CHROMA

May 13, 2023 · Peggy Corkum Music Room · Halifax, Nova Scotia

CHROMA concluded Alkali Collective’s third season with a program exploring graphic and text-based works. Several of the scores were projected in the concert space, allowing audiences to experience the visual material alongside the musicians’ interpretations. The program brought together works ranging from open-form scores built around performer choice to music developed through visual art and scientific research.

At the centre of CHROMA was the world premiere of Nour Symon’s Né·e à l’est du Cosmos (خول – khawal), commissioned by Alkali Collective as part of the Cross-Canada Commissioning Project. Created for the ensemble between February 2022 and February 2023, the video graphic score replaces conventional notation with animated drawings in which colour, position, density, and movement guide the performers’ musical interpretation. Symon joined Alkali in Halifax to work directly with the ensemble in preparing the new work.

The concert also presented contrasting approaches to unconventional notation through works by Alexis Porfiriadis, Sarah Hennies, Deborah Carruthers, and Paolo Griffin. Together, the program placed visual art, text, improvisation, performer decision-making, and contemporary chamber music within the same concert experience.

Featured Composer: Nour Symon

Maisie-Nour Symon Henry is a composer, visual artist, poet, and independent researcher whose transdisciplinary practice brings together concert music, visual art, and poetry. Their work includes instrumental and performative graphic scores – described by Symon as “sound paintings” – as well as poetry, visual art, and interdisciplinary projects. Their work has been presented and exhibited in Canada and internationally, and their 2020 collection L’amour des oiseaux moches was a finalist for both the Governor General’s Literary Awards and the Émile-Nelligan Award.

From the Artistic Directors

Thank you for joining us for the final concert of Alkali Collective’s third season. We strive to program and present compelling works from composers both in Canada and around the world, showcasing music that reflects the environmental, political, and social climate of today.

This evening’s concert features the world premiere of “Né·e à l’est du Cosmos ( – khawal)”, a new video graphic score by Egypto- québécois composer and sound artist Nour Symon. This piece is the ensemble’s third commissioned work, and is a part of our ongoing Cross-Canada Commissioning Project. We have been incredibly fortunate to have Symon here in Halifax working directly with our ensemble as we explore their piece. Symon is an incredible resource of ideas and creativity, and having their artistic insight and feedback throughout the production process has been crucial to preparing this complex and highly-detailed work.

We are thrilled to present this new piece as part of an immersive programme of graphic and text-based scores. Tonight’s concert highlights several different approaches to composition, including open form scores that encourage collective decisions and visual art rooted in years of scientific research.

We are so grateful to be bringing new music and ideas to our audiences year after year. We look forward to bringing you more music in our upcoming fourth season, launching in Fall 2023. Thank you for supporting live art and joining us for an evening of contemporary chamber music!

– Megan Thibeault & Shauna DeGruchy