Live lecture: David Bowie - the social complex phenomenon

Update:

See https://www.periscope.tv/w/1ypKdyOeMOyGW for the live lecture!

Innovation & progress grow on sharing ideas and visions, and thus ultimately from bringing people together…. This is the academic spirit that we at University College Groningen stand for!

In this University College Groningen webinar, on the 15th of March at 8PM CET, Wander Jager, a complexity scientists and music freak, will guide you through the many collaborations of David Bowie, and how he was a critical hub in a cultural network, the starman that now has turned into a ★.

People who enjoy connecting interesting ideas, being capable of relating promising thoughts. These people propel progress in society, be it our interaction with the web (Steve Jobs), the future of mobility (Elon Musk) or our expressive palette in the fine art of music, such as Bach, Zappa, Lady GaGa and Bowie. …

These all were (and are in the case of Lady Gaga) thieves and thugs, as far as it concerns using ideas and concepts of their fellow musicians. But better said, joining forces usually pays off, and the many artists who collaborated with Bowie unanimously cheer about the experiences they had with this “unconventional” musical genius. Only Frank Zappa, being covered by Bowie in his early years, was grumpy because Bowie stole his guitar player Adrian Belew.

Bowie was a hub, a sun in a solar system with many interesting planets. Being a British polite and at the same time an extravagant character, he was capable of connecting with a wide variety of people. In this sense, he was the embodiment of a liberal spirit, which is probably best exemplified by his “coming out” as being straight: …a concept he liked to play with.

Art is expressed via many channels, and Bowie was a great actor, a gifted painter, but most notably known for his varied repertoire of music. A repertoire bringing together ideas of many gifted musicians. Big names in the scene, such as Brian Eno, Robert Fripp, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Nile Rogers collaborated with him. And interesting songs were recorded with Queen, Mick Jagger, Tina Turner and Bing Crosby.

Do you want to watch this lecture? Then tune to our livestream at 8PM CET on the 15th of March! How to get access to the live-stream: We will post the link to the live stream on our website as soon as we go live, and it will be available via our social media as well. The live stream is accessible from any device. You can also download the Periscope app in the AppStore or the PlayStore and find us under the name: University College Groningen.