Marijana Janevska - wh(I) not

Abschlusskonzert Marijana Janevska
24.07.2020 Hochschüle für Muzik, Theater und Medien Hannover
Flute: Helena Montag
Clarinet: Alexander Prill
The piece “wh(I) not” refers to Samuel Beckett’s plays “Not I” and “Rockaby”. They are both monologues, played by old female characters. What I find to be interesting about Beckett is that he treats the text, or language as music. So, not that he only… Not only that he focuses on the meaning of the words, but also on the sounding. On the raw gesture of the sounding words, deprived from meaning. The way that he does this is by repetition and by breaking the language structure. There are no complete sentences, but parts and fragments of sentences, or phrases, or words, that are distributed, seemingly unrelated. What holds everything together are a few separate lines, or stories, that are cut in different ways and mixed together, giving only glimpses, or flashes of the whole picture, yet we are never given the whole picture. By deleting explanation and connection, he creates absence, thus rejecting the system of chronology and causality.
So, in the piece, there is a dialog between two opposing forces... or characters… or identities, that work against each other. But, not really…. I mean… actually… in point of fact… these two (I)dentities… the first and the second… these two (I)dentities already contain in themselves… both already… already contain in themselves the other (I)dentity… I mean… the second (I)dentity…. but… which is the first and which the second? and wh(I) is the first first and not the second? well… I mean… you know… I am not that kind of a person. No, I never… I would never…
ok… go on... so.... opposing identities… no, opposing characters… no, opposing… opposing forces… yes. let’s say opposing forces… or characters… or identities… no matter.... so… the important thing is that they are working against each other… but you also said that both contain each other within… both… contain each other within... this is what you said…. both contain... both… the one contains the other and the other contains the one… but… which is the one and which the other? and wh(I) is the one one and not the other? what? who? no… I am really not that kind of a person. I never… I would never…
ok… so… (I)-den-ti-ties… no… forces… that work against each other… but both also… I mean both… both also… the first and the second… also contain each other within…. so, does this mean that they work against themselves too? well… actually… in point of fact… they do, don’t they? they do... yes, they do… maybe… they certainly do... they certainly do do that... they do.... certainly... they do do that... do do that
do do that
do do that
do do that
do do that
do do that
do do that
perhaps…
perhaps they do do that
certainly….
well… I am telling you… I am really not that kind of a person. I never… I would never…
ok… so… what I wanted to say… what I wanted… what I… what? who? no… really… I am telling you… I am not… I am… I am not… in point of fact… what I wanted to say… in point of fact… is… that… to put it like this… the (I)dentities are never really clear… or clean… or clear.. or clean.. or clear. or clean. or… I mean…. you know what I mean…. I mean that there are no clear…. no… there are no clean…. there are no clean borders between them…. yes, borders… no borders… without borders… no clear borders between them... between both... between the first and the second (I)denti… yes, the first and second… but no… I mean… now… wh(I) is the first first and not the second? Yes… about the (I)dentity… no… there are no borders… no... no clear.. no clean borders between them… so… it may even be that… in point of fact… the (I)dentities… so called… called… cold... are merging and transforming into one another…. the one and the other… the another one... and the one... merging into one… with the other… with the another one… but… wait… why is the one one and not… wh(I) is one one and not two? but, what has that to do with… what has the two to do with… the two to do… the two… to do… two to do
two to do
two to do
two to do
two to do
two to do

to do
to do
to do
Two to do with the I…. I mean… with the (I)dentity…. well… I was just saying that… you know… that… um… well… I am really not that kind of a person…. no... I never... I would never…. I…
I
I
I
I
I
why
I
wh(I)
wh(I) not