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LoginMJ Conference Coming To Chicago
(17-5-2010) The Center for Black Music Research (CBMR), based at Columbia College Chicago, will present a major conference on the art of Michael Jackson's music. The conference will take place in various downtown Chicago locations on September 23-25.
"Genius Without Borders: Michael Jackson" will present scholars, critics and Jackson associates discussing the art, life and times of the King of Pop. All events will be open to the public and most of them will be free. To date, cultural critic Greg Tate, black studies professor Mark Anthony Neale and scholar Daphne Brooks, just to name a few, have signed on as guest speakers.
When asked why organize the event now, so soon after Jackson's death last June, Monica Hairston, executive director of the CBMR, said,
I noticed immediately after his death last summer that there was a lot of uncritical celebration, which I think was great. But I think that now, several months later, we're really ready to look at the legacy in a critical way and understand the artistic processes and the genius that was involved in creating this icon. We felt it was a good time to open up the opportunity for some serious scholarship to be started."
The event will build on the CBMR's much-discussed conference of last year, "Genius Without Borders: A Symposium in Honor of the Genius of Ray Charles." But the Jackson event will differ from the Charles event in one very significant way – musicians will not be playing Jackson's songs as they did at the Charles symposium. Vocalists and instrumentalists performed Ray Charles classics with the CBMR's New Black Music Repertory Ensemble. But not this time. Says Harriston,
We realized that even though we had a really successful performance of Ray Charles' music … so many artists had kind of yoked onto his compositions, and [audiences] had an ear to hear them as standards. Whereas people want to hear the Michael Jackson songs as they are. They are unique, aural, studio-created works of art. And without those specific studio sounds, I don't think audiences want to hear them. I think that will change over time, but it's all still so new."
Scheduling for "Genius Without Borders: Michael Jackson" has yet to be finalized, but Hairston says that in addition to the already announced guests, individuals who worked with Jackson and knew him personally will also be on hand.
For more details, contact the Center for Black Music Research at 312-369-7559.
Source: MJFC / chicagotribune.com
