Making Music by Magical Moves
With Magical Moves’ unique combination of the auditory and visual senses, you’ve never seen chess played out quite like this.
BY CHLOE COHEN - THE CHAPIN SCHOOL - COACH & COLUMNIST
Magical Moves was conceived by UCLA psychologist Don MacKay and composed by Brent Morden. Founded on the belief that there is an appreciation and an admiration that comes with learning something new, Magical Moves portrays a chess game through an unlikely medium: music.
By utilizing a split-screen display, the project treats audiences to a spectacle of dual effect: on one side, a virtual chessboard shows a match’s final 14 moves, while on the other, student musicians narrate the game by means of their instruments. With Magical Moves’ unique combination of the auditory and visual senses, you’ve never seen chess played out quite like this.
Out of all the world’s chess games and events, MacKay and Morden elected to highlight Magnus Carlsen and Wesley So’s match in the conclusion of the 2019 World Fischer Random Chess Championship. Fischer Random Chess, also known as Chess960, is a variation of chess designed by, and aptly named for, World Chess Champion Bobby Fischer.
The variation differs from regular chess in only one way: the starting positions of each piece are entirely randomized. For example, a knight might begin the game in the typical starting place of a bishop, while that bishop might land in a rook’s corner. Pawns remain on the second or seventh rank. Under these conditions, there is no memorizing opening lines. Creativity is bound to flourish.
The skills that chess employs can be applied to just about any passion or profession. Magical Moves sets out to prove just that. With the help of characters like Blitzy the Bishop, the Bright Knight, and the Capable Queen, Magical Moves empowers chess newbies and pros alike to value creative thinking, be brave as an underdog, and develop an appreciation for the game––all while enjoying the student orchestra’s expressive melodies.
“As far as what the music might tell us, like chess pieces that have their own unique characters, all of us as individuals, we have our unique voices, and we have our own function and role in the communities we’re a part of,” Morden said. Though the project is targeted more towards children, Morden is confident audiences of all ages can appreciate it and impart knowledge from it.
While Magical Moves is very much a musical extravaganza, it, like any work of art, also tells a story. In addition to the on-screen orchestra and chess board, a narrator is present to walk audiences through the game. The narrator is responsible for introducing the pieces, contextualizing Carlsen and So’s match, and explaining moves as they play out. The project is more than moves and music; in fact, Morden describes it as a work of musical theater. In the future, Morden and MacKay hope to bring Magical Moves to the stage for a live musical theater production.
Magical Moves premieres on YouTube in May of 2021. Student musicians aged 11-18 are invited to audition for Magical Moves’ orchestra. To apply, please visit the Magical Moves website.
En Passant, pictured above, is another musical work about chess composed by Brent Morden.