Because we couldn’t get lizzo
for drag queen, flute, and fixed media
Background:
Flutist Norman Menzales and I connected through a mutual friend. He was looking for a composer willing to craft a flashy drag show for flute and electronics that his drag queen alter ego, Mia Zowa, could perform at the National Flute Association convention. We decided that the piece should showcase the flute and poke lighthearted fun at the flute community’s often competitive culture. We titled the work Because We Couldn’t Get Lizzo because Lizzo is one of the most visible flutists in American pop culture today. Her message of self-love and confidence became the moral of this piece.
Because We Couldn’t Get Lizzo begins as Mia Zowa marches onstage to the beat of a snare drum, metronomic drill sergeant, metronome clicks, and a sampled excerpt from Sousa’s The Stars and Stripes Forever, seemingly ready to march into battle or into the practice room as it were. She readies herself to drill passages on the piccolo with military-like precision. In the following sections, she takes up the flute and performs a series of mash-ups and comedic skits meant to highlight her virtuosity and ultimate superiority as a flutist. The piece reaches a fever pitch as the tempo flies ever faster, gossiping flutists’ voices overlap and glitch, and Mia Zowa herself spins in faster and faster circles onstage wailing in the flute’s highest octave. It all comes to a screeching halt as she lip syncs to a theatrical scream and falls dramatically to the ground. She awakens to Lizzo’s “Good as Hell”.[1] Mia Zowa comes to the realization that ultimately what matters is her love of music, self-confidence, celebrating unique differences, and supporting others.
Equipment:
To perform Because We Couldn’t Get Lizzo, this is the basic equipment you will need:
· A computer to play the fixed media file from.
· A set of speakers connected to the computer directed towards the audience and, if necessary, a monitor speaker directed back at the performer. Many of the works for flute and fixed media on this album do not require a click track if the performer is able to hear the fixed media file well enough.
To control the balance between the fixed media and live flute, the live flute may be amplified. I find that micing the live flute helps it blend better with fixed media sounds. To accomplish this, I would recommend the following setup:
· A computer to play the fixed media file from. Optionally, one could use a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) to add live reverb to the flute microphone input.
· Dynamic microphone (this choice will be explained in the following section) and microphone stand.
· XLR cable with male and female ends.
· An audio interface or mixer connecting the computer, microphone input, and speaker output. One of the least expensive options for a basic audio interface with one XLR analog input and one Dual RCA stereo analog output is the Behringer U-Phoria UM2 USB Audio Interface. Audio interfaces range in quality and varying quantities of available inputs and outputs; choose one that fits your goal functionality. You could also use the Mackie Mix12FX 12-channel Compact Mixer with Effects, which comes with even more live performance versatility and the ability to easily add live effects/reverb right on the mixer.
· A set of speakers connected to the computer directed towards the audience and, if necessary, a monitor speaker directed back at the performer.
[1] Melissa Jefferson and Eric Frederic, Good as Hell, Lizzo, Atlantic Records/Nice Life, 2016, https://open.spotify.com/track/6KgBpzTuTRPebChN0VTyzV?si=2rl7ERD3QMOG0n7oFQ-YTw.