Con Grazia: an interview with pianist Shannon Wettstein
Pianist Shannon Wettstein has created an international performing and recording career as an interpreter of challenging and experimental contemporary music. Her passion to champion the music of today is reflected in over the 450 new music premiers she’s given, as well as her efforts to seek out and create new ways for audiences to experience the Avant-Garde music she loves. She explores the relationship between music and other art forms by performing to art lovers in galleries and museums. She performs in restaurants or clubs. She collaborates with dancers. Her podcast, Dr. Avant-Garde, furthers her passion for this music through conversations with other musicians. Her goal? To remind people that classical music is a living tradition, not a set of masterpieces, and that perhaps, if we’re willing to be open to new and challenging sounds, we may find music that speaks the language of today, in all its beauty and discord.
Wettstein’s latest recording, Con Grazia: a Century of Italian Piano Music, reflects her commitment to playing music that pushes sonic boundaries and challenges aural comfort zones. Representing some of Italy’s best Avant-Garde piano music, this album highlights how this music is, in her words, “a nod to music of the past—usually more philosophical than literal, but a clear acknowledgement that cutting edge new music is not created in a vacuum, but rather it is created and exists because of—and in response to—many centuries of art and culture.” In her musical hands, we are given a glimpse of this rich tradition. It is an honor to feature her on No Dead Guys.
When did you first begin playing the piano and what drew you to the instrument?
I started taking lessons when I was 6 years old. I had heard a pipe organ performance, after which I told my mother I wanted to learn how to do that. She contacted THE serious classical organist in the small town where I grew up, who said that I needed to first learn to play piano. My mom asked me if I was ok with learning piano first. I was fine with that. I never did formally study organ.
When did you choose to make music your career, and what or who influenced this decision?
I never seriously considered doing anything else. I’ve been playing solo and chamber music recitals since elementary school. By middle school I would play social functions like weddings or private parties, or for a school choir or church service. In high school I started taking on a few students. I was fortunate to have meaningful chamber music experiences from a very early age; those were always the most fun, and something that has always been integral to who I am as an artist. I chose to attend the New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) in Boston because it has both a very active and experimental new music program, and also the largest chamber music program of any major music school in the US. At NEC I met people with whom I would form the new music ensemble Auros, and the mentors who helped the group become established in the Boston community. These experiences really launched me in the direction my career and artistic interests have continued to pursue to this day.
You have distinguished yourself as an expert performer of challenging and experimental contemporary music. What work introduced you to modern music and why do you feel it fits your playing style so well?
There was a time when it was said that every town in America had a composer who had studied in Paris, or who had worked with Nadia Boulanger. One of my significant childhood teachers—my piano AND violin teacher, Markwood Holmes—was that person. He was toward the final chapters of his career, and I was an impressionable kid, so I kind of thought of him as a type of wise person like Yoda. I grew up playing his compositions, notably a solo piano transcription of his Island song cycle, and hearing stories of things Boulanger would say, or stories of meeting Maurice Ravel. It was part of my formative years learning that classical music is a living art form, rather than a fixed set of masterpieces from many generations ago. This suits my playing style and artistic mindset because I’ve always been good at--and drawn to--creative problem solving. Even with the standard classical piano repertoire that I also love so much, I was never attracted to playing the same repertoire as everyone else.
Congratulations on having given 450 premieres of new pieces! Do you actively commission them? If so, how do you choose which composers to engage?
The process of commissioning and/or premiering new works has a few different aspects. Sometimes I actively commission new works, such as the new work, Intertwining Shadows, by Chinary Ung, for flute and piano, which was commissioned by and written for me and Elizabeth McNutt; and the new work, Binding Spells, by James Dillon, for saxophone and piano, which was commissioned by and written for me and Kyle Hutchins. These works will be premiered in the 25-26 season.There are a few other new works in the early stages of “pre-commissioning” discussion. I choose which composers to engage typically because I have played several of their other works, and I know them personally as well as professionally.
