RITUÆLS with collectif9
Thursday, July 13 @ 7:00 pm
– $35.40
RITUÆLS with collectif9
Montreal string ensemble collectif9 presents Rituæls, a grand artistic ceremony bringing together works dating from the Middle Ages to the 21st century with music by Hildegard von Bingen, Arvo Pärt, Michael Tippett, Nicole Lizée, Bryce Dessner, and Jocelyn Morlock. Throughout the show, the musicians occupy several spaces in a way that echoes the grandeur and the depth of the pieces on the program. The lighting, scenography and staging contribute to creating a succession of moments that transport and invite contemplation, creating a moment of connection and introspection.
The music begins with a murmuring drone, from which the monodic chant of medieval composer Hildegard von Bingen slowly appears. From there, seamlessly into the music of Arvo Pärt before experiencing the serene, yet intensely detailed world of Nicole Lizée inspired by stop-motion animation, within which “the impossible becomes possible — souls emerge from where once there were none.” The journey between and beyond darkness and light guides us through the music of Bryce Dessner.
Michael Tippett’s Lament expresses grief using Purcell’s aria Ah! Belinda, during which a solo violin comments with a barely recognizable variation on an Irish popular tune of the Renaissance, while Jocelyn Morlock’s Exaudi, also an expression of grief, includes hope: “the music moves us from an inability to comprehend our loss to passionate cries of anguish, to acceptance and angelic reassurance.”
A sensory landscape that evokes timelessness … the real, the important. –
Pan M 360
Moved, moved to tears, shivers, hairs standing up, the spine straightening on its own, the heart tightening, a smile forming, tenderness received, all senses on alert … in the end, I just want to say thank you. –
Audience Member
Program
Drone (collectif9)
O vis æternitatis (Hildegard von Bingen, 12th century)
Psalom (Arvo Pärt, 1985)
Another Living Soul (Nicole Lizée, 2016) * #
Lament (Michael Tippett, 1952)
Aheym (Bryce Dessner, 2009)
The Beatitudes (Arvo Pärt, 1990)
Summa (Arvo Pärt, 1977)
Exaudi (Jocelyn Morlock, 2004) *
Tenebre (Bryce Dessner, 2011) *
* arrangement by Thibault Bertin-Maghit
# written for Kronos Performing Arts Association’s Fifty for the Future: The Kronos Learning Repertoire
This program will have no intermission
Artist Bio
COLLECTIF9
Known for their innovative programming and approach to chamber music, Juno-nominated Montreal string ensemble collectif9 performs “with an infectious energy and vigour that grabs an audience’s attention” (The WholeNote). Since their 2011 debut, collectif9 has performed numerous concerts across North America, Europe, and Asia. As performers of classical and contemporary music, the ensemble combines the power of an orchestra with the agility of a chamber ensemble. collectif9 operates on the premise that a change of context can influence communication and experience.
ON STAGE
Chloé Chabanole, violin
John Corban, violin
Robert Margaryan, violin
TJ Skinner, violin
Scott Chancey, viola
Xavier Lepage-Brault, viola
Juan Sebastian Delgado, cello
Andrea Stewart, cello
Thibault Bertin-Maghit, double bass
OFF STAGE
Thibault Bertin-Maghit, artistic direction and staging
Andrea Stewart, associate direction and communication
Joëlle Harbec, set design
Renaud Pettigrew, lighting design and set design adaptation
VENUE
First Presbyterian Church
200 Maple Street Collingwood, ON
This event has been made possible by the kind and gracious support of Mrs. Marilyn Knowles. Special thanks to Latitude 45 Arts for artist representation.