WEBVTT

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[Marina Abramović: Singing Lesson]

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You know, I have lots of issues as a child,

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and lots of fears.

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I was incredibly self-conscious.

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[ABRAMOVIC] Are you rolling?

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[MAN, OFF-CAMERA] I am rolling.

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[ABRAMOVIC] Okay, baby, so...

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[NORA YORK] So, what I want you to do...

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[ABRAMOVIC, OFF CAMERA] So when the moment I was dealing with performance

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I really wanted to actually overcome my fears,

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number one. And number two,

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push my physical limits as far as I can go,

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you know, to see that you have this power

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of the mind over the body.

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[Nora York: Vocal Coach]

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[YORK] For singing,

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you breathe to the bottom of the lung in the back.

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[ABRAMOVIC] Okay.

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[YORK] So you breathe...

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Now, instead of being up in the chest,

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see if you can breathe below.

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So you're going to go...

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[BOTH INHALING AND EXHALING]

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[YORK] Yes, good!

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[ABRAMOVIC] Now, I'm with Bob Wilson

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on the theater piece called

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"Life and Death of Marina Abramović".

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And he is re-editing--

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putting my life together in the way he sees it.

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When I do my performances, I'm in complete control.

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But when I come to life, I like to give up control.

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And giving up control is one of the hardest things an artist can do

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in his lifetime.

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[YORK] When you breathe to sing,

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the ribs swing wide and you want to feel...

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[ABRAMOVIC, OFF CAMERA] I really love to listen to people singing,

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and I was always jealous of that kind of talent

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somebody could have--to sing.

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It's like, you can open your heart

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and sing your soul out.

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I could not.

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[YORK] Because you're built to sing!

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You've got the cheekbones...

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[ABRAMOVIC, SINGING "LA VIE EN ROSE"]

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♪ "Quand il me prend dans te bras" ♪

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[YORK] Oui! Oui! Oui! Oui!

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[ABRAMOVIC] ♪ "Je vois tout bas..." ♪

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[YORK] Ah, oui!

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[YORK] So just say "salt"...

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[ABRAMOVIC] "Salt..."

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[YORK] So, sing on the vowel...

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[ABRAMOVIC, HOLDING THE VOWEL] "Salt."

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[YORK] Now, tip of the tongue,

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touching the teeth.

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[BOTH, SIMULTANEOUSLY] "Salt."

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[ABRAMOVIC] When I was really young,

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I have to have the piano lessons,

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and I remember...I hate piano lessons so terribly.

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I remember the teacher coming to the house

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for an entire year,

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and after one year,

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the teacher came to my mother and said,

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"I'm just taking money for nothing."

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"She doesn't have it, and she will never got it."

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"She can't have the ear for music."

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[YORK] ...the sound more forward.

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[ABRAMOVIC, HOLDING THE VOWEL] "Salt."

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[YORK] Right.

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[ABRAMOVIC] So, I took this as a complete,

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definite kind of statement,

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and I never wanted to sing

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or think that I will ever sing.

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[ABRAMOVIC] ♪ "Salt..."

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"Salt in my wounds."

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"To dull more pedestrian pain."

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"To sting transcendentally." ♪

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[YORK] Can I play the Antony version?

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[ABRAMOVIC] Yes.

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[YORK] And we can sing with it?

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[ABRAMOVIC] Antony Hegarty is making the music for it,

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so he created nine songs.

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[MUSIC PLAYS THROUGH SPEAKERS]

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[ABRAMOVIC, SINGING ALONG] ♪ "Salt in my wounds."

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"To dull more pedestrian pain." ♪

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[ABRAMOVIC, OFF CAMERA] The one which Antony made for me,

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and is really made for my kind of state of mind,

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and is inspired by my work,

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is called "Salt in My Wounds"...

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So, he decided--Bob--that I had to sing that

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and I was completely paranoid.

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I said, "But I can't sing. I can't sing."

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[YORK] Try this, if you were to go... [HISSING SOUND]

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[ABRAMOVIC, OFF CAMERA] Antony was saying to me,

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"Just do it like Marlene Dietrich."

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I said, "Yes, like Marlene Dietrich on the bad day!" [LAUGHS]

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[HISSING SOUND]

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[ABRAMOVIC, OFF CAMERA] And then I really took it serious,

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I'm thinking, "Okay,"

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"at least try to have some singing lessons,"

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"to see if I could really do it."

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[YORK] ♪ "To dull..." ♪

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[BOTH] ♪ "To dull..." ♪

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[ABRAMOVIC] It's all about breathing,

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and so many things...

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But, I'm still very insecure,

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and I hope that it is going to work.

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So that's where I am now.

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[ABRAMOVIC] ♪ "Salt"

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"Salt in my wounds"

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"To dull pedestrian pain." ♪