Saturday, June 25, 2011

Working Artist's Statement

Born in Chicago, Illinois, my family moved to the Pacific Northwest when I was sixteen. Several years later, I married, raising my three amazing children in Tacoma, Washington. The Universities and Colleges I’ve attended have included: Western Washington University, Fresno Pacific University and Cornish College of the Arts, where I earned a Bachelors Degree in Vocal Jazz. Later I attended Goddard College, where I’ve earned my Master of Fine Arts - Interdisciplinary Arts degree in Performance Art / Vocal Improvisation & Composition.

Dedicated to active dialogue, between traditional and experimental learning, Goddard has allowed for artful discoveries and testing of new approaches. This innovation resulted in new avenues of inquiry and new areas of specialization.

I’m deeply curious about the concept of the continually changing composition. Some of my pieces have a very basic outline or idea, a specific poem, or some sort of rhythmic structure that’s been pre-planned, and that’s it. My voice (as an instrument) creates, from musical intuition, free form languages and sounds pushing pre-set boundaries of musical construction while charging my listeners to follow...challenging them to understand what they hear. In spontaneous composition, how my history and experience yield new choices per tune, subsequent band member contributions to its free form and the audience’s response to what is happening, are all very important and critical decisions to be considered. On the surface, my most recent compositions appear to be disjointed domestic or foreign banter. Conversations suspended in a moment of inarticulate tension. Beneath the surface, pieces embody the impact of lost identity and power, isolation and distorted realities.

Profoundly influenced by Bobby McFerrin, Rhiannon(music), Meredith Monk, Pauline Oliveros and John Cage, my work focuses on human narrative; a study of consciousness super-imbedded in resonate soundscapes; articulated through differing vocalized, acoustic or electronic sound-art mediums. While collaborating with poets and musicians of every genre, I passionately draw from the story-self via an intuitive performance experience, pursuing the invention of a new context medium; spontaneous composition.

By trial and error (if there is such a thing) I will continue to carve out a niche for this work as I expect it may not be a music for the masses; instead, for those who enjoy the “process”, understanding that what is happening will never again happen in this same way. Other artists such as Juana Molina, Tribal Voix and Degenerate Art Ensemble have all contributed to how I feel about and execute my music.

For now, I still include many standard jazz pieces, first establishing credibility as a vocalist. Then, I segue into more interesting free forms of the tunes. Lately, I’ve been constructing ideas and rehearsing for increased audience participation pieces. Other areas I would like to hear my music performed would be in film or documentaries and interpretive installations.

Thrilled with the opportunity to express and expand myself, I’m learning the supportive structures necessary to thoughtfully teach my newly acquiesced genre and the confidence to bring it all to my community. A kinetic and aural learner, I comprehend a subject studied after its translation into an action, activity or artistically expressed idea. Key to “flow” and sanctuary is the discovery of meaningful melodic forms that allow for personal or spiritual connectiveness. As a vocalist and composer, I’m articulating new ideas through new forms such as Voicestra or Song Circle.

As a teacher, I recently developed a music program called, “We Are The Music”[1] for an after school enrichment class at Grant Elementary School in Tacoma, Washington. Wanting to introduce “new music” to first through fifth graders, I taught them music is everywhere and most importantly, that music is within them. The class experiences and experiments with many forms of sound without the need to read music or memorize line and lyric. Story telling (finding your voice), found object music (playing the room), communal chorus play (learning to listen) and trust in performance (building confidence through play) are a part of what we work on collaboratively. They each have a unique take on what they assume is expected and I love how their personalities come across as they learn to relax and have fun with sound.

As a photographer, I am making new discoveries of my subject, through clarity or decomposition, color, light intensity and proximity; there is a transcendence of appearances that contribute to insight and interest, surpassing, in the words of Duane Michals, “mere description”

1. Milk Drop Petal


This freedom of an improvisational life, has informed every aspect of my personal and collective existence; unlocking a truer and more accessible me. This is where I am now finding meaning in my Art.


[1] Watch “We Are The Music” video at: http://web.me.com/debbywatt/Site/Welcome_%26_Introduction.html (Safari web browser works best).

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