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Thanks Aaron, looking forward to your next projects!

Read more about Aaron’s recital on the SOMD admissions blog.

Interview with ‘13 DMA bassoon candidate, Aaron Pergram

Is this your first time doing this kind of project?

Yes. I’ve done things before where I’ve incorporated a dance or an art piece, but not a full interdisciplinary program on this level.

How did you come up with the idea for your recital?

This program was in the making for at least two or three years.  I’ve been experimenting with dance pieces or certain art works to see the audience’s reaction to it.

This time, I wanted to put on a complete campus-wide interaction and I wanted the following elements: Music, Dance, Film, Art and Media.  The rigidity of my previous school did not allow me to do such a project; the nature of that concert hall was meant for 19th and 20th century study. The new Aasen-Hull Hall at UO School of Music and Dance is a fantastic modern space that I realized would finally be a great fit for my project.

When I came to Eugene, I found out just how community-oriented and connected the city is to the campus.  I realized that if you’re going to do a program like this, Eugene is the place.  Then, I started to piece together ideas.  I attended places like McDonald Theatre downtown, WOW Hall, and other arts venues.  Going out to the town and to the community really gave me a better idea of the type of art that happens here, what people are into and what kind of performance would work here.  I wanted my recital to have a unifying them; I wanted to stay away from just a hodgepodge of artistic ideas.

I finally decided to do three to four minute features for each of the disciplines.  I also needed to find one person who I could tap into, someone who would be a skeleton key for the rest of the community.  I found my “community liaison” in a dance major, photographer and artist, Shannon Knight.

We then started brainstorming: what’s urban? Jazz clubs, dancing, graffiti, urbanization, urban sprawl, high art - urban is such an open term.  Once I got the headings, I started looking for pieces that would connect to my theme.

Tell me more about your collaborations with different departments.

I had to physically go to these departments, talk to the heads of departments and collaborate with many students across campus.  I had to go back sometimes two or three times and explain what my project was about and how we could collaborate.  I must have annoyed them a bit, with my constant emails and phone calls.  There’s a whole lot that goes into a production like this and I was very insistent on making it all work out.

How long did it take to put together?

Seven weeks

Were your professors supportive of your non-traditional recital?

The faculty here at the School of Music and Dance were incredibly supportive of my idea.  My bassoon teacher has a “go for it” attitude that instills confidence in all of his students.  Playing the bassoon also gave me some leeway in that there is not much repertoire written specifically for it, so I could be more creative with arrangements and commissions.

What do you take away from the experience?

This concert gave me an opportunity to play genres I have never played before.  Nothing in it was my norm; I haven’t played jazz before, I haven’t played with a boom box, CD or video.  I think everyone should have this kind of experience.  You learn so much! Dealing with all the different disciplines, the hours of film editing, learning how to keep deadlines and communicate with all the different types of artists.  It was interesting to learn that each department operates so very differently.  For example, I talked to dancers differently than I talked to visual artists. No one teaches you this type of stuff; you only learn by doing it.  Also, let’s face it, this was the real deal.  Often times, it’s what you do outside of school, all the over and beyond activities, that really enrich your college experience.

Tell me about your marketing efforts in publicizing your concert?

I had an active Facebook Event page on which I would post trailers each week, pictures, teasers of what you might see, to build excitement.  I did Twitter, Linked In, fliers and posters.  I advertised in Eugene Weekly, in classes, all dance/art classes.  I went to classes and did 5-minute promotional presentations talking about my project and inviting people to come.  I also hand-wrote over 300 invitations!  You can check out my three video trailers on youtube.