How music brings people together (YTSO)
There are posts that should be on this blog, but that are just circling around in my head. They have been for quite some time. Is that healthy, I wonder? As promised, I am going to put a few more things online over the next week or two, including some personal items such as this post.
I don’t think that there are many people that would argue that music touches the human soul. I find that getting to know real musicians, who live for their instrument and for music in general, are not unlike priests. Often these people have given their lives, dedicated themselves to being able to play their instruments, to produce something that is untouchable but that has an impact in people’s lives. Before they made the choice to do this, they knew that they would not make a lot of money (most of the time), that their job would require a lot from them and that they would do this for the rest of their lives…
As a ‘new media enthusiast’ and ‘communication expert’, I continue to be amazed by the power of the Internet. A place like Youtube, for instance, attracts such a varied crowd. It has its ups and downs, but did you know that Youtube had its own orchestra, the YouTube Symphony Orchestra (YTSO)? Incredible! These are professional artists who auditioned online by sending in videos in which they played the music for their instrument. And those that were selected really got together in London’s Carnegie Hall last month to perform! I would have given a lot to be able to be there, but alas… I had to watch it over the Internet :/
In this post I would like to introduce you to my favorite piece, composed especially for the YTSO by Tan Dun. Tan Dun is a Chinese composer who has written music for some of my favorite movies, such as Hero and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In the video below he is directing his own symphony Eroica with the YTSO. Why don’t you listen to it as you read along? It’s the rehearsel for the performance (you can also check out the actual peformance, but I find this more personal and interesting!)
Tan Dun conceived the music for this Internet Symphony during the Olympics in China. He was passing by a garage where he heard the break drums making a beautiful sound. It’s C – A, C-E, which you hear clearly at the start of the symphony. You even see the car parts that they’re playing on. I find it really refreshing: just a sound on the street as the basis for the symphony. It represents the ‘spirit of today’. The melody part which really takes you out above the music are based on the same chords and the theme goes back on Beethoven.
In an interview he says about the project: “Think about it this way: anything could be the way, your language to talk to the people.” And this way the Internet forms a wonderful platform in which we can all participate. The technique is not important, everyone can just share their language of the heart, and if anything, Eroica, I find, is exactly that.
Not only does the YTSO show the diversity of classical music, but above all the passion that people from all around the world have for music and how – when brought together – symbolize more than an individual playing an instrument. This is true, in a sense, for all orchestra’s or even avant garde ensembles, but the great variety of cultures and people and the way they relate to the world and communicate with it, makes this a truly unique experience.
I would like to add – with some pride – that three out of the 96 participants selected for the orchestra are from Holland. Among them is Regina Ederveen, the harpist! It stresses Holland’s unique position in the harp world today, because here in this little country the level of technique in playing the harp has increased dramatically. Regina is a very enthusiastic and able harpist, who does a great job here! There are some interviews with her on Youtube, if you speak Dutch well enough 
One Response to “How music brings people together (YTSO)”
Share Your Thoughts
Leave a comment to contribute to the discussion
To let us see what you look like, get a gravatar.
Great blog post. Thanks for writing it! The YTSO was truly an authentic representation of E Pluibus Unum…OUt of the many: ONE!