Interim Performance feedback from Gris

I've just received my Interim performance feedback from Gris, and I'm slightly bemused and amused at the same time! I think to clarify things; I'll copy the whole document, and add my own responses accordingly.
I also think that it would be beneficial to let her see this Blog, as most of the issues she has raised have already been addressed in my planning. So without further ado...

MUS311/MUP310 Critical Arts Practice: Music Performance

Interim Performance Assessment

Student: Steve Beaty

Assessor: Gris Sanderson

Date: 17.3.06

Technical skills:

As is often the case in your performances there is evidence of a secure guitar technique, but you never seem to really push yourself. However, in this instance, 'technical skill' also includes any other technical issues, such as the use of electronics etc. I have to mention then the quality of the pre-recorded/sequenced backing. There seemed to be no separation in the sounds and the balance was very flat over all. The drums in particular were poorly programmed, sounding very flat in tonal quality and too loud in comparison with the other parts. If you are going to use this type of gimmick it needs to be much more creative in its realisation.

Unfortunately my knowledge and skills with sampled sounds is limited, and as such this was never supposed to be a true representation of the final arrangement, only a way of playing it live without having rehearsed with the full band.

I'm sure that had we had longer to set up and do a full sound check Jon could have balanced the recorded backing better, but only insofar that I'd already mixed it down in the recording process. It's near impossible to get a perfect sound anyway when you have to set up 4 performances in the same space in a mere 30 minute period.


"there is evidence of a secure guitar technique, but you never seem to really push yourself" - I'm not sure if I'm flattered or not that she has a high opinion of my playing abilities; some of the more jazzy Mario parts were very difficult, and although I hold my hands up and say that I made it harder on myself by not practicing as much as I should have, I'd say that taking this
material and playing it on a live instrument is anything but simple.

Ensemble skills/ musicianship:

There really was minimal input from you on the live front. The arrangement was very odd in the way that you occasionally had a little melody, then reverted to a simple part that added a texture somewhere within the structure of the rest of the music. The sequenced part dominated your own playing to a degree that is really unacceptable. I suggest you rearrange the parts to give yourself more of a key role.

I can understand how this may have appeared if it was always intended as an electric guitar performance to recorded backing track; however, in the fully realised final performance the concert is more of a Guitar Concerto where the guitar features significantly but not at
the expense of the ensemble.

I don't think the other instruments will dominate my own playing either; the arrangements are solid and thoughtful and feature everybody at some point adding to both melodic and harmonic content of the Acts.

Organisation/ presentation:

This is where the whole thing really fell down. You presented it in such a deadpan way with no imagination. You must remember that the type of music you are presenting is part of minority
cult status. You and all your mates may get all the little jokes and know the games intimately, but it is restricted to a very limited era and social group i.e. white British males now in their early 20s. This is not concert music and you must make the setting apparent.

People who state this is not concert music as a fact rather than as an opinion are the exact reason why I chose to perform this type of material. Taking the music from it's original electronic context and bringing it into a live acoustic environment is a worthy concept and if it wasn't for the idea that somehow film and game music is not as valid as "other" musical forms then the talented composers who create it would get the same critical acclaim as their
alleged 'high art' counterparts.

In the recent "More Friends" concert in Los Angeles renowned Composer, Musical Director, and Conductor Arnie Roth (who has worked with Charlotte Church, Patrick Stewart, the LSO, Stephen Alltop, Roxanne Layton and George Vosburgh) arranged and conducted an evening of Final Fantasy scores, not to mention his work with the PLAY symphony tour.

As for the "limited era and social group", not only is this insulting (and not because I'm a 22 year old white British male), but it's really not very accurate in terms of race, age, and indeed nationality; as this article here clarifies.

We're not saying it's a bad idea, but you really need to do a lot to make it work as a final performance. First of all, get rid of the music stand. It just looks ridiculous, and the parts are not hard.

Bearing in mind that Act II contains a piece played by Steve Vai, and that the score for Act III in it's (near) completed state is 117 pages, that's going to be over 300 pages of notation, and as the featured guitarist most of the time I will be playing, I really don't think I can do
without the music stand. I always try to play without music, but in a concert of this magnitude it would be foolish to try to do without it. Plus all the other musicians will be playing from music too so I won't look out of place.

Secondly, get a good sound engineer who can make the sequenced parts
sound good in relation to one another.

Aside from the fact that the final concert will contain no prerecorded material, I thought I was told that I couldn't have a professional sound engineer on Health and Safety grounds?

Thirdly, use the genre of the games to set an atmosphere and put it all in context. For example, you should project the games on the wall at least, and have some kind of visual element that is going to make it interesting to an audience, because at the moment I cannot imagine anybody would want to sit through more than 5 minutes because of the dull presentation.

Which has always been the concept of the show, to bring the burgeoning history of early game music and the cutting edge professional (and Grammy and Emmy award winning) new game scores together in a celebration of an art form that is about as contemporary as you can get. Combining a new realisation of the music with the images that have shaped the genre of game music into the success that it is!


General Observations:

I know this is an idea that has been bubbling around for some time. It could work really well, but you really need to be much more creative about presentation. I suggest you talk to Mel Thompson about some 1-1 sessions on the more theatrical side of staging this as a final performance.

This is a good suggestion but it comes from an ill-informed viewpoint. I hope once Gris reads this Blog not only will she see how passionate I am about it, but how all the planning and preparation and sheer hard work I've put in over the last couple of months is turning out.

Whatever response I get back will be posted in due course.