Totemism

This blog is dedicated to the first rate performer, singer and musician Diamanda Galás. Diamanda Galás (born August 29, 1955) is a Greek-American avant-garde composer, vocalist, pianist, performance artist and painter. Known for her expert piano as well as her distinctive, operatic voice, which has a three and a half octave range, Galás has been described as "capable of the most unnerving vocal terror". Galás often shrieks, howls, and seems to imitate glossolalia in her performances. Her works largely concentrate on the topics of suffering, despair, condemnation, injustice and isolation. She has worked with many avant-garde composers, including Iannis Xenakis, and Vinko Globokar. Greatness exists independent of most peoples judgement or opinion. We only listen to the wise. The fools have no vote, this is not a democracy. Photos are published by the kind permission of the artist. Her official website: http://diamandagalas.com/

All The Way

Kategori: Allmänt, Diamanda Galás, Unreleased recording

All The Way (Music: Jimmy Van Heusen | Lyrics: Sammy Cahn, 1957)

Diamanda's approach to this song makes me reflect on the singer's art and the reality. First things first.The opening chords of the work on the piano are Debussy-esque with finely brushed strokes of deep cutting  blues. Nothing is over-loaded or sentimental,and the music glides seraphically free. Time stops and Diamanda, who knows how to unfold a story takes the lead. She is a very emotional singer but it is obvious that her task is not to experience an emotional high in performance but to transform sentiment through artistic means. The singer's art consists of knowing how those experiences would feel and how to translate them into communicable representations. She does not express herself or wallow herself in her own emotional bathwater. No señor. Between the lines Diamanda Galás teaches that art is not reality. Art consists of the disciplining of reality for the portrayal of emotion.

 
Photo:Austin Young