Interview: Ayanna Witter-Johnson
Ayanna Witter-Johnson is a singer, songwriter and cellist. She is a ‘rare exception to the rule that classical and alternative R&B music cannot successfully coexist’. After graduating with a first from both Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance and the Manhattan School of Music, Witter-Johnson was a participant in the London Symphony Orchestra’s Panufnik Young Composers Scheme and became an Emerging Artist in Residence at the Southbank Centre. She went on to become the only non-American to win Amateur Night Live at the legendary Apollo Theatre in Harlem (previous winners include Ella Fitzgerald, Jimi Hendrix and The Jackson 5).
We chatted about diversity in the classical music industry, being a woman in the sector, and the music that’s been getting her through the last year. Our Spotify playlist includes a taster of Witter-Johnson’s unique style, along with some of her favourite music.
Your bio says that you’re ‘a rare exception to the rule that classical and alternative R&B music cannot successfully coexist’. How would you describe your music in terms of genre?
I generally try to resist putting myself into a genre. From what I can hear, it's predominantly acoustic soul music with a very strong classical and jazz foundation, with elements of reggae, pop and folk, depending on the song.
How do you feel about having the ‘classical’ label? Is that something you own or do you think people apply it to you because you’re playing the cello?
Both but my definition of ‘classical’ is most probably a wider one than generally accepted. I embrace it because so much of my musical foundation and learning and upbringing and understanding of writing music comes from a classical root. I learned the piano and the cello classically and studied classical composition for many years.
I get a strong ‘Bach Cello Suites’ vibe from some of your tracks (such as Roxanne).
Bach’s Cello Suite No. 2 is one of my favourite pieces of music ever. When I'm creating those moments or those cadenzas, I feel like I'm totally channelling that harmonic sound.
There can be resistance to anything that’s not ‘pure classical’ from within the industry. Do you receive criticism? Does that affect you or the music you create?
I don't even listen to it. There have been a few things online that have got comments. For example, I did a performance of Roxanne at Het Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. It went kind of crazy and got 3 million views plus on Facebook. As you can imagine with that number of people viewing something, there's going to be all kinds of responses to it. I got things like “this isn't how you play the cello" because I'm standing. There’s always criticism if you're mixing things together. I'm happy to let those criticisms just wash over me because I am who I am and I'm definitely not changing for an anonymous viewer who probably doesn't play the cello.
How about when you collaborate with the bigger, more traditional ensembles?
I do have some apprehensions especially when I work with any organisation that I know has a strong core purist audience, but even within that there'll be people who only want Beethoven programmes, and not Adès, so within classical music itself there are these divides anyway.
It can sometimes feel like there’s only one set path within the industry that we’re meant to follow, and it can be hard for musicians to deviate from that. It’s good to see someone be unapologetic about not wanting to go down that path.
I've never had the aspiration to be a classical soloist. The soloist route seems extremely competitive in an unhealthy way. I’m sure there are soloists who don’t care much about the competition and are able to fully express themselves, but it seems like a lot of people are damaged by that extreme competition. I’ve got so much respect for pretty much any soloist that can memorise any concerto and it’s beautiful to watch, but I just knew that particular path wasn’t my path. For me, music is about expressing your individuality and allowing your voice to resonate with whatever the audience is you manage to gather. That doesn't have anything to do with playing this perfectly or being in this particular place at that particular time. We have a lot more choice and opportunities to explore our own voices, and why not do that?
You’ve performed in all kinds of settings - concert halls, gig venues, bars… The energy must be so different in these spaces. How do you respond to that and does it change how you perform?
I've done those songs so many times in all of these different places and every gig feels so different. Sometimes I'll be like "can I even play my instrument?" and another time think "that was the best experience of my life". The most important thing for me is to be able to hear my cello and to be able to tune my voice with my cello. If that doesn't happen, it's already over before it's begun.
Your latest EP is about celebrating your cultural heritage as a British-born Jamaican, and I want to ask you about this within the context of classical music. How do you think the sector is doing on the diversity front?
There are always going to be a few bright stars and shining stars that will emerge on the strength of their talents, but there’s still a long way to go with orchestral and compositional presence. If you don't see that example it's difficult to know that that's even something that you should be reaching for, so we need composers and performers to be more visible in the space. I know people who learned an instrument at school but were never encouraged to continue that, so for some it’s not that they were never exposed to it but it didn’t look like a pathway that they could continue. I feel like I have the responsibility of being visible and continuing to be on my path and to do things the way I choose to do them in order to just let there be a different voice in the space.
How do we keep making progress with this, especially at the moment when many schools aren’t able to prioritise music education?
It’s a grassroots effort from the beginning. The scene is made up of a lot of different organisations so within every organisation, what can you do? I felt super encouraged by collaborating with the London Symphony Orchestra on a young musician’s scheme they have with the East London Academy. A lot of those young musicians were from African and Caribbean backgrounds, and they were able to work with the highest level orchestral players, and also see me working with them as a composer. It was good for them to see that there’s a space for them to grow into. Things have changed a lot, and things are changing still but they won't change by themselves.
Have you heard of the Chineke! Orchestra? (the first professional orchestra in Europe made up of majority BME musicians)
They are a breath of fresh air and to think of the landscape without them it's like, wow. Before them, what was going on? It’s a beautiful thing but it shouldn’t be the only thing.
And how about with the added layer of being a woman in the music industry?
It feels like the music industry in general is pretty male-heavy from sound engineers to record label executives. I've always found myself to be the only woman and the only person of colour, such as in my composition class, so it feels almost normal. I refuse to feel as though opportunities aren’t open to me because of it. I deal with sexism more on a practical level – I usually encounter it in terms of live performance. Most of my frustration happens when I turn up at a venue and I feel a bit patronised by the sound engineers. That's generally where I feel like I have to fight my corner.
The Humans of Classical Music series is now live
I’ve produced a series called Humans of Classical Music, in which creatives recommend their favourite pieces of music. Are there pieces or composers you find yourself reaching for regularly?
I come back to Debussy the most because his voice was unlike any other composer. The harmonic world he created for himself is so unique and I've always resonated with that. I come back to Berio if I need to clear the palate. I come back to Bach if I want to feel safe or feel inspired. I go to Ravel if I want to feel in a beautiful, exquisite space. And Shostakovich if I want to feel excited, surprised and exhilarated. One of Helmut Lachenmann's pieces for solo cello – Pression – was a game changer for me. The first time I heard it I was like “what can you do on a cello?! What is going on?!".
And finally, which pieces have been getting you through lockdown?
Caroline Shaw's Entr'acte. I can't tell you how much I love that piece, it's so beautiful. Alice Coltrane's Turiya and Ramakrishna. That is another really beautiful piece of music that you could just have it on loop and it's just a whole world, in and of itself. Hiatus Kaiyote - either of their two albums. Andrew Poppy's 32 Frames for Amplified Orchestra. It feels like life when you hear it – you'll know what I mean. Amazing, amazing piece. Listening to Brandy’s album b7 that came out last year, gives me the space to face myself, my vulnerabilities and embrace all of me.
Ayanna Witter-Johnson’s EP Rise Up is out now.
Hannah Fiddy is a creative entrepreneur based in Bristol, developing new audiences for classical music. She is the Co-Founder of Alternative Classical and the creator of Humans of Classical Music and Concert Roulette. Hannah interviews prominent artists from around the world and writes articles about classical music.
Follow Hannah on Twitter @Hannah_Fiddy.