This Exciting double bill zooms in on the micro tonal clarinet world of PORTA CHIUSA’s new compostion ‘FEAR’ brought live by Paed Conca, Hans Koch, Ghazal Faghihi and Joachim Badenhorst, and zooms out on the layered and eclectic sound of 15 Woolvs  staging their collective masterpiece/album ‘Large Ensemble’ live…

PORTA CHIUSA: Paed Conca, Hans Koch, Ghazal Faghihi, Joachim Badenhorst (LB/CH/IR/BE)

PORTA CHIUSA is a project conceived by the Beirut-based Swiss clarinettist and composer, Paed Conca (Praed Orchestra, The Mad Laboratory of Anti-Matter). Active since 2009 and originally a clarinet trio, PORTA CHIUSA (closed door) serves as both a musical and a political outlet for Conca.

To shape his brand-new composition, ‘FEAR’, he gathered three renowned clarinettists from the international scene during a short residency at Dropa House, hosted by Sound in Motion. Alongside Swiss improvisation pioneer Hans Koch, internationally acclaimed Belgian reed player Joachim Badenhorst, and Brussels based Iranian improviser Ghazal Faghihi, Conca uses microtonal chords to convey how fear is a constant emotional state that we face daily and globally.

‘PORTA CHIUSA makes it possible to realise musical visions that are only possible with clarinets,’ says Conca. ‘What may seem one-sided or limited at first glance, however, turns out to be an enrichment. The tonal proximity of the clarinets creates possibilities that are not available with other instruments.’

WOOLVS LARGE ENSEMBLE (BE)

With Large Ensemble, Brussels-based Woolvs present a collective tour de force. A full-length album of 16 art-pop songs, served with hefty doses of free jazz, vocal harmonies, electronics, and psychedelia. The result – created by 23 top musicians from today’s adventurous Belgian music scene – is layered and eclectic in sound and texture, cinematic in structure and tension. The kind of album you need to listen to from start to finish.

To present Large Ensemble live at Rataplan, Woolvs will consist of:
Samuel Ber (drums), Aiko Devriendt (flute/synth), Hanne De Backer (bass clarinet/baritone sax), Ruben De Maesschalck (bass/percussion), Jacob Hus (electronics), Thomas Jillings (tenor sax/clarinet and alto clarinet), Soet Kempeneer (double bass/synth), Elisabeth Klinck (violin), Willem Malfliet (voice/electric and acoustic guitar), Oriana Mangala (voice, keys), Vitja Pauwels (electric and acoustic guitar), Olivier Penu (drums), Paulien Rondou (voice), Laszlo Thiry (bassoon), Adia Vanheerentals (soprano and tenor sax/clarinet)

i.c.w. Rataplan and Dropa House