A crowd gathered Sunday night for a marriage of art and music in the heart of Jesse Hall.
The event introduced the concept of art criticism, musical biography and harmonized art and music to contextualize the meaning of each, said Mary Pixley, the associate Art and Archeology Museum curator. Artworks from the museum were projected on a wide screen as a choir of MU students sang simultaneously.
The idea for the occasion stemmed from another well-known art event in Columbia.
“One night my wife and I attended one of the Artrageous Fridays at the Museum of Art and Archeology,” Director of Choral Activities Paul Crabb said. “We started talking with some of the staff members from the museum, and we thought it would be a great project to coordinate music with some of the visual art in the exhibits.”
The idea transformed into an annual event highlighting different exhibits that the Museum of Art and Archeology showcases. Throughout its four years of existence, the event has focused on Renaissance, Baroque, decorative art and decorative sculpture, Pixley said. This year the event centers on Missouri artists from the Ste. Genevieve Art Colony.
To accompany the artworks, the choir immersed Jesse Hall with the soft melodies of appropriate poems and songs.
It was a night of thoughtful criticism of music and art. The event infused art critique with a history of poets, authors and the Missouri Ste. Genevieve Art Colony.
Art historians and professors spoke about the importance of art and the unique combination of music and art.
“I would say that human life without some sort of art form isn’t life,” graduate student and choir conductor Brian Parrish said. “It’s an enriching experiencing that I wouldn’t wish upon anybody to go without experiencing. It would be an unfulfilled life”.
Pixley said she hopes the event will bring people to the Museum of Art and Archeology.
“It helps that after one experiences this concert, one will come to the museum and explore these pieces of art in real life instead of just projections on the screen,” Pixley said.
Although the art and music in the event are intended to stand alone, together they create a rich experience, Parrish said.
“It’s an artistic event that is intended to provide another aesthetic experience of music and art,” Pixley said. “It takes them out of their typical context and helps create a new experience. I think they make both the music and art come more alive.”
