Rethinking the traditional concert format through the lens of Russian mystic composer Nikolai Obukhov

Carlota Carvalho

Born in 1892, composer Nikolai Obukhov belongs to the Russian avant-garde generation and was one of the pioneers in experimenting with twelve-tone systems, notation, and electronic instruments. He stands out from his contemporaries having inherited not only some aspects of Alexander Scriabin’s musical style, but, most prominently, the Russian symbolist belief in transcendence and collective spiritual uplifting through the performative act as well. The metaphysical substance and religious symbolism of Obukhov’s body of work reveals itself as a very rich and exciting source of inspiration for performers today. In this exposition I analyze the most relevant features of Nikolai Obukhov’s aesthetic, from his conception of the total work of art, to his harmonic language and annotations on the score, contextualizing them in the broader cultural and philosophical panorama of Russian Symbolism. I focus on understanding the social function of musical performance, and by conceptualizing certain basic principles, I shape my own performative approach to Nikolai Obukhov’s solo piano works. In the creative process of building a more holistic performance practice inspired by Russian Symbolism, the role of the modern performer expands from one of mere executor to the curator of an experience both for themself and for their audience. With this research I intend to encourage the musical community to reflect on our current relation with performance, to experiment with different concert formats, and to realize that we too, like the artistic community of Russians mystics, can project our own hopes about the future of civilization in our performance practices.

Concert format: Sound and Performance Installation

Spatial Setting: Black box, there is no stage, the piano is in the center of the room.

The pianist, in black clothes, melding into the background, starts to play before the audience comes in.

Description of the Final Artistic Product

A list of Obukhov’s piano works can be provided for those interested, outside of this self-contained space.

Six Prières

Six tableaux psychologiques

Icône

Éternel

Création de l'or

La Source vive (C'est la Paix)

Reflet Sinistre

Hostie

Dix tableaux psychologiques

Invocations I

Invocations II

La Parabole du Seigneur

Révélation

Les Astres parlent

Conversion

Wihtin the time span in which this performance occurs, audience members can walk around freely through the space, and sit where they want.

Once the public enters the room, there are no distractions from the auditive experience.

Amplification surrounds the room: the sonoric source is not only the instrument they see, but music comes from above and all around.

The lights slowly diminish throughout the

performance, until only the keys of the piano are illuminated and the pianist fades into the darkness.

Eventually the pianist leaves his role of performer and joins the audience.

The music continues to play through the speakers.

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