INTAKT-THEORY
from
the rehearsal notebooks
Ensaio
sobre a cegueïra (Blinde Stadt)
Ein
Multi-Media Opern-Modell, entwickelt im Rahmen der Werkstatt des 2. Internationalen
Interaktionslabors Göttelborn für den besonderen Raum des Fördermaschinengebäudes
IV (Schachtoper) auf dem ehemaligen Grubengelände. Das Team unter Leitung des
Komponisten Paulo C. Chagas arbeitet an einer mehrkanaligen Soundinstallation:
die Szenen und Klänge entstehen aus der Interaktion mit dem Raum und dem Thema
der psychischen, emotionalen und politischen Blindheit (nach José Saramagos Roman).
Das Modell ist zuerst 2004-05 als digitale Klang-Film Installation konzipiert,
und der Prototyp wird 2005 auf Musik- und Kunstfestivals vorgestellt werden. Für
2005-06 ist dann eine Bühnenversion mit Orchester und Solisten vorgesehen.
Ensaio
sobre a cegueira is a multimedia opera model developed in the framework of the
2nd International Interaktionslabors for the Schachtoper/Machine Turbine Room
at the Coal Mine Göttelborn. A work in progress, this first version of several
scenes from the new interactive opera installation is created with a unique multi-channel
sound environment and combines live voice (soprano), processed voice, chorus,
acting and dancing roles and film projection, and the performers participate in
the live synthesis of the music and sound environment through interactive sensors.
The theme explored in this opera (with a libretto adapted from José Saramago¹s
novel “Blindness") involves different kinds of blindness: physical, emotional
and political. The model is first conceived for 2004-05 as a digital sound-film
installation; the prototype will be exhibited in 2005 at music und electronic
art festivals. In 2005-06 the new work will be redesigned for a full stage version
with orchestra and soloists.
Projektmitglieder/Participants:
Paulo C. Chagas, Johannes Birringer, Carrie Henneman, Lynn Lukkas, Patrick Delges,
Angeles Romero, Kristin Hapke, Natalie Kolaric, Laurie Stone, Christian/Studiometis)
Ensaio sobre a cegueïra (Blinde
Stadt)
Notes: Interactive sound
/ blindness. How does the thematic content connect to the creative method of interactive
sound synthesis? Proposals: Dramaturgical ground: “ensayo" (a mixture between
philosophical meditation, story, anecdote, told by narrator; after each short
section that drives the narrative, there is song/aria. The primary soloist is
a soprano who plays the role of the “guide" (wife of the doctor). The libretto
is rewritten from her POV.
(cf.
Sciarrino, Infinito Nero. Maria Maddalena de Pazzi, 1600, trance evocations of
visionary images of blood (of Jesus) that falls into Maria, milk that is poured
out over her, wounds in which she gets lost as in a labyrinth. She hallucinates
thes horror visions, but initially her voice is not clear, she stutters, screams,
ejects these visions; historically, she did not write them down, but experiences
them, as she is surrounded by 8 novices, who witness her convulsions, four of
them repeat what they hear, the other four note them down). La follia del sangue.
Crescendo, decrescendo. Circle (silence).
How can the anecdotes (narrative
segments), the experiences (of the wife¹s immediate relations to the doctor, the
other women and men in the asylum, in the city) become inter-active as productive
soundcreation. How can the telling become the inter-creation of certain sound
characters (instruments) and image characters (film vignettes and animations)
, and how can the creation of these sound characters slowly also involve other
real characters (blind man, doctor, women with dark glasses, young boy, old man)
who come to live, almost as if in a dream.
Can
the experience of the blindness as catastrophe (disease) afflicting the social
order and social body be told as a dream (nightmare) that has also ist surreal,
comic, strange and familiar and unfamiliar sides. What is the asylum, and how
can the “asylum" become a particular space within the space in which the centre
of the dramatic tale unfolds.
How
can we imagine the decrescendo, the going back out into the (blind) city, looking
for avenues of survival, for housing, sanctuary, for food, for companionship,
for re-connaissance, and how does this final third act resemble a kind of dissolution
(of blindness back to seeing(perception, of chaos back to order, of disorder to
further disorder). What do we show (action, film), what cannot be shown and is
only intimated indirectly, what is only heard and thus imagined. How much of this
work needs to be imagined and cannot be shown realistically or naturalistically.
