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 ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
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...
01/07/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) has announced the appointment of Kathy Samuels ...
01/07/2026
Shade has announced Custom Objects and Automations, a platform expansion releasing June 29, 2026, that adds database and workflow automation capabilities direct...
01/07/2026
FOR-A America has announced the addition of Jaz Wray and Fernando Cruz to its U.S. sales team. Both report to Ernie Leon, Senior VP and Head of Sales and Strate...
01/07/2026
NBC Sports will air all 15 MLB games nationally on Sunday, July 5, across NBC, P...
01/07/2026
Clear-Com has announced a wireless communications upgrade for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, deploying FreeSpeak II and FreeSpeak Icon systems across both prod...
01/07/2026
England's performance team will use Sony's STATSports APEX GPS tracking system to monitor player physical data in real time during FIFA World Cup 2026 m...
01/07/2026
Adder Technology has announced the appointment of Neil Hillier as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Hillier succeeds Adrian Dickens, who transiti...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. has announced a strategic transaction creating two separate companies. The Production and Playout business will continue as Bitcentral, now own...
01/07/2026
DAZN has announced results from DAZN48, its creator initiative for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Launched in April 2026, the program received thousands of applicatio...
01/07/2026
Sarah Rose, VP, global services, Daktronics (NASDAQ: DAKT), will be inducted into the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame at t...
01/07/2026
Gravity Media and the World Economic Forum's production team provided broadc...
01/07/2026
Insight Productions has announced the launch of Insight Storm, a 53-foot mobile broadcast unit built for esports production. The truck is built around a Ross Vi...
01/07/2026
ESPN has announced several content initiatives marking America's 250th anniversary, as part of The Walt Disney Company's Disney Celebrates America pro...
01/07/2026
Eleven production kits, REMI workflows, and cloud distribution bring 40 World Cu...
01/07/2026
The conference also discussed the opportunities offered an industry that is endu...
01/07/2026
The Mountain West Conference has announced the launch of MW , a direct-to-consumer streaming platform powered by Kiswe. The platform will carry live Mountain We...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Manfrotto Introduces UNCOVER, the new premium camera bag collection for modern h...
01/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Powers Houston Tamil Sangam Literacy Competition
Brie Clayton July 1, 2026
0 Comments
Volunteers use ATEM Mini Pro, Blackmagic Desig...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
PlayBox Technology has published State of Broadcast Infrastructure 2026, an in-depth industry research report examining the technologies, operational challenges...
01/07/2026
LONDON, UK, 1 JULY Jigsaw24 has appointed Alan Henry as Head of Sales for Media and Entertainment, reinforcing its continued investment in helping broadcaster...
01/07/2026
Content Vault, the patent-pending secure content distribution platform protecting high-value media from disclosures, theft and unauthorised access, today announ...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. a leading provider of enterprise software and digital media solutions for news, sports and entertainment broadcasters, as well as streaming pla...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Groundbreaking First Nations Screen Business Accelerator launched through nation...
01/07/2026
Chyron Launches the All-New Chyron Academy: A Reimagined, Hands-On Learning Expe...
01/07/2026
Amplium Captures Kawasaki Brave Thunders Game with Blackmagic URSA Cine Immersiv...
01/07/2026
Boris FX Optics Expands Plugin Support to Apple Photos, Capture One, and Affinit...
01/07/2026
UKTV has today announced the appointment of Matt Berry to the newly created role of General Manager - Marketing, effective 1 July.
Matt will take on this senio...
01/07/2026
Sky Zero Footprint Fund-backed TV campaign featuring Deborah Meaden challenges consumers to rethink everyday bathroom wasteWednesday 1 July 2026
Fussy asks Bri...
01/07/2026
Constituency-level analysis reveals where girls miss out most on sport - and where targeted action could unlock more than £640 million in economic and health be...
01/07/2026
Wuppertal July 1, 2026
Riedel and SKAARHOJ Expand Collaboration With SimplyLive IntegrationRiedel Communications today announced an expanded collaboration wit...
01/07/2026
Apple today introduced power-packed updates to Apple Creator Studio, a groundbre...
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.
