Robert Ashley on Language, Opera, and the Sublime in the Ordinary

Composer Robert Ashley performed at the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris for the first time in a decade, invited by art press for its 40th anniversary. He presented two pieces from his recent opera Concrete: 'Idées sur la réflexion' about a successful woman, and 'Un jour sur la planète Gilbert' about a friend from Detroit who died of cancer at 40. Concrete explores the thoughts of an old man alone for ten hours daily; Ashley performed solo at the BnF, using only his voice to blur speech and song. He discussed his new opera in the form of a thriller, aiming for rapid delivery inspired by American fast speech in advertising, evangelical sermons, and rap. Ashley reflected on his mother's insistence on proper pronunciation, linking voice to social class, and his preference for writing about people he knows rather than historical figures. He criticized the high cost of traditional opera and his failed attempts to secure funding, leading him to consider television as a medium. Ashley emphasized his focus on happiness and perfection in his characters, as seen in Perfect Lives, and described his writing as a new type neither poetry nor prose. The interview was conducted by Jacqueline Caux.