It is an undisputed fact that musical circles in Taiwan currently take little notice of new works from local composers. For example, of the ROC's three leading orchestras, only the Taiwan Symphony Orchestra regularly performs local works. Neither the Taipei Municipal Orchestra nor the National Symphony Orchestra has any substantial long-term program, and when local works are performed they are mostly by composers who are already well known. There are no overt channels for introducing new blood.
If private organizations wish to put on performances of new works, then from selecting the program and reproducing the scores to finding performers, a venue and funds, it all requires a great deal of preparatory work. Probably the two most prominent private organizations with both the funds and the personnel to stage such events are the Asian Composers' Conference and the International Society for Contemporary Music. But the ISCM mainly aims to introduce ROC composers' works abroad and promote international exchanges, and although the ACC put on an "Asian Composers' Conference/ Festival" in Taiwan just this May, it was an event which may not be repeated for many years. The only organization systematically providing opportunities for new works to be performed and bringing on new composers is Ma Shui-long's "Spring and Autumn Euterpe Concert Series."
Thus a new composer wanting to get his work performed has no choice but to enter competitions. The Taiwan Symphony Orchestra has been running a competition for the last three years, but each year the main prizewinners have been composers from mainland China. The Council for Cultural Planning and Development also runs a competition, but the way it operates leaves something to be desired.
Essential elements
Chang Yu-hui, who is about to go to Boston University to study compositional theory, had an unforgettable experience. When she was studying music at National Taiwan Normal University, she had a new piece performed which was very well received by the composers who were present. Her tutor entered the piece in the Council for Cultural Planning and Development's competition, where it made it through the first round but not the final. Later one of the judges revealed the reason: when they read the score, they "didn't understand it." "When I heard that I felt really frustrated," says Chang Yu-hui. Although spoken lightheartedly, her words reveal the pitfalls of trying to assess works simply on paper.
For a piece to be successfully written and performed, a composer, backers, performers, an audience and critics are all essential. But unfortunately because modern music appeals to such a small number of people, it is seen as a curse at the box office, and has no chance to build up such a structure. Thus composers can only place their hopes in the government; but in the view of Wu Hsiu-lan of the Council for Cultural Planning and Development's music section, "ours is a supporting role; we don't have executive powers. We hope that the private sector will take the initiative, and the Council will assist with funding." At the moment it would appear that there is little common ground between them.
But the success of the recent "Score of Composers from the Republic of China on Taiwan" event in New York reveals at least to some degree that this environment could be changed if only the will were there.
Lifting the box office curse
New York is known as a city of culture, but performances of new works attract sparse audiences, just as in Taiwan. Although the "Score of Composers" event may have benefited from American musical circles' curiosity towards Taiwanese composers, in fact at first tickets for the event did not sell all that well.
When Pan Hwang-long, who produced the event, arrived in New York 10 days before it was due to start, on average only 30% of the tickets had been sold for the event's three concerts and a panel discussion. After some thought, Pan adopted a two-pronged strategy. On the one hand he used contacts of the composers taking part in the event to publicize and promote it, and as a result some people bought as many as 30 or more tickets to give to their students; and on the other hand he also relied on the resources of the CCNAA Information Division. Thus for three days running, the World Journal ran long articles announcing the event, and it also reported on the "Taiwan composers' panel discussion," which was held on 7 September.
It is worth noting that the strategy for this publicity was not random, but distinguished between the nature of the performances. For instance, the first concert comprised vocal music, so in view of the language barrier they concentrated on ethnic Chinese, but the second and third concerts comprised instrumental music played on Western instruments. As Westerners were more likely to feel affinity for such music, the publicity for these concerts was mainly directed towards them.
Perhaps the key to lifting modern music's box office "curse" lies in correctly assessing audiences' preferences, and designing publicity and programs accordingly!
Apart from this, in Europe there are many foundations which support composers, and there are radio stations which broadcast classical and modern music 24 hours a day. There are music festivals and performing events large and small, and numerous international organizations carrying on exchanges in the field of modern music. Despite the different cultural background, there is much in their approach which we could adopt.