Most premieres are a result of when someone—typically someone I know—writes a piece for me out of the goodness of their own creative impulses or sends me a score as a gift. A real highlight was when I was speaking with Brian Ferneyhough after a concert. He tells me he has a score and wonders if he can send it to me. I’m thinking, “Wow!!” Soon after, the score for El Rey de Calabria, an homage to his dearly departed three-legged kitty, Trifolio, arrives. I gave the premiere and many, many other performances of that sweet little piece.
Other premieres are a result of a call for scores. Sometimes, professional relationships develop that result in subsequent new works. Recently, I met Sergio Cote at a performance of his music in Bogotá. My colleagues with 113 Composers Collective had selected his work from a call for scores. Now, after playing his music a few times, we have met in person, and perhaps other projects will develop in the future.
Other times, as part of a performance at a festival or a university residency, I’ll be engaged to perform works by composers from that country or university, such as at the China New Music Week Festival, or at the upcoming Northern Illinois University New Music Festival, where I’ll be playing several new works by composers at that university.
I have so many other new works in my files that haven’t made it to the stage yet because sometimes it takes a while for a program to coalesce coherently.
For me, it is important for a program to feel like it makes a complete artistic statement or express a coherent theme.
As an avid collaborative pianist, you perform regularly with other musicians, most notably as a member of the Calliope Duo that you formed with flutist Elizabeth McNutt. You write that the duo’s mission is to revitalize and reconnect Avant-Garde concert music in new contexts. How do you do this?
Sometimes a different venue from a traditional concert hall can bring out a different audience or create a different context. Sometimes performing in a setting where people are free to eat and drink during a performance—whether that is in a restaurant, club, or music venue—can take the “stuffiness” out of a concert of challenging or unconventional music. I usually talk about the music in a way that gives audiences a window into what a piece is about, the inspiration for the piece, or a philosophical point of view—more of the music’s “Why” for existing, rather than a music theory or history lesson.
I’m really interested in how music and visual art are related. Performances in museums, galleries, or as sonic installations provide opportunities for music and visual art to complement each other. The same can be said for creating music for dance, which has been a recurring theme in my work, and something I really enjoy.
Where do you find audiences for aurally challenging Avant-Garde music?
I often quote what I heard an arts consultant say: “There are two types of audiences—those who seek familiar experiences, and those who seek novel experiences.” This is a giant simplification, but there is some truth to it. I know that my audiences are those people seeking a novel experience. I have sadly found that the ”typical” classical music listener is often not seeking a novel experience. Rather than trying to convince a reluctant audience, I seek out those open to new experiences. For example, performing in a venue that might typically present improvised music has proven to be a great place to perform experimental music, especially music that features improvised elements. Museum and art gallery patrons are often intrigued by music that relates to the visual art in the galleries. Dance audiences are often very open to new styles of music.
Tell me a bit about your podcast, Dr. Avant-Garde. When did you launch it and what do you talk about in your episodes?
I launched my podcast during the pandemic because I was feeling disconnected from other musicians, and I found that living in Minnesota as I was at that time, it was hard to get a sense of what was happening in new music communities across the US and across other parts of the world. The conversations do include my guests’ new music “origin stories” about how they became involved in the experimental side of art music, and what projects they are most excited about, whether it is compositional, performance-oriented, an educational initiative, developing technology, or curating concerts or a recording label. Most importantly, we talk about the ways my guests are actively moving music forward, engaging in progressive activities, or taking risks in the art of music.
I have many episodes still “in the can” awaiting release. I need to take the time to get them out in the world and stop waiting to make everything absolutely 100% polished.
Congratulations on the release of your latest solo recording, Con Grazia: A Century of Italian Piano Music. Why did you choose to focus on Italian compositions for this album?
