Bruchlinien – Carte Blanche for Lars Mlekusch

Description

The Ensemble Phoenix dedicates this program to three works that tell stories of friction, resistance, and vulnerability in different ways. Zara Ali, Laura Bowler, and Hannah Kendall create soundscapes where technological systems, physical boundary experiences, and social tensions overlap. What unites these works is music that does not soothe but challenges. It deals with pressure and overload, exclusion and belonging, and the question of how the past shapes our present.
Zara Ali's "Isolation Forest" is inspired by an anomaly detection algorithm. From dense microtonal sound fields, individual instruments emerge as deviations, detach from the collective, and become part of it again. Questions of belonging and isolation arise between mathematical order and organic movement.
Hannah Kendall's "Even Sweetness can scratch the throat" references a poem by Ocean Vuong. The focus is on the ambivalence of sugar: it represents sweet enjoyment but is also inseparably linked to the painful history of colonialism and exploitation. Kendall translates this tension into her layered music.
At the center of the evening is Laura Bowler as composer and soloist with her work "fff". From anger, frustration, and exhaustion, a musical and physical boundary experience develops. The voice gradually intensifies until the expression culminates in an existential scream. Bowler crosses the boundaries between composition, performance, and musical theater. For Lars Mlekusch, the performance is also a personal re-encounter with the work: he conducted the world premiere of "fff" at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival in 2017.
Together, the three works unfold a panorama of contemporary composition that makes technological, societal, and historical interconnections audible and works as precisely as it is immediately impactful. (Lars Mlekusch) Participants and additional information:
Laura Bowler (voice); Ensemble Phoenix Basel; Lars Mlekusch (musical direction)

Highlights

• Works by Zara Ali, Laura Bowler, and Hannah Kendall
• Thematic focus on friction and social tensions
• Performance at Gare du Nord, Basel

General Information

The Ensemble Phoenix presents a program that deals with the themes of isolation, belonging, and societal challenges. The works by Zara Ali, Laura Bowler, and Hannah Kendall offer a layered sound journey exploring both technical and emotional dimensions.

Location

Schwarzwaldallee 200, 4058 Basel, Switzerland

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