Éliane Radigue

In the presence of Éliane Radigue. Co-conception of the program: Carol Robinson.

With: Dafne Vicente-Sandoval (bassoon) and Charles Curtis (cello).

After four beautiful concerts presented in autumn 2023 with pioneering electroacoustic composer Éliane Radigue, the Nomadic Nights are pleased to continue the very first retrospective devoted to her OCCAMs. Fascinating instrumental pieces, which she refers to as her “sound fantasies”; bespoke compositions are created in collaboration with her performers. This new program, designed with Éliane Radigue and Carol Robinson especially for the Fondation Cartier, offers tonight pieces presented for the first time to a large audience in France.

“One needs to dream on a large scale, because, in the process of realization, one is always forced to give up something. If the dream is big, there is a lot left, and if the dream is small, there is little left. The OCCAMs represent something enormous in that they are incomplete by nature. This is what attracted me to a genre of pieces conducive to a wealth of possibilities and combinations. It prevents me from saying that I have finished, as long as all these marvelous musicians fill me with the joy of their magnificent talent” – Éliane Radigue.

Program:

- OCCAM V (for cello) – 15’

- OCCAM XIII (for bassoon) – 15’

- OCCAM RIVER XI (for bassoon and cello) – 15’

Biographies

Éliane Radigue (born in 1932, in Paris) is renowned for her electronic music, produced with feedbacks and reinjections, and in particular with the ARP 2500 synthesizer. Her compositions are defined by micro-events due to subtle changes in harmonics that dance above a seemingly static tone. The result is deeply moving. In 2005, Radigue began to compose for acoustic instruments with fellow musicians, first with Naldjorlak, her masterpiece for two basset horns and cello, and later with OCCAM OCEAN, her endless cycle. These new works have been presented in museums, concert halls and festivals in the world... She recently received a special mention from the jury of the Evens Foundation and the Giga-Hertz Award from the ZKM in Germany as well as the Open Oor Composition Prize in the Netherlands.

Carol Robinson is a Franco-American composer and clarinetist specializing in experimental creation. She performs in major international venues and festivals, and regularly collaborates with choreographers, photographers and musicians from various backgrounds. She is the author of more than a hundred works for various formations, which often incorporate electronics. Besides her own music, her recent discography includes those of great contemporary composers, alternative rock, jazz and classical music. Carol Robinson has worked closely with Éliane Radigue since 2006.

Dafne Vicente-Sandoval is a bassoonist who explores sound through contemporary music pieces and electro-acoustic performances. Her musical approach focuses on making the complexity of the acoustic properties of the bassoon audible to listeners. She has a particular interest in the instability of the instrumental response. This research has been inspired and nourished by her long-term collaborations with composers like Éliane Radigue, Jakob Ullmann, Alvin Lucier, Peter Ablinger, and Phill Niblock, resulting in the creation of a unique corpus of works for a solo bassoon. Mirroring this work, in recent years, Dafne has developed a practice around the versatility of feedback.

Cellist Charles Curtis has forged a singular career between classical interpretation and musical experimentation. The principal cellist of the NDR Hamburg Symphony Orchestra for a long time and a distinguished performer of the chamber music repertoire, Charles Curtis is also known for his involvement in the New York underground scene, notably his work with La Monte Young. He has also developed a unique repertoire of major works designed specifically for his instrumental practice and approach to performing. Éliane Radigue created for him a very first work for a purely acoustic instrument, the hour-long solo entitled Naldjorlak, performed by Curtis around the world.