perfectly legitimate approach, and will — if it has not already — throw up some very interesting work. If this granting authority considers these two individuals to be among those who can contribute to the greater enrichment of society at large through their work, let’s see if their faith pays off.
It is a predictable way to get clicks and “engagement.”
Well said, Bill.
Courtney Bryan is published by Boosey & Hawkes:
https://www.boosey.com/composer/courtney+bryan — so yes, she does ‘write music for a living.’
As for Raven Chacon, he is not completely unknown; per Wikipedia, “In 2022, Chacon became the first Native American to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music, which he received for his composition ‘Voiceless Mass’.”
I like that expression “superwoke”. And beyond that “megawoke”, “gigawoke” and “ultrawoke”
Wrong: after megawoke and gigawoke, the next two are terawoke and petawoke.
I’ll get my coat.
“Does either of them write music for a living?”
Oh, your sarcasm is so good sometimes.
It’s a nice little earner, this victim thing, isn’t it!!!
I honestly can’t believe people come on here to basically argue that any people of color writing music are only getting ahead by “this victim thing.” Disgusting. And really, the only person playing victim is you.
Well said
Someone is playing the victim here for sure, Sue, but it’s not either of these composers.
Ok, but what about the music?
This is the first time I’ve been tempted to use emojis as a response.
I guess Chacon’s Pulitzer was super woke, too.
(I mean, gosh, if they gave a Pulitzer to a RAPPER . . . .)
When Sviatoslav Richter was asked why he quit his youthful sideline as a composer, with which he earned renown, he said, “What the world doesn’t need is more bad music”.
Yes, very much so.
Bryan is an assistant professor in the Newcomb College department of music at Tulane University. Additionally, she serves as composer-in-residence for the Jacksonville Symphony.
Chacon serves as Composer-in-Residence with the Native American Composers Apprenticeship Project.
In 2022, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Music,
If you don’t know their music, you really shouldn’t be snarking on it, should you?
“Does either of them write music for a living?” This is a low even for you – obviously the question answers itself. I guess any composer who is not a white man and does interesting work across disciplines and genres must be getting an award because of “wokeness.” I assume you haven’t bothered to check out their work. And so what even if they didn’t write music for a living? The MacArthur isn’t a music award, it’s a general award and it’s not like they have a quota for the number of awards they must give to musicians each year, though it’s typically at least one because they fund a broad range of disciplines.
Raven Chacon is a native American composer. He’s Navajo, from a people with a rich artistic heritage. Apparently, the definition of “woke” is anyone who doesn’t fit the racist white supremacist mode.
You are so right, so right. In fact, I think it is high time for Grammy to introduce new categories for “best woke composer”, “best woke composition” and “best female conductor”.
“Does either of them write music for a living?”
Raven Chacon is a Pulitzer Prize winning composer with news, events, a bio, youtube videos of pieces, etc. easily accesible.
So, yes.
Yes, both of them write music for a living. Take a look at their Wikipedia pages. Why sneer at people whom you know nothing about?
They don’t have to work with these awards.
Sort of like the Pulitzer Prize in music, often something that cannot be listened to.
Hahaha, cackling anticipatorily at the way heads are going to explode at your comments, Norman!
Ha, I love how so many readers take the bait. Even though I don’t really agree with the sentiment of this post, it’s fun to watch.
Not that anyone cares, but I am SO fucking out of here.
@Barry tear emoji. Don’t forget to slam the door loudly when you leave.
Me too Barry. Feeling nothing but disgust at this poxy little blog.
“ I love how so many readers take the bait.”
Good point, Carl! Sadly, I was one of them – I shot from the hip, I guess.
The acronym DNFTT used to be popular on message boards – Do Not Feed The Trolls. It seems to me that NL is the Principal Troll here…
Winding up the Yanks is like shooting fish in a barrel. You wonder why they always fall for it. Then you remember that they’re a nation founded by Puritans.
A cursory search shows that Bryan is composer-in-residence at the Jacksonville Symphony and Chacon has been commissioned by Kronos Quartet, so if the question was earnest, a simple search would have answered it… Or maybe it was rhetorical and the purpose was less kosher.
Hi Kyle, I did a quick Google search and could find zero recordings of his award winning mass. This should tell everyone something.
Anecdotal logical fallacy.
“ Does either of them write music for a living?”
Yes, as you would know if, like me, you googled them. They both have distinguished CVs. What was the point of your question?
Why should either of them write music for a living? That’s not a condition of the awards. I don’t applaud or decry the choices, as I’ve never heard of the recipients. I admit that I sigh when I see the word ‘interrogate’… again. It’s terribly on trend, and often says more about the user than it does about their work. But the same can be said of ‘woke’. Using it puts you in bed with some complete prats, and makes you look at least a bit of a prat.
At least one of them has a captive audience https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He6pWcVceqw
If anyone writes any music that “interrogates colonialism”, he must be a genius.
