Reflecting on the premiere of "the Me you See"
Maria’s new work for large, flexible ensemble, the Me you See, premiered on Saturday, April 20 at the Longy School of Music as part of the New Gallery Concert Series’ season finale. The work invited audience members to fully immerse themselves in the theme of the event, to “adopt and adapt.” After exploring the music and art placed throughout the building, they were guided back into the concert hall by percussionists playing interlocking rhythms on single chime, and additional performers gently moving wind chimes. Ian the hall, they were met by a lush string quartet, followed by the entire ensemble stationed throughout the space surrounding the audience. Artist, Sharon Berke, live collaged with the music, while a video projection featuring the performers and producers of the project created an illuminating backdrop. The source material for the projection was captured during the performance dress rehearsal, and was then manipulated by Maria to accentuate the concept of an “imaginary being.” And finally, the apex of the work featured the Fabiola Mendez trio performing Maria’s original lyrics:
the Me you See
an imagined being
the Me you See
formed from your reality
the You i See
an imagined being
the You i See
formed from my reality
mfD’s, Denver Nuckolls, served dual roles in the performance of the Me you See, providing both production and musical support for this multifaceted evening. As one of the musicians moving throughout the space providing ambient sounds via wind chimes, Denver was also critical in helping to encourage audience members to move throughout the space. Commenting on the whole experience, Denver thought, “the performance as a whole was a wonderful example of how music can be a space-occupying medium, not only in the performance hall, but in many other spaces.” the Me you See could not have been possible without all of the performers and participants who brought this work to life.
The entire evening of “Adopt and Adapt” was filled with works that resolved around the overall theme of “exploring themes of resilience, belonging, and empathy in a deeply personal way.” Founding Artistic Director of the New Gallery Concert Series, Sarah Bob, said of the performance, “Our goals were met: to provide an emotional and physical journey made possible by the audience’s individual agency, to create dialogue, a sense of belonging, awareness, and real community…the event could not have been possible without Maria Finkelmeier. She took an extra leadership role in making “Adopt and Adapt”’s site-specific mobile event a reality. Her work, the Me you See, allowed us to value how our own individual stories are interwoven into a big, beautiful world of other equally important stories…”
It would be impossible to reduce the Me you See into just photos, but check out these beautiful shots by Sam Brewer from a truly memorable evening of live music.
