Stefan Berg
Further images
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 1
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 2
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 3
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 4
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 5
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 6
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 7
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 8
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 9
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 10
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 11
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 12
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 13
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 14
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 15
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 16
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 17
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 18
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 19
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 20
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 21
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 22
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 23
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 24
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 25
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 26
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 27
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 28
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 29
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 30
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 31
)
Listen to Glenn Gould’s first recording of J.S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations in 1955, and compare it to his last recording, of the same score, in 1981. This contrast exemplifies the infinite variations within what Gould referred to as “the architecture of music.”
This project explores the resonances between Gould’s art practice and my own. Music is linear, temporal, and interpretive. It expresses ideas and emotions through rhythm, melody, harmony, tonality. The “architecture of music” refers to the makeup of music: the composition, the equation, the many parts which come together to form a whole experience. Gould was constantly rethinking the makeup of music, re-imagining the scores of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Schoenberg.
With great conviction Gould quit performing his music on stage at the age of 31 to focus on the new technology of recording. This allowed Gould to further emphasize the interpretive aspects of his craft. Consider the acts of recording in a controlled environment, compared to performing on stage before a live audience, or creating a new interpretation of a preexisting score in solitude. I encourage you to read this portfolio as Gould would a score, inserting your own tempo and interpretation.
-Stefan Berg
With support from The Canada Council for the Arts, The Ontario Arts Council, The Toronto Arts Council, The Chalmers Family Fund, and The Access Copyright Foundation.