ARDA

ARDA (in Quenya: Earth) for double choir in two spaces and ensemble is based on the South African/British author J.R.R. Tolkien's story Ainulindalë ("the song sung by holy beings" or simply "The Music of the Ainur") from The Silmarillion.

Tolkien associates music with the creation of his universe; this is an original feature of the English author and which is not easily found in other traditional creation myths. The Ainur (sacred beings created by the One Ilúvatar) sing a music that eventually creates the world. They are given a theme by Eru Ilúvatar, improvise with it and sing “a Great music” of endless melodies interwoven harmoniously. Of all the Ainur, the most gifted is Melkor; he begins to have thoughts of his own and to disturb the music with his discords.

These dialectics between the individual and the collective, between creation and destruction, are essential components not only in Tolkien's mythology, but in this "meta-instrumental and -vocal" piece.

The spaces also play an important role, as the cast and their positioning in the space form the dramaturgy of the piece.

(The sung text was written in Quenya by the composer).