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Listen to a recorded interview with Melodic Vision

http://www.healingimprovisations.net/audio/radio/

1. What is Melodic Vision?

Melodic Vision uses music, photography, history, and storytelling to create an audio and visual experience in which audiences are transported to and immersed in another place, time, or culture for the duration of the show. In the tradition of silent films, Melodic Vision productions combine the excitement of live music performance on stage with the visual experience of watching images and text projected on a large screen above.

Surrounded by sights and sounds, audience members have noted that they feel like they've traveled to another country or era—like Paris in the Sacred Grounds, Sacred Sounds show and Mexico in Noche de Muertos—and have experienced the journey first-hand.

In addition to live performances, Melodic Vision (MV) makes DVDs using specially arranged and recorded music to fit the storyline and mood of the visuals. For example, Boston's new Maritime Museum at Battery Wharf commissioned MV to create a DVD on the history of that North End wharf, using original studio recordings to evoke the mood of various eras of American history.

2. How did the idea for Melodic Vision develop?

When we met in 2001, Susan was about to embark on a photo expedition to chronicle Mexico's Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) holiday. On her return, Susan had to quickly assemble a slideshow for a commissioned performance, and asked Rebecca to make a soundtrack to match the mood of the images. Rebecca combined a number of recordings of traditional Mexican music that flowed beautifully with Susan's photos. Melodic Vision was born—though the two didn’t realize it at the time!

The next project was about the processes of recovery and healing from childhood sexual abuse. Susan's impressionistic photos of Rebecca and her musical instrument were accompanied by a studio recording played entirely by Rebecca. With the invaluable assistance of sound engineer Alan Williams, they "tore the music apart," then brought it back together, reflecting the feeling and images in the storyline.

When that show, Soul Survivor, was finally presented to an audience, the feedback was overwhelmingly positive; many audience members noted its profound effect on them emotionally and artistically. Hearing such testimony encouraged Rebecca and Susan to explore creating more shows. MV also received a grant from the Whiteside Trust, who endorsed Soul Survivor's tale of personal healing and recovery. This funding, combined with great support from our audiences, allowed and convinced us to proceed as "Melodic Vision.”

3. When you are creating a new show, what comes first, the music, or the photos?

This really depends on the subject and our final goal. For example, when we developed The Battery Wharf Story, most of the images were collected or shot first for the museum walls.

The music and specific storyline were added only after we knew the length and scope desired for the DVD, and how we needed to balance and supplement what was on the museum walls.

Noche de Muertos required a back-and-forth process, which involved Susan going to Mexico to take hundreds of photographs, then growing the show over the years by combining these photos with new images taken of stateside celebrations. We then began working with Brian Amador, composer and guitarist for the group Sol Y Canto, while simultaneously developing a storyline to suit the images.

Melodic Vision shows have also always involved significant collaboration. For example, on Soul Survivor, we worked with a composer, a wellness practitioner, an engineer, and many others, while for Noche de Muertos, we collaborated with a Latin band, with whom Rebecca also played.

Sometimes, it's neither the music nor the images that gain initial precedence, but the idea. Sacred Grounds really started with an idea—Susan's longtime interest in historic cemeteries. In fact, all of our shows have examined concepts that are important to us, on at least one of three levels—artistically, intellectually, or emotionally.

4. What is the difference between a slideshow and a video?

When one thinks of video, one thinks of moving images, a film. We use a series of still images to create a sort of video in which images dissolve slowly one to the other. This technique was popularized by Ken Burns in his many PBS series, dissolving stills and panning across images to create dynamism, motion, and emotion. In our shows, the viewer can choose to look at any part of one image for an extended period of time. In a way, a Melodic Vision show also provides an experience similar to wandering through an art gallery, in which you can really take in an image, as opposed to watching television or film, where what you focus on is chosen for you!

5. Do you use the same musicians and musical styles for each show?

No. Each show has very different musical needs. For Noche de Muertos, about Mexico's Day of the Dead, we worked with the pan-Latin band Sol y Canto. Sacred Grounds utilized the music of the many composers and musicians who are buried at Père Lachaise in Paris; since much of that music was classical, we had a string quartet and flute, although we also played arrangements of jazz and pop pieces.

For the installation about the history of Boston and Battery Wharf, we used a lot of early American music, played on clarinet, violin, and even penny whistle. The Battery Wharf Story also utilized the talents of pianist Jacqueline Schwab, whom we consider the absolute best in playing early American music (Ken Burns also employs her piano skills for his multiple well-known PBS series).

For Tiny Tales, we will likely use a classical string quartet, and possibly some vocals by our intern, 20-year-old Maia Rodriguez. Rebecca is consistently involved in the musical performance aspect of most of the productions, because she loves to take any opportunity to play for her own enjoyment and others'!

6. Do you favor live or recorded music for your projects?

We love live music, because you get instant feedback from the audience, and because a live performance allows the audience and performers to share something inimitable and extremely exciting. However, recorded music can be great too, in that our work can reach people who might not otherwise hear about MV.

7. How long does it take to create a show?

A lot longer than one might think! To create a show, we first have to take a huge number of original photographs, and then choose which photographs to use. At times, we have made multiple trips to certain sites (five trips to Paris! Poor us!) to collect more photos.

