I like to be – Reminiscence of Rose Wylie

The title of the program refers to the lightness, lightheartedness and playful naivety of the falling, flying, floating creatures and figures in the paintings of Rose Wylie. In her compositions, comprovisations and improvisations for piano, hang and percussion, Esther Flückiger takes the audience on a musical journey, wants to arouse associations and emotions and do justice to the work of Wylie.

“When I play, I always feel like a painter, taking the musical brushstroke, looking for new timbres and sound generations, exploding and balancing between genres and styles and fusing classical, jazz, pop, and ethno, comparable to Wylie, who defuses rules, transforms reality and sets new perspectives.”

A musical confrontation with the visual world of Rose Wylie, which leads us through different life circumstances and themes of the past and present.

The Museum Langmatt showed the first solo exhibition of Rose Wylie (* 1934 in Kent) in Switzerland in the spring of 2021. It is one of the most important British artists and only achieved its artistic breakthrough in old age. The exhibition was accompanied by a publication with a story by Markus Stegmann on the paintings. Available at the museum box office for CHF 28. Discount for the Friends Museum Langmatt CHF 20.

Rose searching, up and down (piano) Bild: Map Painting (Boat)

In this picture, Wylie refers to an invitation to a dinner on a ship. She was given verbal directions, where she would find the ship and also the dining room there. But she got lost and despaired, last she found it. The setting translates this dramatic error into a musical scene of labyrinthine search, whereby the moment of arrival stops in a deep relaxation and then mentally prepares herself with some negative memories for the return to the mainland, where she then also sets foot well.

Groove to be, electric day (Piano+Hang) Image: Bagdad Café (Film Notes)

This picture goes back to the movie Out of Rosenheim with the run-down Baggdad Café. It stands in the middle of the Californian desert and is the focal point of various protagonists. Everyone lives between reality and illusion in their everyday life. In the picture we see the moody landlady Brenda, next to it a microphone and the open mouth for the music, perhaps as a protest for the fact that her son is relentlessly preludes by J.S. Bach plays and annoys her with it. Brenda is African American, the sheriff is an indigenous, Jasmin is a European, many inspirations to make a “fetty” music with a hidden Bach quote sound.

Stormy ghost or spirit? (Piano) Image: Arial as a spirit (drawing from Shakespeare’s The Storm)

The title of the composition seeks an answer to Wylie’s visual realisation. In addition, the word Stormy has a double meaning and refers to the title The Storm. The foggy, airy, stormy and strikingly virtuoso in the piano piece gives Geist Ariel wings to fly. The air spirit dissolves in its element at the end of the music, and only a spherical mood remains in the air, which has displaced the haunting spirit, i.e. the phantom ghost.

Appearance (piano) Image: Miranda (drawing from Shakespeare’s The Storm)

Miranda appears the world as a miracle. She had an apparition: “She opens her eyes and says, without knowing, that she has been enchanted.” In Wylie’s profile you can see her own appearance, one directed outwards, which sounds open, distorted and dreamy in the music.

Magic touch (piano) Image: Prospero as Magician (drawing from Shakespeare’s The Storm)

Irrational moments and ideas of Prospero, initiated and ending by a magical “touch”. A magical challenge also for the audience.

Mystery inside (piano, Arcopiano, Lichtperk., E-Bow) Picture: Magic & Intuition (drawing from Shakespeare’s The Storm)

The picture is about intuition and magic towards state hierarchies, education and position. Musically, a surreal scenery of soundscapes sounds.

Take off (piano) Image: Arial about to turn into a matchbox (drawing from Shakespeare’s Storm)

Ariel is a grateful air spirit for the musical sound. Irrational mood,

Dancing shreds, take off again and again without landing, also here a surreal scenery… Unreal, Crazy, Illogical, Distant…

Trans-it (Hang, Djembé, Kalimba) Image: Face of Africa (Wall)

Face of Africa in music!

The Horse and the Swan (piano and slope) Free setonisation of the story by Markus Stegmann

The musical implementation travels through continents and cultures in the pictures of Rose Wylie. Musical styles mix with dreamy and naive themes, and in the centre are always the two wandering protagonists (protagonists), the horse and the swan. Her circus number also receives an honourable moment in the music.

Straight ahead, perspectives reset (piano)

A tribute to the artist Wylie, who ignores rules, transforms reality and resets perspectives. Straight ahead in the course of time.

I like to be under the sea – homage to R.W., R.S., J.L. (Klavier) 2 Bilder: I like to be + Under the sea

These two pictures refer to a line from the Beatles song “Octopus’s Garden” and “I’d like to be/Under the sea”. Inspired by an invitation to participate in a group exhibition in honour of John Lennon, Wylie chose this Beatles song as the theme for her contribution. Later, however, she realised that this song was written by Ringo Starr. This resulted in a series of pictures on the subject and was a possibility for Wylie to insert the initials of both musicians in the picture Under the sea. In the musical implementation, a quote from the Beatles song sounds embedded in a rhythmic pattern. This is pierced by sound surfaces, similar to a flowing body of water, in which it feels good to let yourself drift liberatingly.

Floating Figures (Piano)

This title refers to the lightness, carefreeness and playful naivety of the falling, flying, floating creatures and figures in the paintings of Rose Wylie. A letting yourself drift, once floating, flying, as well as timeless and infinite…