BY CARISSA DYALL
Emo Phase: Dan Thorpe in Focus
Forest Collective
Industrial School, Abbotsford Convent, 24 April
Emo Phase: Dan Thorpe in Focus was an exploration of performer and composer Dan Thorpe’s life and queerness through the idea of emo — a rock music genre and subculture characterised by being overly emotional and full of angst. (Read more.)
Performed by Forest Collective, the gig took place at the Abbotsford Convent as part of the 2021 Midsumma Festival. The almost-bare room of the Industrial School – with its exposed brick, barn door, and uneven flooring; along with another cold, wet Melbourne night – provided a wonderful setting for the journey we were about to embark upon.
Opening the concert was a set of two pieces: Kezia Yap’s Lightjar, and Drones and Piano by Nico Muhly. Thorpe started off as the piano soloist with live electronics for Lightjar, easing audiences into the program with its contemplative nature. Ambient noises of the rain falling on the convent’s buildings provided an unexpected touch to the whole experience. Programmed to directly lead into the other, Muhly’s pieces felt like an extension of, or second movement to, Yap’s work. Though the sections of luscious melodic material carried on the mood that had been set, this was interspersed with jarring staccato and punches of noise, building a sense of unease. The low drones provided by the violin, cello, flute, and clarinet further added to an unsettled feeling.
Rounding off the first half of the night was Takahe by Thorpe, with text by Ngāti Maniapoto/Ngāpuhi poet Stacey Teague. Throughout the chamber opera, the meaning and emotion from the text was well translated into musical ideas, with the use of voice being explored throughout the piece. Mezzo soprano Kate Bright sang live, accompanied by the recorded voices of Thorpe and Teague reading selections of Teague’s poetry. At the end of the piece, other members of the ensemble joined in with repetitively singing links – ‘the cold, the cold, the cold’ – to create additional layers of sound. Providing the text for the poetry could have enhanced the experience more, as at times the singer was drowned out by the pre-recorded track.
The second half of the concert featured two world premieres and Forest Collective commissions by local Australian composers. An extensive stage change allowed for the full ensemble to take the stage, featuring an eclectic combination of instruments that included accordion, a collection of recorders, harp, and percussion, along with other woodwind instruments, brass, strings, and the piano as the soloists.
Cat Hope’s Lampi created a soundscape and exploration of colour translated through her use of a graphic score. Like several other pieces of the night, Hope takes inspiration from a poem by the same name written by Italian poet Antonia Pozzi. Lampi translates to ‘lightning’ in English, and this was exhibited through the layering of textures and innovative ways of playing the variety of instruments, especially the piano. As the soloist, Thorpe’s performance and interpretation brought out the drama and storytelling of piece, allowing the audience to get lost in the wash of sound and colour.
The grand finale was the second of Thorpe’s pieces, You are Jeff. A theatrical concerto for piano and ensemble that featured Thorpe as the main character on piano, this piece forms a story from the text of Crush, a collection of poetry by Richard Siken. Again, the intention of this piece would have been greater fulfilled with the text, perhaps in the form of surtitles. However, this did not take away from its emotional journey. Thorpe is to be highly commended on this work, both as the composer and performer. He captivated us and brought us on a queer journey of humour, longing, angst, lust, sensuality, and at times confrontation.
You are Jeff ended with quiet and beautiful contemplation, like finding inner peace after an intense therapy session. Out of all the pieces that were performed, You are Jeff seemed to best encompass the angst, questioning, and all other feelings tightly bundled up in an emo phase.
See the Forest Collective’s next offering Asia in Focus from 16-18 July.
Images supplied. Emo Phase by Kate J Baker. Asia in Focus by Karin Locke.
