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Oberlin Portrait: Tom Lopez
Challenging Notions and Bringing People Together through Music
Story by Michael Chipman
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EXCERPTS • "Nocturne" for solo piano, with pianist
Hye Kyung Lee, performed and recorded in Warner
Concert Hall, December 2, 1999. • "They Hearken to Echoes" for two flutes,
with flutists Eric Lamb ('01) from Detroit,
Michigan, and Claire Rose Chase ('00) from
Leucadia, California. Recorded in Warner Concert
Hall on December 2, 1999. • "CommEnt" is an electronic piece, the
third in a trilogy composed for a dancer at the
University of Texas at Austin. RELATED Works by Tom Lopez and Hye Kyung Lee to be Showcased Texas Musicians' Network Comes to Oberlin Grants-in-Aid Fund Research for 8 Faculty Members Tom Lopez's Recent and Upcoming Events
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Through
his music, Tom
Lopez ('87), visiting
instructor of computer music and new media, asks people to
question the way they think. "I hope that, after people
experience one of my pieces, they think of things
differently," says Lopez. "For example, I have a piece for
voice and tape in which the singer uses no words -- only
vowel sounds -- but still it has a sense of narrative. In
that piece I hope people will get the idea that sounds from
a human voice can communicate a story and emotions,
independent of words."
He continues, "I have another piece, 'They Hearken to Echoes' for two flutes that is about coming together. Musically, it comes together in many ways: thematically, timbrally, rhythmically, etc. The performers also come together physically when at the beginning of the piece one of the performers is behind the stage and one is behind the audience. They gradually move toward each other and by the end of the piece they are face to face on stage. While it is common to think of music as an art form that brings people together -- audiences, performers, conductors -- that idea is often taken for granted. In this piece I want to make people more conscious of what a magical, amazing thing it is when people join and make music."
 In TIMARA Studios, Jim Altieri, Tom Lopez, Mark Bartscher, Kristen Waite and Eric Suquet. Photo by Michael Chipman |
Still relatively early in his career, Lopez has heard his music (acoustic and electronic) performed worldwide, and he is a tireless supporter of other young composers. "I have been a supporter of young composers since I was a student here, when I began composing," he says. "At that time I was surrounded by a really wonderful group of people with shared aesthetics and ideals. It was a great community and I have tried to contribute to community everywhere I have gone -- both to support young composers and because I enjoy being a part of that circle of people. In a corner of the music industry that is not steeped in tradition or consumed by pop culture, there is not much outside support, so we have to create our own community."
Lopez hosts FOLDOVER, a two-hour radio show every Monday, 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. on Oberlin's own WOBC (91.5 FM) in which he has broadcast music from around the world. He has also produced numerous concerts around the country for contemporary music organizations, including SEAMUS (Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States), SCI (Society of Composers, Inc.) and TCMN (Texas Computer Musician's Network), among others.
 "This was a photo taken of me and my golden retriever, Apollo, 6-7 years ago," says Lopez. "It was taken in Texas on a road trip across the country. When I originally had the picture developed it was just a beautiful orange sunset with a black foreground. Then, years later when I was looking through the negatives, I noticed there was something else in the foreground. So I took it back to the photo lab and had them over-expose the negative and there we appeared. Apollo was 'the best dog in the world' (7/1984-3/2000). I have it framed next to the original photo at home - they make a nice pair." |
Actually, my first memory of music is from Oberlin, of a marching band, at night, on the streets when they were still made of brick. My Grandmother lived in Oberlin so it must have been when I was a young child visiting her.
How old were you when you started
playing?
I was eight years old when I started taking piano
lessons.
What inspired you to be a
musician?
I recognized at an early age that there is more to aural
communication than words. Certainly it was a subconscious
recognition -- I didn't ascribe voices to all the events
which seemed to "speak" -- but the atmospheric and physical
impact of sound has always been evident to me.
What keeps you inspired on
discouraging days?
On discouraging days, I do something else, preferably
something physical, like working on my truck or motorcycle.
The inspiration is always here when I return to music. I am
not afraid of creativity disappearing when I turn my back;
in fact, it is often most generous when I don't pay
attention.
If you could perform with one
musician living or dead, who would it be and what would you
perform?
George Clinton, though Frank Zappa is a close second,
but if I have to choose only one, I think it would be
Clinton.
If you could master another
instrument, what would it be?
Oh, I really wish I could sing!
If you couldn't be a musician what
profession would you choose?
Astronomer.
Which profession would you
definitely not choose?
Waiter.
What do you listen to after a long
day?
As little as possible
What do you like to read?
Poetry and fiction -- never newspapers.
The three words that best describe
you:
Interested, active and irrepressible.
