
Laurie Anderson Doesnt Define Herself and Neither Should You The avant-garde icon, tapped to help develop Berklee's new Dream Machine project, encouraged students to seek depth over definitions.
By
Bryan Parys
March 3, 2021
Image by Ebru Yildiz
Trying to describe the kind of artist that Laurie Anderson is can be a bit like trying to sum up what the ocean is. It's water, for sure, just like Anderson is for sure an artist. But then, theres what the ocean looks like on the surface versus what it's like underneath. How deep do we go, though? Are we talking watching crabs in ankle-deep tide pools or the untold organisms living impossibly in the depths of the midnight zone? Where do you start? Musician, composer, performance artist, director, virtual reality (VR) experience designer-these descriptors get close to the kind of work the Grammy-winner has achieved over the last half-century, but it's far from a sufficient definition.
Berklee students got the chance to hear from Anderson directly in a recent visiting artist interview, conducted remotely and moderated by Nona Hendryx, ambassador for artistry in education, and sponsored by the Electronic Production and Design (EPD) Department. Calling the session a Q&A is a bit misleading, as Anderson has a way of playfully eschewing direct answers in favor of offering an answer to an unasked question, or even answering in the form of a new question.
It's good to not define yourself too tightly. It's okay to be loose. And then you can do anything.
-Laurie Anderson
For instance, knowing that Anderson first came to music through the violin, Hendryx asked if being a violinist was Anderson's first career dream as a child. After a long pause, Anderson responded by asking Hendryx, Do you remember your dreams?
The mention of dreams was an apt one, given that Anderson will serve as the 2021 virtual visiting artist for the EPD Department, primarily to help students continue to develop the Dream Machine, a virtual-performance experience set inside a custom-built video game.
Anderson did arrive at a sort-of answer to Hendryx's question, flipping it into a piece of advice for the students in attendance, saying, It's good to not define yourself too tightly. It's okay to be loose. And then you can do anything. You don't have to think Is that going to feed into my style?'
Watch a guided tour by Laurie Anderson about Chalkroom, one of her recent VR exhibitions:
Even her interest in violin music is about discovery, as she admitted that she's always preferred an orchestra's second violin parts over the more recognizable first violin parts. There are so many hidden masterpieces in other things, she said. And to bring back the ocean analogy, Anderson once staged a performance of Claude Debussy's La Mer (or The Sea) with only the second violin parts, describing the result as the sound of waves undulating. As a minimalist, I sometimes prefer the simpler, more repetitive parts that are holding the whole thing together, she said.
To listen to Anderson talk, then, is a lot like interacting with one of her multifaceted projects, particularly the deeply layered worlds she's created in VR environments. The more you hang around and pay attention, the more wisdom seems to accumulate. Toward the end of the conversation, Anderson was asked whether art created for environments such as Zoom was a promising frontier beyond the pandemic's constraints, and true to fashion, her answer pointed to something deeper about art and innovation. When the art is good, she said, It stops mattering whether it's in a little window box [on your computer] or not. You go into this other world, whether it's music or a play or a reading or a conversation-there are many things that work very well this way. It's really nice to have a whole other viable way to do things.
Related Categories
News
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
08/05/2026
For the second straight year, Miri Technologies Inc. has been honored with a pair of coveted awards at the broadcast, media and entertainment industry's pre...
08/05/2026
Nine Alumni Nominated for Tony Awards More than 20 alumni contributed to this year's Tony-nominated productions.
May 7, 2026
By
Tori Donahue
Boston Co...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Liberty University on why broadcast technology isn't just a technical invest...
08/05/2026
COW Jobs: UGC, On-Camera Video Content
Brie Clayton May 7, 2026
0 Comments
UGC, On-Camera Video Content
April 17, 2026Documentary Editor - US,......
07/05/2026
Journalists reporting on Sudan are working in one of the most complex and fast-m...
07/05/2026
Multi-year partnership positions Victory+ as a free home for Dallas Cowboys orig...
07/05/2026
From sideline reporting to directing and producing, the talented sophomore is building a well-rounded foundation for a career in live sports production
In the ...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital has received two Future Best of Show awards at NAB Show 2026. The COBALT blueCORE platform was recognized by TV Tech, and the COBALT PACIFIC ULL-...
