Ray Chen and Julien Quentin in concert for Musica Viva. Photo: Alex Jamieson.
In an attempt to shake up its appeal and audience accessibility the ways in which classical music is being marketed are changing. This is a recent development, ‘adopted in an attempt to overcome classical music’s “fusty” reputation,’ according to writer Maxim Boon.
Taiwanese-Australian violinist and recording artist Ray Chen has performed around the world, and acknowledges that there are many barriers for the audience when it comes to accessing classical music.
‘Everyone stereotypically thinks that musicians are very uptight. We walk on stage wearing the penguin suit and we bow and do our thing – it’s unrelatable,’ Chen told ArtsHub.
‘I wanted to change that perception of classical music, and I wanted to break that barrier. And I thought “You know, we [musicians] are pretty funny people,” and I wanted to show a different side,’ he said.
With a down-to-earth attitude and lighthearted nature Chen wanted to reach audiences on a more authentic level, and he found that social media allowed him to do just that. ‘So I started with that, thinking, “Well, what can I show the audience?” They weren’t even my audience, because when you’re beginning you don’t really have an audience yet.’
Chen began creating comedic videos and posting them on his Facebook page. ‘I actually started on Facebook and I did these short funny videos – that was back when Vine was still around – I tried to involve prominent musicians, an entire orchestra sometimes. I was just trying to make classical music more relatable.’
As his videos gained in popularity Chen created an Instagram page. ‘When I first began interacting online, there was a lot of talk around how “classical music is dying,” and I was hearing all these things, and I thought to myself, well, there’s a lot of young people still learning instruments, and it wasn’t that long ago I remember I was one of those kids.’
Social media is an ideal way to reach younger audiences, according to Chen. ‘I think the great thing about social media is that it’s a very natural thing; especially for the younger generation – because they grew up with it.’
While each social media platform requires its own language or approach, Instagram is probably the best suited for communicating in the arts, Chen believes.
‘I think Instagram is the most artist friendly. Especially for a classical musician – there’s something more accessible and simple way about the platform in the way it presents itself,’ he said.
Today, Chen’s combined followers on Instagram and YouTube are in excess of 100,000. He shares live performances, tutorials, playing tips and advice for artists with his followers, acknowledging that expensive concerts and lack of mentor access are among the barriers stopping people from approaching classical music.
‘I think it’s always been a common theme throughout all of this – and coincidentally we are celebrating the 100th birthday of Leonard Bernstein who was also a great believer that music should be for everyone.’
Advice for young artists
On moments that change you
In 1998, Chen was invited to perform at the Japanese Winter Olympics to celebrate the legacy of Japanese musician and educator Dr Shinichi Suzuki. This was a pivotal moment in his early life, Chen told ArtsHub.
‘It was a beautiful thing. It was promoting peace through music. And that experience, to be invited to play violin as an eight-year-old, and to travel to a foreign country, it was so cool. It made me realise, “OK this is what I want to do.”
‘At what point do you emerge into your own? These are all important moments that have happened slowly, and rather than being about a single point it’s the steps; it’s like filling a giant basin full of experiences – and then for the longest time you are always thinking that it’s never enough, and suddenly you realise it’s full. And you’re just so happy and you get to carry around this giant basin of water.’
On insecurities
Despite winning the 2008 International Yehudi Menuhin Violin Competition and the 2009 Queen Elisabeth Music Competition, Chen said he definitely has more losses then wins, and he believes losses should be seen as a positive experience. Chen has created a four part series on YouTube on the topic of insecurities for emerging artists.
‘I’ve lost more than I’ve won; when you look at a musician’s CV we don’t write down the bad stuff – but they’re positive experiences.
‘And I just had more and more of these positive experiences that hardened my resolve. All the experiences add more to the investment you’ve made emotionally, in your heart. You invest a lot of your time, but more importantly you invest a lot with your heart.’
www.raychenviolin.com
