Two Julliard students (and Andover alums) have a dream of creating a unique music video for the Handel-Halvorsen Passacaglia.
From Ari's introduction on their Kickstarter project page:
« The classical music industry is changing. As a violinist who's about to leave the safety of Juilliard and enter the real world, I'm slightly concerned for my well-being; there are more truly exceptional musicians competing for careers and jobs than ever before. But as a lover of classical music, I'm frightened. Our audiences and our funding are shrinking, and as other forms of entertainment evolve to become more and more accessible, classical music is falling behind. But our product—our music—is as amazing as ever. And so not only are we (Meta, Rod, Caitlin, and I) unwilling to accept the possibility that classical music audiences might continue to shrink—we feel strongly that, in this age of internet and media, our audiences should actually be growing. Despite its traditional (and often archaic) image, classical music is relevant to all of us, and we are convinced that exposure is all it really needs in order to thrive.
This brings us to our video. Meta Weiss and I will play the music (Meta is a cellist—also at Juilliard—and I'm a violinist), while Caitlin Ward will design the set and costumes and Roderick Hill will direct. By combining all of our passions, we hope to create a video in which our respective art forms intersect. While music videos are common in popular music genres, they are less prevalent in classical music. When I was a kid, Disney's Fantasia was one of my favorite movies. In my opinion, the visual aspect didn't detract from the music—especially because the animations were designed with the specific pieces in mind. Similarly, in our video, the fashion and film aspects will be inspired both by the music and by Handel's time (1685-1759).
We decided to use Kickstarter because we want to secure the highest quality recording, video, and lighting equipment, as well as materials for the sets and costumes so that our video can be truly exceptional. »
From Ari's introduction on their Kickstarter project page:
« The classical music industry is changing. As a violinist who's about to leave the safety of Juilliard and enter the real world, I'm slightly concerned for my well-being; there are more truly exceptional musicians competing for careers and jobs than ever before. But as a lover of classical music, I'm frightened. Our audiences and our funding are shrinking, and as other forms of entertainment evolve to become more and more accessible, classical music is falling behind. But our product—our music—is as amazing as ever. And so not only are we (Meta, Rod, Caitlin, and I) unwilling to accept the possibility that classical music audiences might continue to shrink—we feel strongly that, in this age of internet and media, our audiences should actually be growing. Despite its traditional (and often archaic) image, classical music is relevant to all of us, and we are convinced that exposure is all it really needs in order to thrive.
This brings us to our video. Meta Weiss and I will play the music (Meta is a cellist—also at Juilliard—and I'm a violinist), while Caitlin Ward will design the set and costumes and Roderick Hill will direct. By combining all of our passions, we hope to create a video in which our respective art forms intersect. While music videos are common in popular music genres, they are less prevalent in classical music. When I was a kid, Disney's Fantasia was one of my favorite movies. In my opinion, the visual aspect didn't detract from the music—especially because the animations were designed with the specific pieces in mind. Similarly, in our video, the fashion and film aspects will be inspired both by the music and by Handel's time (1685-1759).
We decided to use Kickstarter because we want to secure the highest quality recording, video, and lighting equipment, as well as materials for the sets and costumes so that our video can be truly exceptional. »