It’s probably easy enough to find examples of their work on the internet so that you could know whether or not they write what you consider to be music.
“superwoke”??!!?
good grief
Why should they, if they can be so much better off than those who do compose for a living.
What is it with your toxic commentary? Invoking the derogatory term “woke” sounds very far right, at least that is true in America. Generally, true allies of musicians are not on the far right.
Anything I disagree with or what hurts my feelings is the far right.
My feelings are not hurt. I don’t know these composers. I just don’t see any factual basis for Lebrecht’s commentary.
RE: the statement that these guys don’t make a living off of composing: How many people actually do (not supplemented by being a faculty member at an institution or otherwise)? Especially the way the world has been trending. I think it’s especially difficult for composers to navigate matters of copyright law and still be able to get exposure. Many musicians would rather perform something in the public domain and bypass having to deal with copyright. I love new music, but have those concerns as well as a performer. In other words – am I breaking copyright law by performing a piece still under copyright? It’s especially problematic for music that is extremely demanding. Not everyone has the resources to navigate that – both the composers and the performers. It also varies by jurisdiction. That’s all against a backdrop of a dwindling audience. It’s all very sad.
There are some on the left who believe that all of classical music is irredeemably tainted by white supremacy.
Can such leftists be considered “true allies of musicians”?
To answer Norman’s question about Raven Chacon:
https://slippedisc.com/2022/05/pulitzer-prize-for-navajo-indian-composer/
This is insanity even for this site. If you don’t know who Courtney Bryan is, you’re not a serious classical music journalist. Her Requiem was premiered in Chicago a few weeks ago. Is that legit enough for you? Chacon’s work–both scores and video performances– was in the Whitney Biennial last year. His gorgeous “Voiceless Mass” has been performed all over the country.
Make up your minds: is this tradition you love actually “universal” and alive? Or is the only way you think non-white, non-male, and non-dead musicians can participate through some imaginary little back channel you’ve decided to call “wokeness?”
this is an absurd, cynical, bad faith article. Chacon is a highly committed artist of renown, long recognized by many of the world’s peak cultural agencies: the Pulitzer team, documenta, Whitney Biennial, etc etc etc. but that isn’t relevant here. being known or unknown does not determine one’s ‘genius.’ the inference that this prize was somehow given for woke points only reveals ignorance about his practice and a deliberate, bizarre contempt
Mr. Chacon doubtlessly won the Pulitzer prize in music.
But can you name his composition? Did you buy a recording of it?
Kind of proves my point; it is a meaningless prize usually awarded to academics and the like. He makes a good living off of such prizes and awards. He also does artwork and this is a typical example: (see Wikipedia article on him for Still Life #3, it is dreadful too). I could not paste it here.
My point is one can win countless such prizes and still have zero talent. And I am not against Native Americans, just those who use their status to advance themselves.
Few people know of this guy now; no one will care in the future.
I live in Colorad and couldn’t go to Milwaukee for it but paid for and watched the video of Chacon’s “Voiceless Mass” in Milwaukee as soon as it was uploaded. Anyone could have done that, including you.
I was working for a presenter at the time and we met with him and were trying to program his music here, a few months later he won the Pulitzer.
He’s been commissioned by Kronos Quartet, the Bergen Festival, The Industry in LA (by artistic director and MacArthur Fellow Yuval Sharon, who has directed at Bayreuth. Staatsoper Berlin and the Lyric, Santa Fe and Detroit Operas and is the winner of the 2014 Götz Friedrich Prize and this year’s Musical America director of the year) and many more.
He met John Cage when he was a child, and like John Cage nobody is measuring his importance according to how many orchestras performed his work in concert halls.
I’ve known of this guy for a while now and I think he’s one of the most important composers of our time. Make an effort.
Woke is not the insult you think it is. Woke, Black, and proud
How does a composer become represented by Boosey if they don’t compose music? Obviously (and characteristically), you haven’t done the work to make the sophomoric and racist claims you attempt to make.
I rarely respond to your simplistic, racist, and uninformed rants. But the sooner you are deplatformed from publishing such baseless dribble, the better for the rest of us in the music world.
And shame on slipped disc for publishing this absolute garbage.
That Raven award is quite pathetic. A purveyor of sonic art. I mean, it’s fine, do your thing bro. But no concert halls take his work seriously, where is he being performed of any note? Pathetic
Racist P.O.S.!
Artists in every art form have always depicted whatever narratives are to be found in their world, and the narratives do not tend to be data driven. Religion and nationalism come to mind.
Here for the news, gone for the opinion.
That said, I think an alternative opinion is called for, one more in line with the reason the 2022 Pulitzer jurors decided to give Raven Chacon an award.
He is a phenomenal composer who works internationally on an unrivalled range of musical projects.
Been following Slipped Disc for decades, always value the news and have also valued the strong opinions in the past, but this is senseless.
An outrage. Until I get one.