I have long been a HUGE fan of the music of Franco Donatoni, Luciano Berio, and Salvatore Sciarrino. I already have a recording out of Donatoni’s flute and piano piece, fili. It has been a plan to record Donatoni’s piano solo, rima, for a number of years. Since Donatoni was influential not only as a composer, but also as a teacher, I started looking into the music of his students, where I discovered the music of Sonia Bo and Ivan Fedele. It became apparent that a recurring theme in a lot of Italian Avant-Garde music was a nod to music of the past—usually more philosophical than literal, but a clear acknowledgement that cutting edge new music is not created in a vacuum, but rather it is created and exists because of—and in response to—many centuries of art and culture. Once I discovered this thread running through so many Italian works, I started specifically seeking out this aspect and discovered so many Italian works by composers new to me as well as the icons of the Italian Avant-Garde.
What can you tell us about modern Italian piano music? What characteristics are different from or similar to Avant-Garde music written in other countries?
In my experience, modern Italian piano music has its own voice and aesthetic that feels new and inventive, but is also comfortable existing within centuries of cultural tradition. Modern Italian music is not derivative, not “neo” or imitative of any previous style. Avant-Garde music from other parts of world--Europe, especially--often obviously seeks to break completely with centuries of tradition in order to start fresh. In other cases, when it comes to music created for instruments that were originally developed in the Western classical tradition, such as the piano, if that part of the world doesn’t feel the weight of centuries of classical piano tradition (or symphonic tradition, or operatic tradition…) there’s not necessarily any need to even acknowledge or address traditions that are not a part of that particular culture. In Italy, the visual art, literature, architecture, music, cuisine…dating back centuries is ever-present; it cannot be avoided or ignored. But the drive to continue to create new art and experience the world anew through one’s senses continues to be valued.
How did you choose which composers to include on this album?
In building the program for Con Grazia, I started with Donatoni’s Rima, then added works by his students, Sonia Bo’s D’onde and Antipodes by Ivan Fedele. Next, I branched out to other icons of Italian Avant-Garde music, particularly seeking out works that are both unapologetically new and at the same time indebted to music of the past, which resulted in adding Giacinto Scelsi’s Con Grazia, from his 5th Suite, Berio’s Wasserklavier, Dallapiccola’s Quaderno Musicale di Annalibera, and Sciarrino’s Anamorfosi. I wanted to know more about what a younger generation of Italian composers is creating, so I poked about Babelscores for countless hours and found Giuliano Bracci’s Canto notturno, based on Schubert’s Der Doppelgänger. I also wanted to know more about what kinds of music Italian women were creating—it was shocking how few works by Italian women I found! But I did find a fantastic work by Silvia Bianchera, D’eco, which is nostalgic for the Expressionist style of early in the 20th century, without trying to sound like an of the Expressionist era composers.
Five of the pieces on this album were written by living composers. Did you commission any of them?
I did not commission any of the works on this album, but I have gotten to know several of these composers through my process of researching modern Italian music in Italy, performing this program, and spending time with these lovely people who are so patient with my very basic Italian. I’m certainly open to commissioning new works from these composers, and I’ve met so many other wonderful Italian composers because of this project, whose works–existing and yet to be written—I plan to perform in the future.
My favorite track on the album is “Anamorfosi” by Salvatore Sciarrino for its shimmeringly exuberant musical nod to Ravel’s “Jeux d’eau” and “Singin’ in the Rain”. How do you feel this light-hearted, tonal piece balances the edgier music of the rest of the recording?
Experimental music comes in many different forms and with many different aesthetics. If it all sounded similar, it wouldn’t really be experimental. Not everything experimental has to be a puzzle to grapple with; sometimes one appreciates a nice bonbon, and Sciarrino’s Anamorfosi is one of the best ones ever. I had originally planned to include at least one of Sciarrino’s Nocturnes on this album, but I absolutely could not resist this piece! The musical “mashup” has been a popular compositional technique from the quodlibet of Bach’s Goldberg Variations through almost every episode of the show choir-themed TV series, Glee.
What can you tell me about the powerful role silence plays in Antipodes by Ivan Fedele and what advice can you offer other pianists who choose to play this very spare score?
