4 The results of the project: The Fruits
This chapter presents a reflection of the outcomes of the HumanTree project. It is based on my personal reflections and the feedback I received from the audience, the musicians and artists involved. The feedback that is not anonymous is used with permission.
There was a beautiful moment when one of the artists, following the metaphor that has guided the project, told me that the HumanTree already gave him fruits in the form of new seeds. Like the energy from eating a walnut, this reflection thus seeks out the energy, or insights, I have gained for future projects. The following five subsections present insights from the analyses of this creation.
4.1 Attitude
A spontaneous attitude is learned from moving to unfamiliar contexts, cultures, where I explored a different way of living. This leads to more flexibility, respect, patience, openness and understanding towards collaboration processes. In my opinion, the key for any successful creation is to be ready for the unexpected things, appreciating and accepting everything that arises along the process. For this, it is also essential to create a place where everybody's feelings and ideas are appreciated and accepted. Being grateful to others contributions is a key aspect in creating a favourable collaborative atmosphere. These values builded a special connection between the members of the team and could be felt during the performance on stage resulting in an extended connection with the audience. As one person from the audience mentioned in a instagram reflection:
In classical music sometimes we tend to forget that the best music is created when we dare to spend enough time with the others and trust everybody’s own musicianship. And yesterday @breathing.humantree was a great example of trust and communication. (Instagram post, 2019)
My wish is that through projects like this we could develop and practise a greater awareness and understanding towards yourself and others. Creativity arouses from this connection of respect and trust.
4.2 Collaborative creativity
From what I learnt through this reflection work, a collaborative creation only can happen if you spend enough time with the musicians sharing common goals and meanings towards the project, sharing personal values, trusting each other musicianship, improvising and communicating in deeper levels through music.
My original aim was to involve everybody in the same level, even myself. During the process of this creation everybody had busy schedules so it was impossible to maintain this equal involvement of the participants. Moreover, because it was my master concert, I had to take a leadership role being the one in charge of coordinating all the different creations and collaborations as well as for imprinting my personal identity to the project. Nevertheless, the musicians of the project were free to add their personal ideas, melting these individual creations into a collective creation.
I learnt for future projects that even though there may be a leadership role and different involvement of the musicians, collective creativity is possible.
4.3 Personal identity
Travelling, and meeting other cultures, has made me appreciate the values of my own roots. The tradition of La tronca with its connection with trees played an important role in establishing my own artistic identity. This process of collaboration, allowed me to be who I am. As mentioned by Adriano Adewale (musician and supervisor of the project),
Roser's attitude and charisma towards musicians (on rehearsals and concert) and audience was filled with joy and spontaneity. She reacted and behaved very naturally, as if she was at home. There was no need to act on anything, but to leave and let things happen. This very attitude was felt throughout the rehearsals and at the concert, which created a feeling of intimacy and a relaxed atmosphere. (Email conversation, July 2020).
Personally, the project is a way to connect with myself and nature while learning from others. Because the project focuses on what and how we learn through the process it is becoming a meaningful platform of personal growth through the art. The value and benefits of this artistic creation are not only in the artistic outcome, but as important as how the process has contributed to our wellbeing. It was beautiful to hear the reflection of Josue Moreno, supervisor of the project, about his witness of my personal growth. This comment also reflects the spontaneous nature of our meeting and the potential of art,
It happens that by chance you coincide with someone in a railway station. Sometime later we are sitting in a library floor and all of a sudden that person starts growing and growing and you can just feel lucky of witnessing the miracle that true, honest and talented people can create. Art can heal and forgive like nothing else. Roser Gabriel gave us yesterday one of the most honest and touching musical events I have witnessed in a long time. Thanks for bringing all this project forth and for truly making us grow with it. (Facebook post, December 2019)
The accordion played a big role in understanding my own identity as I feel the instrument as an extension of myself and therefore a tool for expressing myself honestly. However, from this project I realized that my creativity goes beyond a mere instrumental play to directing a whole artistic creation.
4.4 Contribution to society
I found out that bringing a connection with trees was raising the interest and motivation of the other artists towards the project, as well from the audience. I realized everybody has a special connection with trees and therefore through trees we all could express or relate to our personal self. One audience member emphasized a reconnection with himself through the performance. From the memories of the concert he states that ‘nature connects us with ourselves and so does the music’ (Facebook conversation, June 2020).
The HumanTree project is born with a vision and therefore a dream to contribute to society in topics such as wellbeing and environment. Positively, these seeds have a clear potential for future collaborations. For example the project could take pedagogical action while remarking the importance of the new generations to think creatively towards such topics by actively participating in the artistic project. This project could be diversified according to various social and cultural aspects. As observed by Adriano Adewale,
I think the project as a whole has a strong potential - as seen in the concert - to bring to light several aspects related to trees, to human growth, humanity, sustainability, traditions, respect and more. (...) Furthermore, there is the environmental aspect of it, and the whole world is looking at this issue right now!! So I think yes, the theme had a big role in connecting people. (Email conversation, July 2020)
The personal but universal meanings of the seven themes with all the values behind its creation gave much expression to the musical notes. One example from one person from the audience is the impact created by the topic of the sixth theme, the relief of forgiveness. She uploaded a photo of the projection in the facebook cover, as well as in a facebook post: “An inspiring picture from Roser Gabriel concert Human Tree. Forgive. I forgive myself, I forgive you” (Facebook post, December 2019). By informal feedback she told me how much the topic remained in her mind and helped her on personal levels.
4.5 Porous structure
While the purpose and vision would likely remain, the music structures, with its themes, melodies, harmonies, rhythms may need to change, for example depending on the artists involved. By asking to Adriano Adewale I got this answer:
As for the melodies and rhythms and harmony, I think what you have is a material which came up from your first attempt to bring this project to life. I think it should be profoundly respected and I am sure the more you work on this material, the more it will reveal new things to you. Even when a tune is composed, it takes time for it to mature itself and you can find different corners within it... However, I also think time changes, perspectives change and that you can also allow yourself to both give these tunes a new shape or to come up with new tunes altogether.. Personally, I could not see these first songs which are almost like the gate into that experience, to be fully forgotten. Even on a new concert with only new material, I believe these first songs would somehow be present. (Email conversation, June 2020)
From this feedback and the reflection of all the creation I realize how powerful is the material that is now holding the structure of the HumanTree. Flexibility and intuition will have to lead the new decisions. The nature of the HumanTree project makes future collaborations not limited by a certain composition of instruments or a specific amount of players. From the examiners of the performance I got a good recommendation in which they emphasized the many colours that my personality is bringing on stage, making me rethink on a smaller instrumentation for future projects.
I might explore within different kinds and combinations of collaborations and exploring new balances in the involvement of the members. The level of my leadership on the project may vary according to the available time to build a connection between the members of the project and with the topic of the HumanTree.
Every different collaboration will bring new seeds to the project resulting in another unique HumanTree.