collectif9 ⬗ RITUÆLS
Friday, December 11, 2020, 8pm (EST)
Available on www.collectif9.ca
*Voir traduction française plus bas
collectif9 is announcing the online release of the film-concert Rituæls on December 11, 2020 at 8pm (EST). A 60-minute feature-length film, this production brings together works dating from the Middle Ages to the 21 st century, launching a series of films that create various multidisciplinary universes.
FILM-CONCERTS
With the desire to nurture our connection with audiences, collectif9 has reimagined our 2020-21 season as a series of film-concerts; complete concert programs combining live performance footage and cinematographic footage, recorded in the highest quality - the equivalent of a visual album. In the same way that a concert is designed to be presented on stage, the film-concert is specifically conceived for viewing on the screen, creating a musical experience enriched by visual and artistic elements.
RITUÆLS
The first film-concert in the series, Rituæls slowly and meticulously offers moments of beauty and calm during a time of mental and emotional turbulence. Rituæls is a mystical artistic experience confronting the infinitely large to the infinitely small, the cosmic with the microscopic, delicately questioning our place in the universe and in relation to our environment. The performance of the charismatic dancer Stacey Désilier accompanies us through the concert like a supreme presence, complementing this imagery.
The musical performance itself can be seen as an grand artistic ceremony during which the musicians occupy several spaces throughout the Church of Saint-Pierre-Apôtre in Montréal in a way that echoes the grandeur and depth of the pieces on the program and becomes our own ritual. The lighting, scenography, and staging contribute to the creation of a succession of moments that transport us and invite contemplation, creating a moment of connection despite what separates us.
MUSICAL PROGRAMME
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179): O vis aeternitatis
Arvo Pärt (born 1935): Psalom and Summa
Nicole Lizée (born 1973): Another Living Soul
Bryce Dessner (born 1976): Aheym and Tenebre
Michael Tippett (1905-1998): Lament
Jocelyn Morlock (born 1969): Exaudi (in an arrangement for solo cello and strings)
The music begins with a murmuring drone, from which the slow, monodic chant of medieval composer Hildegard von Bingen appears. From there, seamlessly into Arvo Pärt’s Psalom, which follows a style reminiscent of medieval and renaissance music - later we will play Pärt’s enigmatic Summa. Nicole Lizée is inspired by art forms of the recent past (in this case stop-motion animation) and creates a serene world that is backed by intense detail, within which “the impossible becomes possible — souls emerge from where once there were none.” The relationship between darkness and light guides Bryce Dessner’s Tenebre, and his Aheym brings guides us through a journey (the title translates to “Homeward” in Yiddish).
Michael Tippett’s Lament expresses grief using Purcell’s aria Ah! Belinda, during which a solo violin comments with a barely recognizable variation an Irish popular tune of the Renaissance, while Jocelyn Morlock’s Exaudi, also an expression of grief, includes hope. She writes of the piece: “the music moves us from an inability to comprehend our loss to passionate cries of anguish, to acceptance and angelic reassurance.” Exaudi was originally written for vocal ensemble and solo cello, and has been arranged for collectif9 by Thibault Bertin-Maghit.
OUR APPROACH
The sound and video were captured during performances of the full program, including staging and physical transitions in real time, in order to create a performance that is as organic and spontaneous as a live concert.
collectif9, as a main focus, is committed to advancing the practice of chamber music, and considers the creation of the concert as a whole to be part of our artistic practice, as are the creation of our arrangements and adaptations, demonstrating the artistic possibilities of a modern chamber ensemble. Rituæls is a concert in which we are creating an all-encompassing, introspective experience, wherein the changes of energy that create interest and narrative are of a different nature and subtlety from our earlier productions.
AVAILABILITY
Rituæls will be broadcast for free for the first time on Friday, December 11, 2020 at 8pm (EST), and will be accompanied by a discussion with the members of the group. The film-concert will be accessible free of charge for a period of 48 hours, after which it will be available for rental on our website until January 11, 2021.
To support the activities of collectif9 and accompany us in this new adventure, you can contribute to our fundraiser here: www.gofundme.com/collectif9
RITUÆLS
Friday, December 11, 2020 at 8pm (EST)
available at www.collectif9.ca
Free until Dec. 13 | $10 after Dec. 13
Facebook event: fb.me/e/1QuYLbzJD
Donations accepted: www.gofundme.com/collectif9
ON SCREEN
Chloé Chabanole, John Corban, Robert Margaryan, Elizabeth Skinner, violin
Scott Chancey, Xavier Lepage-Brault, viola
Jérémie Cloutier, Andrea Stewart, cello
Thibault Bertin-Maghit, double bass
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Stacey Désilier, dancer
CREATIVE TEAM
Conception & artistic direction: Thibault Bertin-Maghit
Video production: Benoit Fry & Lucas Harrison Rupnik
Audio production: Carl Talbot
Lighting: Alexandre Péloquin
Scenography: Joëlle Harbec
COLLECTIF9
Montréal’s classical string band collectif9 has been attracting varied audiences since their 2011 debut. Known for their innovative programming and unique arrangements of classical repertoire, the group performs “with an infectious energy and vigour that grabs an audience’s attention” (The WholeNote). collectif9 has performed across North America, Europe, and Asia. The group operates on the premise that a change of context can influence communication and experience.
collectif9 presents several new programmes every season in Montréal, Canada, and their national and international touring schedule includes performances in chamber music series, festivals, universities, and more. Recent highlights include concerts in the Festival de Música de Morelia (Mexico), La Folle journée de Nantes (France), and Sound Unbound (Barbican Centre, London). Inspired by the processes of other artistic movements, collectif9 continually searches for new ways of expression within the classical medium, fostering communication and collaboration between artists of all kinds and members of society.
