Audio Control Turn on Yuval's sonic flow

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Audio Control Turn on Yuval's sonic flow
Audio Control

Geographic musical score for over 300 traditional and contemporary musicians of Basilicata region, electronic and theatrical actions
Open Sound Festival – Matera European Capital of Culture 2019, September 2019

Urla (=“shout”) is an immersive and itinerant sonic work involving over 300 performers, along the streets of Sassi di Matera, the ancient part of the city, including some of the most significant and rare musical traditions of Basilicata region, interpreting a contemporary score, together with “grapes” of electric guitars, basses, drum sets, theatrical actions, megaphones and mobile loudspeakers.

Yuval Avital has accustomed us to works of great complexity in which the sound and artistic dimensions are connected to interdisciplinary and transcultural implications. Each of his creations has his specific characteristics, but also organic links with the rest of his production, as if to constitute the momentary outcome of a constant creative flow. In URLA converge all the paths that had made this project for long time and from their intersection emerges his unique stylistic cipher: the dialogue between creative practices and musical ‘alterities’ with dense cultural and identity implications; the trend of Crowd Music, pursued with always innovative solutions; a massive use of technologies (understood in the widest possible meaning) that go from the “technologies of the word”, to the reinvention of traditional instruments, from the sound system to the electronic elaborations.

At the basis of URLA there is also a deep knowledge of the Basilicata musical phenomena, which have fascinated Yuval since the first stay we did together in the region, summer 2010, following processions, excursions on the Pollino and village festivals. They have marked a constant thread in the intense collaboration and in the continuous dialogue that has characterized our personal relationship over the last few years.

The sound and ritual picture of Basilicata to which reference is made, far from the easy to mediate stereotypes, is the one that emerged in the course of long research that I conducted in the field, not only on the sound but also on the visual and ritual, through complex dialogic investigations and collaborative landings in numerous multimedia projects. These researches have led to the identification of some authentic Basilicata ‘sound monuments’, which were discussed with Yuval for a long time, and which are composing the sound flow of URLA: from the teams of cowbells to the bagpipes, from the cupa cupa to the “shouted” songs to arbëreshe polyphony.

URLA therefore presents a long underground history whose threads have been knotted and cemented over the last year and a half, with its involvement as an artist of the Matera 2019 Open Sound Festival, above all thanks to the stays and residences that took place in various centers of Basilicata (Accettura, San Mauro Forte, Satriano di Lucania, San Costantino Albanese, Tricarico, Tito). On these occasions, Yuval has woven a work of sharing and reinvention with artists, masks and performers, who in many cases have involved entire communities.

URLA provides four parallel processions of artists that go along strictly established routes; they are composed of performers from authentic ritual and sound contexts of Basilicata. However, for these groups the author foresees specific actions that reinvent their roles, making them functional in a new creative framework. In their path, sound stations composed of electric guitars, electric basses, drums, deep dark amplified guitars, and small stations of traveling amplifiers, intersect.

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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.