Shannon Kingsbury Behind the Scenes

As part two in our two-part story of the symbiotic relationship between musician and choreographer, Shannon Kingsbury adds her thoughts—and music—to Sue Smith’s post (below) about working with choreographer Karen Kaeja on the GCDF commissioned piece, Crave to Tell. 

Shannon: It's a crisp February morning and I am at Temple Studios with the Fall On Your Feet Dance Collective and choreographer Karen Kaeja. Karen is creating a piece for the troupe and Sue Smith and I will be writing the accompanying musical score. Today I have come to observe the dance rehearsal to give some context for the music composition. Sue is out of town so I am the lone singer in a room full of gorgeous women dancers. I feel like a voyeur.

We are sitting casually in a circle with notebooks and pens. The theme of the piece to be is “Secrets”.  Karen has a sentence for us to complete: “The most secret place inside of me is..........”

Scribble scribble go the pens. We share our answers. Karen urges us onto our feet to give physical form to our words. I'm not sure what to do. Karen coaxes me to join the dancers. Yikes! The instructions are clear: we are each to create a movement inspired by “the most secret place inside of me”, and then learn each others’ movements sequentially, creating a series.

And GO! Karen creeps along the floor like a wounded crab. The rest of us replicate. Tanya wraps her arms around herself, her right hand guiding her chin upwards. We add Tanya's chin lift onto Karen's crab. Kelly's slender frame spins and withdraws into itself. 3 movements. Now, my turn.

Gulp.

I try not to analyze or agonize since there doesn't seem to be any way out of this! With my secret word in the fore of my mind, I feel my body lunge forward, palm extending out beyond my parameters and then reaching sharply back behind me. The dancers copy. Exhilarating!

Georgia corkscrews down into a “thinking man” position, Lynette clasps her knee to her chest, Janet's wrist flicks and Karen adds a final swirl. I do my best to keep up with the lithe & fluid bodies around me as we move in tandem. I wonder how it is that I can remember thousands of lyrics and musical motifs and yet have trouble with the sequence of 8 relatively simple movements? The dancers cheer me on with their eyes and smiles.

I feel stiff and winded and ask to sit on the side and observe. They are amazing to me—the five of them moving like a flock of birds with Karen at the helm calling out the direction of their flight. The motion of their bodies, the swish of their clothes, the sound of their breath and pattering feet has a hypnotic effect and my lids grow heavy. The dancers become my dream muses and the next thing I know the clock has drifted ahead and they are gathered around me again, sitting casually on the floor as we began.

           

Did I dream it all?

           

Again we take to the pages of our notebooks, this time to complete the sentence “I crave to tell.........” This assignment takes more time than the first. Brows furrow, eyes seem to glaze over with memory. Pens alternate between energetic spurts and thoughtful pauses. We do not share our answers.

Karen instructs the dancers to choose a few words from their writings. She counsels me to observe and listen from the outside. She directs them into a heap on the floor, bodies completely relaxed and breathing as one. “Now, randomly speak your words.”

I grab my pen and record it all down through the lens of my lingering drowsiness. Sometimes their words overlap. Sometimes they assume each other’s words. Sometimes they even finish each other's words. There is a randomly beautiful rhythm and cadence to what arises, even a hint of melody:

“Laugh. Wait. Lie. Truth. Up. Up. Up. Crave. Choices. Causing. Wishing. Heartache. Heart. Wishing. Damage. Oblivious. Up. Up. Up. Living. Wait. Oblivious. Wait. Live. Truth. Laugh. Heart. My Heart. Ache. Causing. Heart. Choices. Causing. Oblivious. Heartache. Damn. Dawn. Laugh. Live.”

A shiver runs down my spine at the conclusion of this spontaneous musical score unknowingly being born. I can hardly wait to share it with Sue.

Shannon Kingsbury is a singer, songwriter, harpist and music educator whose eclectic

performance career has ranged from film soundtrack to stage to studio. Along with Sue Smith,

Shannon is Co-Artistic Director of Ondine Chorus, vocal ensemble, and SKSS Productions,

creating unique multi-discipline performance arts shows in support of environmental and

social causes.

www.shannonkingsbury.com

Sue Smith on Creating Music for Dance

We asked Sue Smith to tell us about her experience working with choreographer Karen Kaeja and fellow vocal artist Shannon Kingsbury on Crave to Tell, the piece the GCDF commissioned for Women's Voices.

Sue Smith

Sue: Working with Karen Kaeja is a most inspiring process. Working with Shannon Kingsbury is a delight. Together, the three of us are collaborating to weave together music and dance—newly found, original, moving, held, telling.

When the three us met up on a cold December morning, Karen introduced us to her concept for the piece—the exploration of secrets.  She asked us, “What secrets do you crave to tell?”   

Think about that for a minute and you will likely find yourself on an intense personal journey. We talked about the impact of secrets on our lives, generational secrets, how secrets were revealed, when we shared secrets, when we were implored not to tell—and thereby put into the arduous position of carrying a burden of knowledge.  Being alone with a secret.  Oh, the responsibility.  Oh, the emotional work.  Oh, the musical work; the privilege of taking these ideas and transforming them into musical expressions.

The exploration of the theme was a gold mine of sorts,  eliciting many ideas and avenues for musical expression. Along the way, Shannon and I composed musical elements and created structures for improvisation, knowing we would be working with an “orchestra” of 5 female voices. Singing with Louisa Kratka, Monique Vischrschraper, and Mosa McNeilly, our rehearsals have been a combination of  learning set pieces written by Shannon and me as well as improvisational explorations in which the uniqueness of each voice intermingles, responds, cajoles, soothes, harmonizes and blends with the group, creating one-of-a-kind moments and bringing forth music that could never have been born from a page or a solitary composer; a deeply satisfying musical communication.

The process of creating music for dance is fluid and conversational.  Having worked with Karen previously on the scores for “Wedding Threads”,  “Cold Beneath Me” and “Hangman”, I was confident in our process together. Karen creates a magnificent yet delicately held container in which to work—and into which she welcomes the fire of ideas and possibility. Shannon and I observed, created, responded, and contributed ideas, music, and voice, which Karen took into her process with the dancers.

Shannon Kingsbury and Sue Smith at work

The back and forth of:  “Look at this; listen to this; I LOVE IT!;  try this;  what about silence?; more energy required here; I LOVE IT;  a softer approach here; watch for the moving yoga tree,  wait for Kelly’s hand”, intermingle as the ideas grow and take shape and colour. Witnessing the dancers moving to our newly created musical pieces is a marvel—I think I am the luckiest person in the world to be able to do this work.

The absolute inspiration of observing Karen and the dancers at work gives me energy for months to come. Working with Shannon is always an enriching musical experience empowered by wonderful commitment and the ever-present twinkle in her eye. The dedication, artistry and communication that fill the studio during rehearsal is an elixir that moves us all.                                                                                                        

Sue Smith is a singer, musician, composer, and dancer and has performed on stage, on camera, and in the studio as a soloist and collaborator.  27 years ago Sue had the good sense to co-found Hillside Festival and is the founder, Artistic Director, and General Manager of the Season Singers. She has scored several pieces for Karen Kaeja, and has performed with Robert Kingsbury. She is a dedicated music educator, maintaining a vibrant teaching studio in Guelph and Toronto. 

www.suesmith.ca