The Philharmonie Project (Nielsen: Symphony No. 5) / Lynne Marsh

In collaboration with: Lynne Marsh

Comprised of two movements, rather than the traditional three, Carl Nielsen’s Symphony No. 5 is a touchstone of contrast, variance and opposition in the 20th century symphonic canon. Composed in 1921, the piece, its performance and subsequent filming serve as organizing frameworks for Lynne Marsh’s Philharmonie Project (Nielsen: Symphony No. 5). In January of 2011, Marsh filmed the video production team at the Hans Scharoun designed Berlin Philharmonie as they film a live performance of the Nielsen symphony. For each of the Berlin Philharmonic’s concert, the team coordinates the movement of each camera, choreographing it to the musical score. Presented at PROGRAM are two videos, one showing the team as they conduct the cameras’ movements back stage, the other of the empty stage, recorded as a dry-run before the concert, as determined by the shots designed for Nielsen’s symphony. In close collaboration with Marsh, architects Johanna Meyer-Grohbrügge and Sam Chermayeff of June14 have designed a structure that serves as seating while dividing the space in two contrasting but equal parts along the diagonal of the room. The result is a front stage and a back stage within the show. Ultimately, the Philharmonie Project is a study on the staging of power systems, the cultural expression of mass consumption and the support structures that enable it to happen.