An Apology
Machinations by Georges Aperghis. Created at Ircam in 2000. On the one hand you could switch the radio to LW frequency and possibly the static you would hear coming out of your speakers would be just as senseful as the words and sounds spoken, spat out, coughed and (seldom) sung by the four female performers sitting at their glass tables. However. I loved every second of it. My mother and father both slept through, representing between the two of them possible responses of those displeased: one heavy-headed for lack of evident purpose, the other restless for lack of development, but I sat, row 3, seat 5, wide- eyed and thirsty-eared, swallowing every second of it. Swallowing every word.
Explanation: the main and only relevant question was: is there a difference between man, woman and machine. Where lies the point beyond which man himself will no longer be able to distinguish. And once we admit to having crossed that line, does it matter who is what? Like Helo falling for Athena. Theater and sound. Perfect harmony achieved through utter chaos. Theater: to witness with your eyes the androidal transformations occuring on faces of women whose garbled voices are thrust through them without their knowledge. Sound: to close your eyes and let the sound flow in, engulf your brain in delicious misunderstanding from the four voices entangled in the computer's odd command lines and intrusions, like walking through a field and suddenly stopping, looking at your feet to see grass embedded in your shoelaces. This is an Apology.
Image courtesy of Ircam.
