THE UNIVERSE WITHIN

By Michael Clive

What’s the right kind of dramatic premise for an opera? We’ve come a long way from the earliest operas, which were generally restricted to subjects from classical myth, ancient history, or the Bible. Their music enfolded highly symbolic story lines that might enfold moral lessons or even serve as political propaganda for the composer’s patron. These days, the daring souls who choose to create operas face fewer constraints than their predecessors, but that doesn’t make their task any easier than in the past. They must still find subjects that are “operatic”—dramas that engage big ideas and are relevant to our lives.

What about a music-drama that explores the life of an individual who changed history? We could call it a “bio-opera.” It’s not a new idea; examples from past centuries include Handel’s Julius Caesar, Rossini’s William Tell, and Massenet’s Le Cid. But composer Mason Bates’ The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs is an example of a different, more modern genre. It challenges us to consider the life of an individual from our own times, to consider the meaning of that life, and then to look inward to understand the meaning of that life. Examples of this more modern approach include Phillip Glass’ Akhnaten and his Satyagraha (about Mahatma Gandhi); Anthony Davis’ X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X; and Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up in My Bones, based on the memoir by writer Charles M. Blow.

In putting Steve Jobs on the opera stage, Bates and librettist Mark Campbell explore the spiritual evolution of one of the most influential men of modern times as he launches a revolutionary new world of technological empowerment, then confronts the larger world within himself. Like Steve Jobs, Bates is an innovator whose creativity extends beyond traditional boundaries, combining orchestral scoring with electronics in ways that have made him one of the most sought-after and widely programmed living composers. In The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, Bates and Campbell give us an alternative and intimate perspective of a public life, examining the people and experiences that shaped Jobs’ life: his father, his Buddhist practice, his rise and fall as an executive, and finally his marriage to the woman who showed him the power of human connection.

The magical intersection between music and technology is a central tenet of Mason Bates’ work, from his operatic and orchestral compositions to his work as a composer, DJ and curator. During his term as the first composer-in-residence at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, he presented a diverse array of artists through his KC Jukebox using immersive production and stagecraft. His works and his curation are imaginatively transforming the way classical music is both created and experienced. Championed by legendary conductors from Riccardo Muti to Marin Alsop, his symphonic music is the first to receive widespread acceptance for its unique integration of electronic sounds, and he was named the second most-performed