Commodity and Rehearsal
The New York Times featured pianist Valentina Lisitsa and her use of YouTube to build her career:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/13/arts/music/valentina-lisitsa-jump-starts-her-career-online.html?_r=0
In the article, Ms Lisitsa describes a moment when reading “1,001 Nights” to her son she realized why Scheherazade survived when the Sultan’s other wives did not: ”They all got killed after the first night. This one did not. Why not? She came with a story. You have to invent your story … Something that stops making you a commodity.”
It’s an interesting story for an artist to consider for inspiration: a life-or-death battle (creatively-speaking) to sustain your audience’s interest. Ms Lisitsa focuses on Scheherazade’s uniqueness as setting her apart.
Later in the article, she describes how she and her husband posted video clips of her rehearsing, and how the YouTube channel helped build her fan-base. She comments about the “many brutal comments posted under [her] own videos about her wrong notes and imperfections.”
I like that her videos aren’t “perfect” pieces but rather part of the creative process. Recently I’ve been working in the Community Music Division at DePaul University. Throughout the day, I get to hear musicians practicing. One particularly tenacious vibraphonist has been untangling a 16-bar segment, breaking it apart and reassembling the pieces at varying speeds. It helps me listen to the music with fresh ears.
I don’t think writers get to see that sort of rehearsal process. When we read a book, it’s a finished piece. We don’t get to see all the necessary messiness that comes beforehand.
I wish that all aspiring writers got the chance to track a great piece of literature from its infancy (first draft) to its final form so they could see all the hiccups, bumps, and awkward constructions that pave the way. In other words, Dickens didn’t spout Great Expectations in one voluminous gasp.
If I can figure out how, I’m also tempted to repost this blog with the track-changes on so you can see how this piece meandered before reaching this stage.
