Sofia Jernberg
Composer
Which sound is special for you?
Music. Not all sounds are music regardless of what John Cage said.
What would you want to change about music / music making?
Music seems to be very entangled with a person‘s background, class and culture. People who look like I do, with African descent, often migrate towards R&B and hip-hop. In North America also Jazz, although it’s become less common due to academizing and high tuition fees. In Europe the people who play jazz are mainly white middle class.
I am a singer, I dare to say it‘s the most common instrument and it’s possible for everyone to do it. Not every kid picks up a bassoon and starts playing or even any acoustic instrument for that matter. So far, it seems like it’s not an accident that certain people play the instrument they play, many people have musicians in their family or are from a privileged situation where they had access to knowledge.
From a musicians perspective music is a social art form. Social structures are extremely dominant and one needs to get accepted socially. If you are a minority, it can be very difficult if you happen to love music that is not associated with your exterior.
I remember an evening 15 years ago or maybe even 20 years ago. I was working with a woman who had multiple sclerosis, assisting her with everything she couldn‘t do herself. We used to have the TV on in the evenings and one evening I saw Pierre Boulez on the TV. I thought I was dreaming. It was the most beautiful documentary. I think it was about him and his work in Ensemble InterContemporain. If in fact I was awake I seem to recall he was speaking about the importance of exposing young children to contemporary music. I remember seeing the children amazed at what they heard. The musicians were very close to the children so the sound must have become physical as well as abstract for their small bodies. I’ve tried to find the documentary online, but I haven’t found it so maybe it was a dream after all. In any case I would like to see more of this in reality.
Composition or improvisation?
They need each other.