I am thrilled to have been awarded an Opera America Discovery Grant for Nine Jewelled Deer, my upcoming opera with Ganavya Doraiswamy, Peter Sellars and Lauren Groff. We are looking forward to using the grant to help bring the opera to US audiences in a future season. Official announcement here.
London - Aix - Brussels - Salzburg. Summer is festival season. But also teaching season. June started with a workshop at the Royal Opera House with legendary singer Aruna Sairam, who will be joining us as soloist for Nine Jewelled Deer. July started with a trip to Festival d’Aix, where we visited the venue where Nine Jewelled Deer will premiere next summer. From there, a train to Brussels, where I had the privilege of mentoring a very talented group of composers at the BE Connect academy alongside Ensemble Fractales and Thierry De Mey. Next: Salzburg Festival followed by Voix Nouvelles Academy, where I will be mentoring another group of talented composers as they create their first opera!
The last stop on accentus’ tour was also its most majestic, with an audience of over 800 at the auditorium of La Seine Musicale. Cult News described it as “A truly moving premiere […] a captivating work, combining Western and Eastern sonorities. An undeniable success.” While Olyrix described the evening as “a combination of music, text, atmosphere and interpretation that both illuminates and enlightens”, accentus’ interpretation as “crystal-clear, delicate, and supple”, and Ganavya’s performance as “an infinite play on softness that builds up to a momentous and resonant call for liberation.” More info about future performances by Latvian Radio Choir, Spirito, and Festival Saint Denis coming soon.
My love child with Ganavya Doraiswamy just had its world premiere at the magnificent Chapelle Corneille alongside Rachmaninov’s radiant Vespers. An immense thank you to Sigvards Klava and accentus choir for bringing the work to life with so much care. Next on their tour: Maison de la Culture in Bourges and La Seine Musicale in Paris. Until then, you can check out a few video excerpts here.
Last week, Peter, Ganavya and I united the full ensemble for 5 intense days of work on our upcoming opera Nine Jewelled Deer. A huge thank you to Dana Barak (clarinet), Aakash Mittal (sax), Rajna Swaminathan (Mmudangam/synth), Nurit Stark (violin), Severine Ballon (cello), Augustin Muller (electronics), and Luca Bagnoli (sound engineer) for joining us on this journey, and to Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, IRCAM, and Royaumont Foundation for supporting it. We are looking forward to coming back in October for the second phase of our residency!
I was honored to serve on this year’s jury for the 2024 International Sonosfera Ambisonics Competition (ISAC) alongside IRCAM’s Frank Madlener, Philippe Langlois, and Markus Noisternig. The competition will bring 3 prize-winning HOA compositions to IRCAM’s Espace de Projection for a public concert on March 22nd. Keep an eye out for the press release.
