Authors Intentions

I'd like to explore this idea of intent, conent and style a bit more, in the context of music. I'm currently involved in a project which involves taking original songs from local musicians and recording them with new arrangements. The snag (for the musician) is that they have no say in how the arrangement will be constructed . . . that is solely the domain of me and the partner I'm working with on this project. The only assurance the artist gets is that we will respect their dignity and preserve the integrity of their lyrics. Some of those whom we have approached are reluctant to be a a part of this project. More on these later. Most, though, are happy to be a part of it. There seem to be three main reasons: 1 they are curious what a different and unimagined treatment might do to their song ('unimagined' is an appropriate word, because we are stretching our creative boundaries); 2 they are interested in having their song produced, because quite a few haven't experienced this; 3 they had not conceived of an arrangement other than how they play it themselves, i.e. their interpretation of their own material is restricted by virtue of what they could do themselves with their guitar (or piano, or whatever). Those who are reluctant to take part are those who have a strong emotional and intellectual attachment to their work: "I do my songs this way because I believe it is the way it should be done, it is the way I want it done, and after all, it is my song." In discussions of content versus style, this latter group is interesting, because, for them, content is inseparable from style. A diversion from their conception of the song is looked on as a contamination of their idea and how it should be conveyed. The former group reflects this idea that content can be divorced from style, and that their intent can be preserved through them recording, in effect, a cover of their own material. When we turn to theatre, I can imagine there are writers who, like the second group, conceive of a play in a particular way, and would not countenance a diversion from their vision. My fragile memory says this might be true of "Phantom of the Opera" or "Les Mis" (but I could easily be mistaken). On the other hand, I expect there are many more writers who understand that differing interpretations are what add new life to their creations, and expect them as a matter of course. Writers have to communicate their intentions to prospective directors. They way they can do this is through the play's 'metatext', i.e. information about the play that is not the play itself. This can be in the form of directions that accompany a licencing agreement, or in directions within, but not part of the actual play. With our musical project, we have the advantage in that the mextatext is obtained personally . . . we talk directly to the people involved. This is handy, because it is the least ambiguous. Philosophically, we may agree that content and style are not unbreakably connected. For some creators, the bond is not breakable, because they declare it to be so.