je mets mon scaphandre

for bassoon, ambisonics, and reactive light design


je mets mon scaphandre is a new 40-minute immersive work for hyper-amplified bassoon, ambisonics, and sound-reactive light design. The piece's vivid and dynamic soundscape draws on the feminist theory of the ‘leaky body,’ which invites us to view the human body as fluid and amorphous. Here, the built-in spatiality and the leaky, unstable nature of the bassoon are brought into dialogue with this theory through sound and light.

As with a leaky body, the physical boundaries of the bassoon dissolve: sound is recorded internally, on the surface of the instrument, and externally with specially designed microphones, whose signals constantly overlap. The piece explores the crossing of boundaries and plays with how sound and air escape from the instrument, the resulting effects of which become apparent through how sound and light transform, influenced by the space, the acoustics and the audience.
The electronics amplify the smallest details in volume and dimension, with the sound panned around the entire room. In tandem, a ‘light organism’ - colours, washes and spots - grows out of the sonic material. The non-narrative structure of the work allows the audience to listen freely while having space to reflect on the relationship between their own bodies, the space they are in, and their connections to those around them.

At defined points in the piece, the performer reacts live to the electronics, playing musical games and improvising, deciding which pathway to follow depending on what she hears. The result is a work that is unique to every situation, space and circumstance.