Stacey Désilier, dancer
Passionate about movement and possibilities of the body and fascinated by dance, Stacey quickly discovered the desire to make dance her profession. She pursued professional studies at the Montreal School of Contemporary Dance, which led her to collaborate with choreographers and performers Marie-Claire Forté, Sasha Kleinplatz, George Stamos, Helene Simard and Mélanie Demers, and the company MAYDAY.
In 2018, Stacey joined the company Animal of Distinction and participated in their new creation FRONTERA. She then set off to discover the world through movement thanks to collaborations with Cirque Éloize, Les 7 doigts de la main, L'Opéra de Québec (Starmania), and most recently with the company Tentacle Tribe which brought her back to her roots of urban dance and Haitian culture. Her artistic practice and cooperative work give her an inner richness that she wishes to share with various organizations, countries, and artists.
Benoit Fry, video producer & editor
Benoit Fry is a director, editor, and cameraman, and has been creating promotional content, music videos, fiction films, and documentaries for 15 years. He is known for producing sequences filled with emotion and for his impressive efficiency. With a solid cinematographic background, he is a masterful visual storyteller. He describes himself as a “creator of atmospheres”. A perfectionist, he always follows his ideas to the very end.
Passionate about film photography (he regularly shoots Super 8 film), he is also a photographer, and produces medium format film portraits, developed in his darkroom by hand. He has been part of the Shoot Studio team in Montreal since 2017.
Lucas Harrison Rupnik, video producer
Director, cameraman, editor, sound engineer and mixer, Lucas is recognized for his versatility, his autonomy, his openness and his clear and bold vision. Son of a photographer from a varied background, he likes challenges and is an enthusiast of music, cinema and the sea. He has a recording studio, learns quickly and is not afraid of the most complex software and equipment. Lucas loves road trips, he never gets tired of watching the movie 'JAWS', he wakes up without an alarm, and loves natural imperfections.
Carl Talbot, audio producer
Carl Talbot, recording producer and sound engineer, is a well-established audio professional in his community. His productions have received nominations, honours, and awards across the globe: Grammy, Juno, Felix, Gramophone Critics’ choice awards, Diapason d’Or, and many more. His 20 years of experience have led to hundreds of albums and films. Known for his musical approach and aesthetics, he benefits from having the rare qualities of being at ease artistically and technically in many genres of music.
Carl is currently the leading producer at Analekta, Canada’s largest classical label, with whom he has produced nearly a thousand titles since 1999. He has also worked with numerous labels, including Effendi Records, Justin Time Records, Sony-BMG, EMI, Virgin Classics, and Radio-Canada.
Alexandre Péloquin, lighting designer
A much sought-after lighting designer, Alexandre Péloquin works on the pop, electronic, and contemporary music scenes. He has worked with Pierre Lapointe, Milk&Bone, Ariane Moffatt, Yann Perreau, and Ensemble SuperMusique among others, in many festivals (Mutek, Piknik Électronik, Igloofest, Complément Cirque, Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, Festival de la chanson de Tadoussac, Festival Just for Laughs).
In 2018, he was awarded a Félix at the ADISQ Gala in the Lighting Designer of the Year category for the show La science du cœur by Pierre Lapointe, his longtime collaborator. He was a finalist in this same category in 2019 (Deception Bay - Milk&Bone), 2015 (Ariane Moffatt), and 2014 (Punkt - Pierre Lapointe).
Joëlle Harbec, scenographer
Joëlle Harbec has been working as a scenographer and artistic director since graduating from the theatre program at Lionel-Groulx college in 2011. In theatre, television, cinema, or circus, her passion is above all to create worlds that are vectors of emotions. Playing with materials and colours in juxtaposition to the lighting and performers allows her to create meaningful images, as one would in a painting.
She has collaborated on several theatrical projects with director Nicolas Gendron (Mélanie sans extasy, L’enfance de l’Art, Et au pire on se mariera). On television, her recent set designs have been seen on Projet 2000 on Tou.tv, Danser sa vie on Radio-Canada, and L’Heure est grave on Télé-Québec. In 2019, Joëlle worked as artistic director for the first time for a feature film with director Rodrigue Jean for L’Acrobate.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Thibault Bertin-Maghit collectif9@gmail.com | collectif9.ca
438-939-2939
BOOKINGS, COMMISSIONS, and MUSIC RENTAL: Barbara Scales
scalesb@latitude45arts.com | latitude45arts.com
514-276-2694