Johnson, Failing
The American composer Tom Johnson (b. 1939) describes himself as a minimalist. The term was first applied to the music of Steve Reich, Philip Glass and others in the 1960s denoting music that used limited resources or materials and that tended to be static in the sense that it did not progress to some goal. Steve Reich’s Drumming is one example.
Johnson uses minimalism as a way to avoid self-expression, explaining that his goal is to avoid making his music autobiographical. He says music is better when it is not centered around the composer’s personal feelings.
To avoid self-expression, a minimalist looks for principles outside himself. It might be a mathematical principle or, as with many 20th-century composers, the element of chance. A throw of the dice could dictate where the music goes next. Johnson sees this as taking the music out of the subjective realm of beauty and into the more objective realm of truth. He sees a correlation between beauty and truth, but not a necessary one. Truth, in the sense of something logically consistent, is easier to achieve.
[I agree that music is not all about the composer’s feelings, but I part company with Johnson concerning the relationship of truth and beauty. And I would argue that composers for most of history looked to objective principles, such as form and tonality.] But back to Johnson.
That consistency needs to be perceived by the listener, and achieving that objective is a form of perfection according to Johnson. He offers a demonstration that you math fans might enjoy.
Naturally there is a disadvantage in seeking this kind of perfection, because performers are rarely perfect. There is usually some unfortunate moment, some mistake, some untruth that is quite audible in my transparent music, and that makes the performance somehow unsatisfying, regardless of tonal richness, speed, virtuosity, excitement, intensity and whatever other positive qualities may be present.
In a sense, Johnson also detaches himself from a composition by stepping outside the music to offer objective commentary on it or to narrate it. For example, in his Four-Note Opera, the chorus sings “There are three choruses in this opera. This is the first one.”
This technique animates all of Failing, one of Johnson’s most frequently performed works.
My kids really enjoyed this and have asked me to write a post. There was much laughter as we watched it. We have never seen a performance like this one!