13. Futuring Classical Music through Contemporary Visual Art

This chapter focuses on the alternative performance of classical compositions created in the works of the renowned contemporary artist Anri Sala (b. 1974). A visual artist, Sala uses music as a central element in his films, installations, and performances. He manipulates the music according to different artistic ideas, thus creating unconventional performances.

Through his works, Sala enables different perspectives and new contexts which lead classical music through unpredictable paths. The chapter focuses on three seminal works created by Sala in the last decade: The Present Moment (2014), The Last Resort (2017), and If and Only If (2018). In each of these works, a classical Western composition (a movement or a whole piece by Schoenberg, Mozart or Stravinsky) is the point of departure. The analysis compares these works to conventional performances at the concert hall, and relates to elements such as space and architecture, extra musical contexts, the fidelity to the score, and the use of visual means and technology. The argument is that these artworks, in which well-known music from the canon is reinterpreted, may be experienced as unique and innovative musical performances detached from concert hall conventions.