Then we have to select what genre and specific pieces of music to accompany these photographs, and do lots of research about the chosen subject. Furthermore, we have to book venues, hire musicians, and practice the music - a lot! We also work together to create informative and entertaining narratives to accompany the music and images, and have to make sure that the slides and text are timed correctly with changes in the music. We often work on several projects simultaneously, though one individual project can take anywhere from six months to several years to reach its "finalized" state. Even then, we often go back and make minor adjustments to our "final" version. Our ideal would be to be financed to work full time on one project at a time!

8. How do you know when your production is finished and ready for the public to view?

We may go back many times and edit things such as the order of the photographs, even on a "finished" show that's already been presented. When we reach a point at which both the images and music pack a strong emotional punch on their own, we know we're close to finished. Of course, deadlines also dictate when we finish a project!

9. How much does it cost to develop a show?

Rebecca dismisses the notion that artists always have to be "starving" artists, displaying their talents for free, while Susan states that "two of the most important things in our culture are art and education, and those are undervalued and underpaid." Often, in difficult economic periods, arts are the first thing to go, which Susan deplores, saying, "if anything, the arts should be the last thing to go. Creating and having art is what makes us a civilization... and affecting people emotionally is invaluable."

For one show, we must provide adequate payment for all of the professional musicians involved, as well as anyone else we collaborate with during a show's creation, like sound engineers and video editors.

We also provide our own photography supplies and travel expenses in order to get the beautiful original photographs you'll see at every show (Susan made over five trips to Paris in order to perfect Sacred Grounds, Sacred Sounds).

Furthermore, in order to use certain music arrangements or images, we must pay to comply with copyright laws. If you look at the time involved for one MV show, six months to several years (let alone a lifetime of honing one's artistry), we feel that the minimum payment for the creation of an entirely new show should be at least $25,000. For a performance of an existing Melodic Vision production, price is negotiable but will generally fall in the range of $1,500 to $2,000 minimum.

10. Do you accept commissions?

Absolutely! In fact, we can't wait for our next commission.

11. What has the impact been on your audience? What are they saying about your productions?

We are constantly blown away by how blown away the audience has been! Most performances have received standing ovations, and people are generally excited by what we do, which is extremely encouraging. Consistently, from our very first little Dia de los Muertos slideshow (with a small audience) to our performance of Noche de Muertos last year at the Smithsonian, (an audience of hundreds), we've found that people who know the story or the place love the show just as much as people who have never been or experienced anything like what our shows present. Many people, particularly those with Mexican heritage, have been extremely nostalgic during the Noche de Muertos show.

Many people note that certain images stick with them and affect them for a long period of time. People are also exposed to a lot of music that they don't necessarily know, which they seem to love.

Our productions tend to hit people very hard emotionally... in a positive way! The musicians we employ also have really loved playing in our productions; it's an exciting and very different experience for most live performers.

12. What is the educational component of your shows?

One comment that we frequently receive from audience members is that they have learned so much, often about topics they had no familiarity with before the show. Our productions all tend to have lots of factual information, but these facts are structured into a narrative format. Many of our shows also contain a lot of historical information, encouraging potentially reluctant audiences (who may have thought of history as an extremely dry and boring subject) to find excitement in cultural histories about individual people and their lives.

Our shows have also helped people examine their own lives, whether it's an audience member's relationship with their own body (Soul Survivor), or encouraging someone to reconsider their assumptions about death, having learned about how traditional Mexican culture views death (Noche de Muertos). The Battery Wharf Story should also help people learn a lot about local histories, making familiar sites in Boston new and exciting...and full of history.

13. Susan is a photographer, historian, storyteller, and Artistic Director for Melodic Vision, and Rebecca a professional violist, violinist, manager, and Music Director for MV. What's it like juggling so many different responsibilities and interests?

It's delightful! Although many people question which one of our passions and skills we are most dedicated to, we prefer to utilize and enjoy all of our diverse interests and abilities, both for our own pleasure and others' enjoyment. Though it can be a lot to keep track of, being able to pursue a number of lifelong passions simultaneously under the umbrella of Melodic Vision is extremely rewarding. Plus, in the pursuit of new information for shows, Rebecca and Susan have both learned about subjects they never would have otherwise been familiar with.

Rebecca feels that the only time this "juggling" becomes frustrating is when she has to set aside the more artistic and creative aspects of Melodic Vision in order to deal with other pressing issues. Eventually, it would be great to assemble a team of talented people, each of whom could work on different aspects of Melodic Vision—including bookings, computer work, tech expertise, etc.

14. What new projects are you working on now?

We're very excited to start talking about our Tiny Tales series. For this project, we'll be using the images that Susan has been photographing over several years, and creating a video series based on those images.

This has been a very fun way to go about creating our new project, because Susan was able to go out and take pictures of things that interest and delight her, creating art purely "for art's sake." Tiny Tales will use these photos in short DVDs for children about a number of topics, many of which are characteristically New England- Mute Swans, whale watches, the process of making maple syrup, and a variety of other subjects. We're currently in the process of choosing what music will go with those images.

We're calling this series Tiny Tales because they'll be short snippets, directed towards younger kids. We believe Tiny Tales will be perfect programs for public radio, museums, and nature centers- places where someone's not going to sit down for a full half an hour, but will engage and enjoy learning about a given topic for a shorter period of time. The text will be geared towards young children, although the adults who have previewed Tiny Tales have loved what they've seen, noting the charm of the detailed photographs and music.