Antipodes was commissioned to be a pedagogical piece for young pianists. It is surprisingly difficult in the most non-intuitive ways. The difficulties are firstly in counting a lot of rests, and secondly in playing very, very softly. Typically, pianists count very few rests, and difficulty is typically recognized as playing many, many notes with very little silence. Furthermore, making a lot of sound is generally associated with virtuosity, rather than playing as quietly as possible.
It is very easy for the sense of pulse to “drift” in this piece—it is extraordinarily difficult to maintain a steady pulse. So, I would recommend to other pianists to practice with a metronome—especially if one can engage the help of someone else to randomly turn the metronome on and off, to practice by counting out loud, to practice by conducting during the rests, or any other physical method of embodying rhythm that works for the individual.
Is sheet music for these pieces available for purchase in the United States? If so, where might we find it?
Here are the publishers for the pieces on Con Grazia:
Scelsi (Salabert)
Sciarrino (Ricordi)
Bo (Davinci Editions)
Dallapiccola (Suvini Zerboni)
Donatoni (Ricordi)
Bracci (self-published via bablscores.com)
Fedele (Suvini Zerboni/ Sugarmusic)
Berio (Universal Edition)
Bianchera (Certosa Verlag)
I usually buy scores through Groth Music in Bloomington, Minnesota. Call them at (952) 884-4772 and ask for the Print Music Department. (I don’t get anything for recommending them. They are just the most knowledgeable and have helped me get rare or unusual scores on more than one occasion—even hand delivering it to my front porch during the pandemic, when I was living in Minneapolis).
What advice can you offer other musicians who seek to introduce audiences to Avant-Garde music?
Consider who your prospective audience will be, and what kind of experience you would like to create for them. One can never predict how a piece or a program will land with an audience, but a performer or concert curator must be intentional about the type of artistic experience that is being offered. For example, if one’s aim to produce a dramatic, theatrical type of event, consider the lighting, the wardrobe, and definitely the timing. The stereotype of the new music concert in which the changing of seating, scores, iPads, etc. takes more time than the actual piece is a stereotype for a reason—don’t do that! I find that post-pandemic audiences have shorter attention spans than before. And those new to Avant-Garde music might have a short capacity for taking in new musical experiences. I find that it is better to leave your audience wanting more, rather than putting them in a position of wondering when it will be over! The element of time is common to all music—it can go a long way with new concertgoers, whether traditional classical music or new music, if the audience knows whether a piece is 4 or 5 minutes long or 25 or 30 minutes long. Most importantly, if one can share what you love about the music, share that with your audience.
Pianist Shannon Wettstein invites audiences to hear connections between the most daring new music and historical masterworks. About why she makes music, “For me, it’s about taking risks—I love taking audiences along with me into unknown territory.”
With over 450 premieres, Shannon has performed at Lincoln Center, the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Green Umbrella Series, the Ft. Worth Modern Art Museum, and Chicago’s Constellation. Steve Smith of the New York Times wrote that her performance at The Stone was “full of subtleties no recording could catch...a reminder of why we attend concerts.”
Recent performances include Hong Kong’s City Hall, the Matik Matik in Bogotá, and the Camerata of Cremona, Italy. Awards include those from the National Endowment for the Arts, American Composers Forum, and Chamber Music America.
Formerly the pianist of Boston’s Auros Group for New Music and Minnesota’s Zeitgeist New Music, Shannon continues to collaborate with other musicians pushing the envelope of possibilities, including saxophonist Kyle Hutchins, flutist Elizabeth McNutt, and ensembles such as the Mivos Quartet and Fonema Consort.
Shannon’s teachers include Sequeira Costa at the University of Kansas, Stephen Drury at the New England Conservatory, and Aleck Karis at the University of California San Diego. Other significant teachers and coaches include Claude Frank and Ben Zander.
Shannon has been a professor of piano at Michigan State University, St. Cloud State University, Augsburg University, and Bemidji State University. With performances on four continents, she is a clinician, lecturer, coach, and the host of Dr. Avant-Garde, a podcast about moving the art of music forward in the 21st century.