Zuck vs. Schechter' humorously destroys convention in music

The lights are dimmed in Alumnae Hall on Saturday night. Eyes dart to center stage right, focusing on a strange man _ dressed in a silk boxing robe _ and a podium. He is here to announce the Ultimate Battle in New Music: Zuck vs. Schechter a composition of exploratory music. The one time performance is the brainchild of two Tufts graduate students: William Charles Zuck III and Don Schechter. The entire composition is based on the premise that the two composers have come to duel it out, in a m??l?©e of musical genius.

Seated in the audience are students who have come to casually enjoy and behold the musical mystery that will play before them. The scene is in stark contrast to the audiences to which classical music has been played for in the past _ imagine the Austrian court seated in the metal fold-away chairs of Alumnae Lounge. This incredible departure from the rigid formalities of traditional classic music marks a notable achievement for the two composers: orchestral music can be truly enjoyed by all audiences.

I shift uncomfortably in my seat, wondering what on earth has come to unfold before my eyes. Moments later the air fills with the grating sounds of a metaphorical exchange of words that is incomprehensible: high-pitched piccolo and flute followed by the intensity of pounding piano, and the velvety melancholy of a cello.

I leaf through the program puzzled and find that a "Storm" has, indeed, come to pass. The piece just mentioned is a chip off the Zuck vs. Schechter iceberg; 'the shortest and most violent movement' is what the pamphlet reads, and I find myself nodding in agreement.

Much of what proceeds throughout the concert is in the realm of the absurd, a fusion of elements that draws upon literature, the personal inspiration of close friends and the random. The pieces flow as though they are a diverse concoction of no single particular idea.

Loosely structured on the whims of two composers, one draws the conclusion this composition is very much in the vein of the stream-of-consciousness style. With the only apparent underlying theme being the death of conventional classical music, 'Zuck vs. Schechter' leaves one grappling for a meaning to the madness.

In a piece titled "Dennis," soprano Claire McCarthy belts out, "Why does my neighbor's dog shit on my lawn?" This offbeat sense of humor is characteristic of the manner in which the concert material is presented leaving many with a youthfully light, and almost playful, taste of musical composition. One wonders, however, when it is time to stop laughing and begin taking their music seriously.

As the concert slowly draws to a close, the two composers themselves emerge carrying their own instruments. Schechter is playing the theremin, and William Zuck III the marimba, accompanied by clarinetist Lee Todd Zacks. Hearty laughter rises from the audience as the three engage in an improvisational trio. This improved comical mishmash of sound and theatrics proceeds with a strange sense of fluidity.

At the end of the show, the audience is left with the final impression of two composers who have each offered a unique glimpse into their hearts. There is joy, sadness, anger, fury, heartbreak, and the ensuing chaos reflected in their music. They have imparted to their audience a sense of intimacy and vulnerability that are lacking in the traditional forms usually found in classical music. They have demonstrated that classical music can be ridiculous, frivolous, and even absurd; for Zuck and Schechter, it's all about having fun.