Audio Control Turn on Yuval's sonic flow

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In the Woods:

Turn your arms into branches, your fingers into leaves.
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Audio Control Turn on Yuval's sonic flow
Audio Control

For string quartet, video & electronics

Opening Concert Xenia ensemble
Commissioned by EST-OVEST Festival
Est-Ovest Festival, Turin, Genova, Italy – October 25 – 27, 2014

Performing: Quartetto Lyskamm
Jewish in the City – Cinema Anteo, Milan, Italy – May 31, 2016

SILENT QUARTET is the story of a journey. The journey of people – men and women of different ages and nationalities – whose silent faces, large and in the foreground, are shown looking towards the viewer: all share a journey of emigration, all are the faces of people who have a story to tell and that become the symbol of this path.

ON STAGE, the music of the string quartet observes the characters on the screen who recall their own experiences and personal stories to create a journey not only geographical but also psychological. The story does not take place, however, in words: it’s the glances, gestures, nuances of expression that tell and pass on what the memory retraces while the music, like an outside spectator, tries to comment, reflect and decipher their inner worlds.

THE PUBLIC is personally involved in this performance by having to decode the messages conveyed by music and images. Just by looking, a relationship of deep intimacy is established with the large faces projected on the screen. Who are they? Where do they come from? What have they gone through? The viewer is confronted in this way with the impossibility of narrative itself: the images, descriptive in nature, do not reveal anything reminiscent of the protagonists.

THE VIEWER is confronted in this way with the impossibility of narrative itself: the images, descriptive in nature, do not reveal anything reminiscent of the protagonists.

THE MUSIC, simultaneously accompanying the story, is evocative but not explicit, generating an underlying tension between the said and the unsaid. The string quartet – the traditional instruments of Western music – tries throughout the work to decrypt through different sonorities the identity of faces projected onto the screen, which, in their silence, become unsolvable puzzles. Almost to the end, the string quartet avoids a musical and cultural commentary in full.

Lyskamm Quartet: Cecilia Ziano – violin, Clara Franziska Schötensack – violin, Francesca Piccioni – viola, Giorgio Casati, cello

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Massive Sonic Works:

/ˈmæsɪv ˈsɒnɪk wɜːrks/

Large-scale performances using collective participation to create powerful sound masses.

Yuval Avital’s “Massive Sonic Works” or “Opera di Massa Sonora” involves the creation of large-scale performances that utilize collective participation to craft a unique sound experience. These works focus on forming powerful sound masses through the collaboration of numerous performers, exploring new possibilities through sound rituals. The compositions often include graphic visual elements, written music, and easy-to-read instructions to allow interpretation by individuals without prior musical experience. This approach, sometimes involving hundreds of participants, aims to create what can be described as “crowd music.”

Some key works in Avital’s repertoire include:

– GARON (2012): An opera for 45 bass tubas do, percussions, and a crowd of performers.

– KARAGATAN (2013): A composition for 100 gongs and bamboo in the Philippines.

– REKA (2014): Commissioned by the Warsaw Autumn Festival and co-produced by the MiTo festival in Milan, involving traditional singers from unique cultures such as Tibetan, Zulu, Sardinian, Mongolian, and Samarkand traditions.

One of Avital’s significant compositions is MISE EN ABÎME, a milestone work that marks the beginning of his “Massive Sonic Works” series. Premiered in 2011, this composition involves a large ensemble of 100-200 non-musician vocalists, accordions, bass tubas, soprano, bass clarinet, percussions, didgeridoo, and conductors directing the performance in an immersive setup.

Another notable work is URLA, an immersive sonic experience with over 300 performers, showcasing diverse musical traditions in Matera, Italy. This piece combines traditional elements with modern instrumentation, theatrical actions, and innovative technological approaches, reflecting Yuval Avital’s interdisciplinary and transcultural artistic vision.

Yuval Avital’s creations blend complexity, cultural diversity, and technological innovation to create immersive and participatory sonic experiences that push the boundaries of traditional music composition and performance.