Commission to Stellan Veloce

The Berlin-based Sardinian composer Stellan Veloce has created a new work for the Polish trio Kompopolex. The inspiration for his piece Mondo Manifest-o is the practice of manifestation, a new age and self-help concept that involves the belief that the individual can influence or create their own reality by using their thoughts, beliefs, emotions and intentions, and its complex relationship with neoliberalism. Through the use of voice and breath, incorporating elements of spoken word and effects-laden free reed instruments, this work aims to critically examine the intersection of desire and social constructions.

“Kompopolex is a versatile ensemble with many different skills. Their expertise spans not only the realm of acoustic and electronic instruments, but also extends into the realm of performative actions. When working with them, I am interested in the interplay of the elements that this ensemble embodies: I want to explore the possibilities of live electronic manipulation of the accordion as well as diatonic harmonicas and melodicas, combining this texture with samples and sound synthesis, juxtaposing polyrhythmic impulses and blurring the boundaries between the organic and the synthetic. Mondo Manifest-o builds on the foundations of my earlier works for diatonic harmonicas, such as the composition A gigantic blowing machine or a pocket tin Sandwich, and further explores breath as a musical gesture that carries inherent emotional qualities such as tension, release, anticipation and relaxation, and also applies it to electronic instruments, through controllers or real-time manipulation of breath-related parameters. With Mondo Manifest-o, I want to create a fusion that addresses today’s individualistic manifestation rituals and capitalist or neoliberal beliefs,” says Stellan Veloce.

The commission to Stellan Veloce for the Ensemble Kompopolex and the performance of this work Mondo Manifest-o is made possible by the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation.

Further information:
kompopolex.pl

Dates

June 10, 2024
Musikhuset, Copenhagen (Klang Festival)

July 11, 2024
Radialsystem, Berlin (Heroines of Sound Festival)

December 12, 2024
Wro Art Center, Wrocław