Synapse HKB
What do an app for exploring art in public spaces, a village greenhouse for exhibitions, a table setting event or a catering service have in common?
Graziella Contratto - Apart from the originality of the artistic idea, they all share the empathetic concern of Bern University of the Arts to build a bridge between "art" and "society". The variety of mediating, intercultural concepts, projects and activities at the HKB can now be experienced on a specially developed website. An important detail: many of the projects were conceived and designed by students at the university. As future artists, they have thus internalized the attitude particularly promoted at the HKB of repeatedly leaving the disciplinary personal learning space in order to react "synaptically" to the social conditions of our time. They are accompanied and supported by renowned mediators from all art disciplines.
As an art academy, the HKB also promotes exchange between its own departments such as literature, music, design and art, theater, opera, research and conservation or continuing education: The broad field of mediation opens up a new, transdisciplinary view of one's own activities, the "work" and oneself. But the website wants even more: in addition to information in text, image, film and sound on the individual projects, it offers interested persons, institutions or bodies from politics, culture and business the opportunity to get in touch with the university in order to resume specific projects, develop them further in a new environment and thus introduce them even more to the "world out there". Art at the HKB is not self-sufficient. The students and lecturers want to reach out to others, ask questions and always see themselves questioned in the process.
Interview with two young mediators from the HKB
Arion Rudari, you are a classically trained baritone with an HKB Master's degree. What inspired you to choose music education as a specialized second Master's degree?
At first, far away from music education, I realized that I was not yet "ready" on a vocal level and wanted to take my time to become a better singer. At the same time, I also realized that I wanted to discover new forms of performance: to create and try out my own concepts, to seek more contact with my audience and to let classical music become entertainment again.
What do you think awaits you during your studies? How will you develop as a performing singer?
After a year, I can say that I have actually been able to make the desired progress vocally and am still working on it. I also wanted to expand my repertoire in all genres: opera, song, oratorio, standard, niche, contemporary... everything has its place. In my Master's in Specialized Music Performance "Mediation", my two focal points, singing and the development of professional mediation skills, can be combined in a complementary way. Within a year, I was able to take part in a contemporary opera, perform a self-conceived mediation music performance at the Zentrum Paul Klee and even perform and record parts of Mahler's Wunderhorn cycle - an ideal and surprisingly well-functioning variety for me.
In which direction do you personally see particularly relevant tasks for a placement?
As an opera fan, especially in opera, that few people have too much to say about the final product of an opera production. Accordingly, I am currently trying my hand at projects that a) put the production back into the hands of all those involved, b) also bring amateurs and amateurs onto the stage and thus demand interaction between professionals and amateurs and c) move back in the direction of entertainment. In my opinion, entertainment, intellect and art are not mutually exclusive.
Where would you like to or could you be working in 10 years' time?
The question that I would prefer to answer a year before the end of my studies. I dream of doing what I'm already doing, only I want to reach an even more professional level by then: on the one hand, to be a successful concert and lieder singer and, on the other, to sing and stage operas together with amateurs and professionals, to set up my own form of opera studio, so to speak. For example, creating Mozart's Figaro together with hairdressers or putting on a Don Giovanni with addicts. Quasi "opera for everyone".
Salome Böni, you are a flautist and one of the first alumnae of the Master Specialized Performance "Music Mediation" course at the HKB. What are your musical activities like at the moment?
After finishing my studies last summer, I was lucky enough to be able to dive headfirst into the world of work. I put my heart and soul into teaching a flute class at the Oberemmental music school and have been working in music education at Konzert Theater Bern since March 2018. In addition, the further development of our musical generation project "Silberwellen" as well as my personal development as a flutist are close to my heart.
As one of your study projects, you realized the Silver Bear-winning senior citizens' project "Silver Waves" with great success. Were you able to develop further projects based on this mediation and business model?
My head is full of ideas: Following the revival of "Silberwellen" in the Bernese Oberland, further performances of this mobile intercultural senior citizens' project are now to follow in other locations. The successful concept of having older people perform together with classical music students in an artistic mediation project really touched all the participants, myself included. I am also fascinated by the topic of death. Through a personal encounter with a dying person who asked me to play for him, I realized how comforting it can be to give someone with music what is no longer possible with words. I would like to tackle the idea of "assisted dying with music" soon.
As a professional mediator, how do you perceive the social relevance of music today? What is your personal position?
Today, thanks to technology, music is available anytime and anywhere - the choice of musical styles and different interpretations is huge. Going to a concert hall or listening to a radio program at home is no longer a prerequisite for listening to music. As a music educator and flautist, I am interested in the question of how we can offer something in addition to the live concert experience that clearly stands out from what is available on the internet. Experimenting with the framework in which music is presented seems particularly important to me: Music should break out of the concert hall even more often and take place in unfamiliar places. This removes a major inhibition threshold for many people and makes encounters with music more spontaneous, personal and natural.
Links
> www.synapse-hkb.ch/silberwellen/
