Juanita Becker (Wisconsin Lutheran College), piano
Sheri Mattson (University of Central Missouri), oboe
Milwaukee Art Museum, September 19, 2009
Wisconsin Lutheran College, September 20, 2009
University of Central Missouri, October 19, 2009
Milwaukee Art Museum, December 20, 2009
The audiences for the Milwaukee Art Museum performances were museum patrons and docent volunteers within earshot.
The audiences for performances at Wisconsin Lutheran College and the University of Central Missouri were typical of a college or university. The college presentations were more traditional and included a Power Point presentation of the artwork found in the Milwaukee Art Museum.
The goal of these performances was to introduce participants to the connection that exists between music and visual arts of similar periods. Both performers have actively taught music appreciation courses, and felt that the connection between the visual and musical arts would be an excellent subject for community discourse. Before the performance of each piece, one of the performers spoke about the connection between modern art and music. It was noted that the earliest abstract artists were inspired to create art that was original to them in their attempt to express inner thoughts and feelings. Composers of this time period created music much the same way. The performers indicated that particular artworks in the museum collection could be connected to each piece of music because of its style, the time period of its composition, or because of the friendships between the composers and the artists. For the December event at the Milwaukee Art Museum, programs were handed out with titles of the artwork that paired well with the musical selections.
