[ISEA2010] Artist Statement: Éliane Radigue – Naldjorlak I, II, III

Artist Statement

Naldjorlak is an acoustic composition by electronic music pioneer Éliane Radigue, whose unique characteristic is working with the arp synthesizer. The Tibetan title of the composition Naldjorlak refers to the motion of all life towards unity. Initially developed for Charles Curtis, Radigue extended the piece later to a subtle trilogy of fine, vibrant sounds. Naldjorlak was premiered in Bordeaux at the contemporary art museum (CACP) in 2009.

Curtis has gained long-time experience in transposing electronic music e.g. by interpreting La Monte Young or Terry Jennings. He plays with a deep insight into the musical arrangements; the arrangement was developed cooperatively by the two artists and with special respect to Curtis’ own musical technique.
Radigue wrote Naldjorlak II for the two renowned basset horn players Carol Robinson and Bruno Martinez. The evening will be concluded by Naldjorlak III, all the three instrumentalists playing a trio.

With an introduction by the composer

  1. Éliane Radigue: composition
  2. Charles Curtis: cello
  3. Carol Robinson: basset horn
  4. Bruno Martinez: basset horn
  • Éliane Radigue (FR): French born Éliane Radigue studied music under the pioneers of the musique concrète Pierre Schaeffer and Pierre Henry. In the 1960s she worked as Henry’s assistant. The distinctive quality of her compositions are based on her constant work with the arp synthesizer to create drones lasting for several minutes. Despite of her long and productive creative period, which already lasts for four decades, she composes only a few musical pieces each year. Just recently, she started to compose especially for certain international instrumentalists. Her piece Naldjorlak for Charles Curtis is the latest work in this series, which was extended to a trilogy for Charles Curtis, Bruno Martinez and Carol Robinson and was then called Naldjorlak I, II, III. Radigue’s oeuvre is presented in art museums, galleries and the main festivals for electronic music worldwide.
  • Charles Curtis (US): Charles Curtis’ vast range of solo repertoire for cello comprises pieces which were especially written for him by the most important composers of electronic music. These include works by La Monte Young, Alvin Lucier, Éliane Radigue and Alison Knowles as well as rare compositions by Terry Jennings and Richard Maxfield. He played Éliane Radigue’s piece Naldjorlak for cello all around the globe. As part of Radigues new trilogy Naldjorlak I, II, III, it premiered last October in the Auditorium of the Musée du Louvre. Curtis taught at Princeton University and was solo cellist of NDR Sinfonieorchester, Hamburg for eleven years. Currently, he works as cellist professor for Music Performance at the University of California, San Diego. He performs worldwide and was invited to the museum Guggenheim, New York, the CAPC Bordeaux, the gallery Renos Xipas in Paris and to MaerzMusik Festival, Berlin as well as to many other places. He is the artistic director of the chamber music ensemble Camera Lucida.
  • Carol Robinson (US) is a clarinettist and composer equally at ease in the classical and experimental realms. She performs in the major international concert halls and is invited to the most important international music festivals including Wien Modern, RomaEuropa, MaerzMusik, Huddersfield, Archipel, Musica Contemporanea. Improvising is her passion and she practices it in the group Sleeping in Vilna together with Mike Ladd, Dave Randall and Dirk Rothbrust. Her repertoire encompasses pieces of Giacinto Scelsi, Morton Feldman, Luigi Nono and Luciano Berio, Phill Niblock and many others. In her own compositions she often combines acoustic music with electronic systems. Radio stations worldwide have recorded her work.
  • Bruno Martinez (FR): For over twenty years Martinez is the principal bass clarinettist at the Paris opera. He has worked with the main composers of the New Music such as Pierre Boulez. As soloist and chamber musician he performs worldwide. Martinez studied at the Conservatoire de Paris under Guy Deplus and later Maurice Bourgue.

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