The Art of Conduction ® Workshop ingrandisci Attention University Music Departments / Orchestras / Ensembles / Festivals Lawrence D. "Butch" Morris offering Master Classes, Workshops and Residencies in the Art of Conduction® Lawrence D. "Butch" Morris is one of the leading innovators in the confluence of jazz, new music, improvisation and contemporary classical music. Mr. Morris's work redefines the roles of composer, conductor, arranger and performer, and bridges the gap between the composer, the improviser and the classically oriented musician. Since 1974, his career has been distinguished by unique and outstanding international contributions to television, film, theater, dance, radio, interdisciplinary performance-based collaborations, concerts and recordings. He has worked with countless musicians and composers, choreographers, visual artists, writers, theater and film directors and performers. As a composer, he is widely known for his notated compositions and has been especially acclaimed for pioneering and developing the art of Conduction. "Since 1985, Morris has been spreading the joys of 'Conduction,' his wondrous conducting system for the spontaneous organization of improvised music. It's united musicians from all over the world, and created a whole new aesthetic for jazz." – Howard Mandel, Jazziz Conduction (conducted interpretation/improvisation) is a vocabulary of ideographic signs and gestures activated to modify or construct a real-time musical arrangement or composition. Each sign and gesture transmits generative information for interpretation, and provides instantaneous possibilities for altering or initiating harmony, melody, rhythm, articulation, phrasing or form. Conduction not only broadens the realm of musical possibility while strengthening musicianship, it also maximizes the potential of existing and probable musical directions. To participate in Conduction is to refine the qualitative standard for what music is and can be, thereby giving birth to a "new virtuoso"—one who satisfies beyond the audience's desire to be rejuvenated, enlightened or entertained. Employing more than 2,000 musicians in 16 countries and 55 cities, resulting in 22 CDs over a 16-year period, Conduction has amply demonstrated its capacity for cultural diplomacy by uniting communities and serving as a powerful example of a new social logic based on collective interpretation and personal interaction. In its ceaseless investigation of an "extra dimension" that transcends style and category, it has proven itself supplemental to the entire scope of musical and artistic endeavor. Conduction® is not a genre and is not confined to any specific culture. A catalyst of social and symbolic potential, it is a blueprint, a challenge and a mission: beneficial for education, culture and humanity, both now and for the future. "If there is one thing you can say about Lawrence D. 'Butch' Morris, it’s that his music is genuine. [H]e creates moving, beautiful music while conjuring the unknown." – K. Leander Williams, Time Out New York "As musicians we all speak a common language. We may speak in different dialects, vocabularies, jargons or styles, but the language is music, and music, whatever the tradition from which it springs, has certain intrinsic properties. Although these properties may ultimately resist analysis, the mystery of music is that it will always allow musicians to communicate from vastly differing perspectives. "The Conduction vocabulary made it possible for me to alter or initiate rhythm, melody, harmony, form/structure, articulation, phrasing and meter of any given notation. Once the vocabulary had been established, it then became possible to eliminate notation altogether in order to pursue ideas based on collective, interactive confrontations for the process of constructing composition in real time. What emerged was An encounter process that could address composition from either an interpretive or improvisational point of view or both: two dimensions of continuous territory. A music that could reflect all known and unknown facts relevant to the sonic world while raising cognition, creativity and potential. "I am advocating an ensemble of musicians from diverse traditions who share a common ground and goal as servants to music, who's aim is locating that extra dimension, that point where all musicians can create on equal footing. "Any time you synchronize the spirit and still give it liberty, you open many doors to the primus, where the intimate necessity of possibility reigns, where we find and realize our individual and collective freedoms." – from Artist's Statement of Lawrence D. "Butch" Morris "When it comes to redefining jazz improvisation at its most basic level, Lawrence 'Butch' Morris is writing an entirely new chapter. The breadth of colors and compositional styles which Morris obtains from various ensembles is breathtaking." – Art Lange, Pulse Workshops, residencies and master classes in the Art of Conduction® are now being scheduled from July 2002 through November 2004 The workshop process informs and provides musicians the opportunity to hone their skills by developing new concepts of analysis, perception and representation in an ensemble while learning the Conduction vocabulary. Although Conduction is not a method of teaching improvisation, Mr. Morris has frequently been called upon to teach Conduction to non-improvising musicians. A highly successful example of this is his work with the Orchestra della Toscana, resulting in Conductions Nos. 57, 58 and 59, performed to great acclaim in Florence, Carrara, and Pistoia, Italy, in February 1996. These performances demonstrate one of the most significant ground-zero effects for the merger of all music by consenting musicians. The international appeal and acceptance of Morris's Conduction workshops is also evidenced in the 10-CD Boxed Set, Testament: A Conduction Collection on New World Records. Recorded over a seven-year period in nine countries with thirteen different ensembles, Testament is indeed a testament—and, more than that, a lifeline—to a totally new understanding of what music can be. Conduction workshops provide an excellent opportunity for students and professionals alike to get a glimpse into what has been described as curious, challenging, demanding, rewarding and fun: "something rare in real time—something new in pure sound." These workshops are for, but not limited to, classical, jazz and new music instrumentalists and ensembles of intermediate, advanced or professional levels. (Mixed level groups are fine.) They are typically held over the course of three to seven days, for three to six hours per day, with groups of 15 to 40 musicians. Smaller and larger ensembles/orchestras can also be accommodated. Conduction Master Classes, Workshops and Residencies* Master Class: 1–3 days, 6–9 hours total The Conduction Master Class is a 1–3 day, 6–9 hour introductory intensive with emphasis on lecture-demonstration and some performance. We will explore the many interesting and vibrant ways of constructing and arranging music through the use and interpretation of the Conduction vocabulary, as well as how conduction engages and confronts musical, cultural and social differences through collective and individual interpretation. Discussion is encouraged and further readings are suggested. The Master Class is for the advanced student or professional instrumentalist, composer and conductor. Workshop: 4–7 days, 3–6 hours per day The Conduction Workshop, with emphasis on performance, is a 4–7 day, 3–6 hour per day intensive investigation of the Conduction vocabulary in theory and practice. The Workshop stresses ensemble 'team play,' which allows each individual the opportunity to participate in the overall construction of compositional development. The Conduction Workshop is open to all musicians interested in developing new skills of perception and the enhancement of ensemble intellect, ensemble arranging and composition. It's aim is to maximize real-time capability in ensemble interplay, to raise cognition, and to improve focus, concentration and interpretive skill. The Workshop is challenging, demanding and rewarding. Residency: 10 days or more, up to six months A Conduction® Residency combines Master Class and Workshop activities over a longer period of time. It is less intensive and more informative. The Residency includes projects, open rehearsals, advanced thought on the future of ensemble music, reading and listening, study groups and special assignments. This Residency is open to all musicians—composers, conductors and instrumentalists. "Most impressive, and most valuable was Morris's ability to unite his players into a vibrant community that, while being unlike any other, still made the listener feel perfectly at home." – Bob Blumenthal, The Boston Phoenix This is a rare opportunity for instrumentalist, ensemble and orchestra, composer and conductor to witness and participate in the changes, supplemental to the entire scope of musical and artistic endeavor, that are bound to take place in the coming century. *Please note - Time-frames mentioned do not include travel days - Workshop formats as described in this letter do not include concerts/performances - Please contact Workshop Coordinator regarding scheduling, terms and fees

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