Is the realist theatrical form at all possible, or should this work be radically
abstracted from the literal meaning, and deal with the sonic, with light, color
(white), with animations only? With slow motion (when real time dissolves, when
real space dematerializes and audition-hearing is heightened).
Agnosie:
(psychische Blindheit: die Unfähigkeit, das zu erkennen, was man sieht).
Er
kehrt zurück,
wie von einer Reise
und alle Formen und Farben der Welt warten auf ihn.
Er weiss nicht, was ihn erwartet.
Ensaio
sobre a cegueira (Blinde Stadt) . . an opera installation First stage of development,
Interaktionslabor Göttelborn, July 2004
Form,
methodology, development
As an opera
installation, the musical conception of "Blindness" is based on the idea of integrating
the performance to the sound environment. Actually it was Paulo¹s intention to
build a sound installation space in which the actors, dancers singers, instrumentalists,
etc would produce all the musical events. This is a very challenging thing and
we are doing it partially. For example in the love scene (scene 5, hotel room)
Angeles uses the accelerometer (sensor) to produce sounds created by Patrick.
The sound she creates in this scene directly builds and expands the narrative
and emotional focus of this particular scene. This particular scene also includes
solo voice (soprano), which was scored, and chorus/recitative (narrator 1 and
2) which was developed as Sprechstimme in rehearsal. We did not have enough time
to try other possibilities.
Other
sound layers: (Paulo¹s note): I will work in a new music layer using the synthesizers
which I brought. It will be a sort of standing sound (basically chords) with small
variations, which gives the harmonic framework of the piece. Christian will add
another musical layer, acting as a DJ and using his own sounds. More details about
the music:
Note: Dear team members,
Johannes, thank you very much for the script. It is very good. I've made some
minor changes: I corrected Carrie's text and worked a litte bit on the layout.
The composition for Carrie is now finished. She still has to learn the music for
the rape scene. It is a lot of work in only two days! Carry, you are doing a great
job. I am sure we'll have a great performance. The music will be played live by
Patrick. Patrick conceived the patch for sound amplification, sound spacialization,
sound processing, sensors, feedback, etc (a lot of work) and Christian will play
the electronic music as a DJ. Tomorrow we will work together. Paulo
Patrick,
The feedback system, which I heard a little bit today, sounds very promising.
I suggest you show us tomorrow at the beginning of the rehearsal. I think we can
use it in the "Killing-Scene".
A
new issue of the "Blindness" Opera is the "sound space" layer with the sounds
by Christian and the interactive sound space by Patrick. We will have a Opera
with a DJ. It sounds great! In terms of voice amplification we will use 4 wireless
microphones, as requested. (Carrie, Laurie, Nathalie and Kristin). Because we
only have three microphones I've suggested to give back a couple of normal mic
and have an additional wireless mic. But it should not cause any additional cost.
Tomorrow I would like to try the Harmonizer-Path on Kristin's voice. The idea
isto have different voices generated by just one voice. Kristin's voice should
sound like a man, but not necessary in a natural way. I am still composing the
music for this "Killing-Scene" Paulo
Rehearsal
schedule, determined at the end of the first week workshop sessions in the Atelier:
In our meeting on Sunday we planned
following the rehearsal schedule for the opera-installation "Blindness". The rehearsals
are in the Machineroom 4 (Schachtoper). Monday 12 2-5 pm Tuesday 13 2-5 pm Wednesday
14 2-8 pm Thursday 15 2-8 pm Friday 16 2-8 pm Saturday 17 2-6 pm
We
will start tomorrow with the scenes 2 and 5 of Johannes' Libretto. Today Patrick
set up the sound and started to plan the interaction design, which includes sound,
video, light and feedback. The feedback should be activated by the performers
(singer, actors, dancers, etc) during the action and generates music in real time.
It can also be the source for other events like video and light. All the participants
of the Interaktionslabor are welcome to the rehearsals.