07/05/2026
ESPN analyst Mina Kimes will host the televised semifinals and finals of the 202...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI, the global film streaming platform, has selected Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner. Bitmovin's encoding infrastru...
07/05/2026
NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises and the U.S. Soccer Federation have announced...
07/05/2026
Angel City Football Club (ACFC) and Victory have announced a regional broadcast partnership bringing live match coverage to fans across the greater Los Angeles...
07/05/2026
Spiideo has announced the launch of AI Highlights inside Spiideo Play, its automated sports production platform. AI Highlights combines video, event data, audio...
07/05/2026
Leostream Corporation has announced a unified remote access ecosystem for high-p...
07/05/2026
The Atlanta Dream has partnered with Victory to stream all locally broadcast Dream games for free, expanding the team's digital distribution strategy and g...
07/05/2026
Riedel Communications has announced the appointment of Marc Engroff as Chief Fin...
07/05/2026
SES and ARD, Germany's largest public broadcasting network, have announced a long-term extension of their satellite distribution partnership through 2039. U...
07/05/2026
UpLight Technologies delivers a flexible video and lighting system for a new televised sportLaunching the Pro Cheer League required more than creating a compell...
07/05/2026
Full Day Productions and GSE Worldwide have announced Spikes Under the Lights, a...
07/05/2026
Seit dem Start im Jahr 2023 hat DJ (Beta) das personalisierte H rerlebnis von 94...
07/05/2026
Da quando stata presentata nel 2023, DJ (beta) ha aiutato a definire un'esperienza d'ascolto pi personalizzata per 94 milioni di utenti Spotify Premi...
07/05/2026
Since launching in 2023, DJ (beta) has helped shape a more personalized listenin...
07/05/2026
Desde o lan amento em 2023, o DJ (beta) j ajudou a deixar a experi ncia de ouvi...
07/05/2026
From our earliest days, Spotify has been built on a simple principle: Great audio should be easy to reach. It's what's driven us to expand from music to...
07/05/2026
Asian and Pacific Islander artists continue to shape the global soundscape, pushing creative boundaries and connecting with fans worldwide. This Asian & Pacific...
07/05/2026
Company announce long-requested choir instrument
In the latest expansion of their Symphonic Elements series, UJAM have introduced an all-new vocal instrumen...
07/05/2026
Modular-inspired sound generation with digital control
Buchla have introduced Ziggy, a new compact synthesizer built around the company's complex oscill...
07/05/2026
Combines analogue voices with digital synthesis and sequencing
Polyend have announced Drums, a new hybrid analogue and digital drum machine that combines sy...
07/05/2026
Control surface now officially supports four DAWs
When Nektar launched the Panorama CS12 control surface, it worked exclusively with Apple's Logic Pro, ...
07/05/2026
In the first quarter 2026, SGL Carbon generated consolidated sales of 184.5 million, which was 49.8 million, or 21.3%, lower than in the prior year (Q1 2025: ...
07/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Greenerwave achieve precise and fast ESA antenna characteriz...
07/05/2026
Two multi-role L3Harris products - the Red Wolf launched effects vehicle and SK...
07/05/2026
L3Harris will be developing key features of a secure and resilient digital infra...
07/05/2026
Alysa Liu and Shohei Ohtani Help Drive Viewership as 91 of the Top 100 Broadcast...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital Wins Two Future Best of Show Awards at 2026 NAB Show
Manufacturer Recognized by TV Tech and TVBEurope for Innovation in signal processing
Cobal...
07/05/2026
Software and hardware platforms, AI power and user-friendliness on show...
07/05/2026
Intinor will demonstrate its latest technical enhancements for the Direkt series at BroadcastAsia 2026. With a continued focus on reliable contribution and remo...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI has chosen Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner, replacing MUBI's legacy on premises encoding setup to improve scalab...
07/05/2026
Meet Graduates from Berklees Class of 2026 Members of this years graduating class reflect on their proudest moments at Berklee and look ahead to whats next.
...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...