La Selva Virgen, En La Selva Oscura

I wanted to extend the dialogue times and worlds that Mahler wrote by a dialogue with the wonderful world of traditions in Colombian rainforests near which I grew up and with imaginaries that are also close to me like networks, robotic arms or evocative soundscapes. This piece is a tribute to both Mahler's Song of the Earth, and the specific place where I grew up.

 

Sculptures made of stones and hand-blown glass by Marion Flament are played by robots and they evoke mineral forces which are very present in Mahler's work. The mirror idea present in The Song text was also used for the conception of the scenography and composition.

 

A traditional marimba that I brought from the Colombian jungle was split in two, and played by two robotic arms. This marimba and the "traditional" souvenirs it implies for me fertilized my music and the orchestra.

 

Pre-recorded sounds includes a text by Gonzalo Arango that also inspired this piece. This text is a melancholic, loving and funny reverie of Colombian jungle.

 

Sculptures and scenography: Marion Flament and Jimme Cloo

Text (excerpt of Memorias de un presidario Nadaista): Gonzalo Arango

Music by computer assistant: Augustin Muller

Development and research of robotic network comunication:  Martin Fouilleul