Instructor Spotlight: Chloë Nemes and Sam Stearns
What inspired you to teach this course?
Chloë: I am a solo musician, a drummer in a band, and a member of the New Music Ensemble. When I started playing music at Tufts, I realized how many judgments and fears surrounding mistakes were ingrained in my system—leaving me eager to find out why, as well as how to discover a different way of being.
Sam: I care a lot about music! That’s the underlying framework for why I’m doing this. But what prompted this particular topic, and the way we’ve arranged it, is that I’ve noticed a lack of sophistication in music dialogues among non-musicians. Those conversations seem to be reserved for people taking high-level classes that deal with advanced theory. So at its core, this class seeks to open up music discourse to anybody who feels passionately about music, regardless of whether or not they call themselves “musicians.”
How do you define imperfection in the context of music making?
Sam: In our first few sessions, we’ve tried (humbly) to chase after something like a definition, and I was struck by the range of responses. To me, imperfection is the human element—things that arise in songs that are unpredictable, or surprising, or weird. I define it positively, but I’ve also seen people that have negative responses that have more to do with the product of musicians not meeting with their intentions. This all to say there is no one definition! That’s what makes it so interesting.
What can imperfection in music teach us about the world around us?
Chloë: Imperfection in music can teach us to embrace the unknown. Through group discussions, we can analyze the academic, musical, and societal culture we live in, and realize the collective consciousness that has driven our behaviors and thought processes. By sharing our personal perspectives as well, and by engaging in debates, we can learn to open our minds to one another and the imperfections in creation all around us. Only by becoming aware of the judgments we hold can we accept creation beyond these conceptions—a world of radical openness and empathy.
What are your favorite pieces of music?
Chloë: My favorite pieces of music right now are “Bending Hectic” by The Smile, “Falling Free” by Eivør, and “Movies” by Weyes Blood. I also love my own music.
Sam: It’s hard to say ever, so I’ll settle with recently. I’ve been uncontrollably looping Audrey Hobert’s debut Who’s the Clown?, an excellent new candid-pop record out of California. Also, Black Midi’s Geordie Greep (what a name) released a misanthropic, uncomfortable record called The New Sound a year and a half ago—it’s hard to listen to, but once you get in its flow state it can be transcendent. (I say this half-sarcastically, just like he would.)
Chloë Nemes is a senior majoring in Biopsychology and Music, Sound & Culture.
Sam Stearns is a junior majoring in English and minoring in Music and Anthropology.