Coco

A Woman of Her Time: Coco Chanel Sings, a song cycle by my friend the composer Scott Wheeler, premiered at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, D.C., in February of 2025. I just watched it on YouTube, and was captivated.  Where to begin? It starts so simply, even frivolously, but by the end, we are convinced that Coco is a woman of all time, not just her own. Art vs. Fashion. Men vs. Women. Art vs. Entertainment. Where does one begin and the other end? Does an artist entertain at his or her peril? Or is a mix of the two necessary for any successful engagement with an audience? And oh, does this piece have an awareness of its audience! That's so much a part of its charm: that engagement. The direct address. (And what a fun surprise when that connection is broken when soprano Katherine Lerner Lee speaks directly to the maestro for one moment!) She is so coy, seductive, but also so honest and self aware. She begins as an innocent, naive -- words reprised in the piece to great effect. By the end, she has learned, grown, changed, while retaining the characteristics that made her uniquely Coco. It's hard to believe this piece is  only thirty minutes long. So many moods created, so  many chapters, an entire life story told. I love the rhymes, never obvious, then when, after the anticipation, they are delivered, they are so right. Quaint/saint.   Huit/eat. There is lots of humor: e.g., her first bad reviews came from her mother, saying she was a bad girl! This is balanced by the seriousness: the occupation of France during the NAzi era and her liaison with the enemy. Her retort is Biblical. How about your own morals? Bravo! I didn't know Coco's story until now.  And I do believe fashion is a serious subject (hats, handbags, hemlines, and all).  If anyone were in doubt, I would suggest they see the Apple TV series La Maison.  Or else they should have a listen and look at A Woman of Her Time!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79w7wmXTTpY