THE FIRST ITERATION OF AN

OPERA OF/FOR KNOWN & UNKNOWABLE UN-I-VERSES

As you know, I have been occupying myself with numerous and varied creative pursuits over the years which I believe have recently ascended to a pinnacle of focus and motivation steering towards the articulation of a total work of art. I am contacting you now - along with a select few other individuals - because we have collaborated with wild success in the past or have shared in conversation recently that has led me to believe that we will in the future. My current ideological current is a tributary of a longer, wider, dispersed dialogue taking place over a grand dislocation of time and space by numerous people, some whom are already intimately connected and other whom have yet to be introduced.

I have been offered the opportunity to return to the small fishing town of Seyðisfjörður Iceland from January-April of this year to participate in the radical art school known as LUNGA, founded and operated by two amazingly tender hearted Danish men. I will have private accommodations, a 100sq meter art studio inside of an old fish factory, a small amount of money to work with, and access to a small but powerful international community of young aspiring-artists. I have spent the last few weeks meditating on how I would like to spend this time and have decided that the moment is ripe - in the world, in my life, and in my art - to attempt to coalesce all of these experiences into a unified collaborative work on a scale I have never before attempted. I'm tired of making work in isolation and I'm hungry to reconnect with the artists that have been most important to me - you! I want to work with you. I want to build an ark with you. Whatever happens in the end, I want to dedicate some significant time and energy towards our potential as I firmly believe that we are capable of manifesting a vision much more powerful working together rather than alone. Now is the time.

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I will begin composing an opera.

This opera will be very much like other operas that have been performed and will also be very much unlike anything that has ever been conceived of. Let me offer you a very brief outline of my plan...

Theme of the Work

I will describe a system of relations between vibratory bodies: planets in elliptical orbit around a dying star, the interplay of resonances transducing between the in/organic materials of our perceivable world, the molecular shivers of wave-particles locked in tele-kinetic embrace. The scale will be concerned with a macro-micro oscillation between these states. This is an opera of transmutation, communication, and dissolution. In short, this is a play about ENERGY - whatever that is. There will be specific representations of beginnings (birth), endings (death), and a spectra of processes playing out in between. The context consists of the interstice between the rational and spiritual world, between science and magic, between what can be perceived and what we currently only suspect to exist. As in the BOOK OF ENERGY, this work will focus on the movement between states rather than articulations of illusory static frames. For this work I will attempt to pour in all of my divergent interests in order to pluck the string that binds them. Part sci-fi space opera surrealist birthday party, part post-Nietzschean tragedy spectacle in a laser tag arena, part transhumanist conference of sub-geniuses in the sauna, part free jazz orchestra on a sinking ship... all of those things but nothing absolutely.

Composition

There will be written-visual scores produced for each member of the group, each representing a material with specific properties as well as a force with specific limitations. Each will therefore receive specific instructions (written collaboratively, between you and me) on how to interact with the other members in order to model a system of energy exchange, as well as specific content according to their role. The foundation of the performance will be a semi-improvised dialogue between the different strata of the universe-group. Each member will have a name, a sound, a visual expression, a taxonomy of movements, and an essential role in the construction of a meta-chord. At the core of this modeled system will be a single percussionist, surrounded by a trio (or more) of harmonic instruments, all of whom will be situated within a multi-channel audio environment. The central percussionist will be triggered by visual and audible cues, which will in turn cue the surrounding instrumentalists. The three signal from the instrumentalists will be fed to two or more computers which will process the sound into specific "sound-glyph-objects" which will fed back to one or all of the central performers. A lead vocalist will sing/read a narrative text in multiple languages (Icelandic, Swedish, E-prime, and a newly invented language I am currently working on). A choir of 2-10 people will move throughout the system. Yes, there will be a narrative both written and sung, enacted through symbolic choreographies of all members, and abstracted through a multi-channel video array representing a collective neural-celestial atmosphere.

Staging, Instruments, Context

The central percussionist will perform on a custom built, amplified, midi-triggered, and highly aestheticized sound sculpture. The surrounding performers will play prepared guitar, saxophone, bass, organ/synthesizer, flutes, custom stringed contraptions, or similar melodic instruments (to be decided). One computer will be processing the signals from the central percussionist while another computer will be effecting and distributing the signals from the performers. The main vocalist/reader and the choir will be fed to a master mixer controlled by a conductor along with various lighting displays, video projections, stage elements, and custom made "cue-objects" or props. All members will be outfitted in custom costumes specific to their role and many costume/role changes will take place. The stage or backdrop will be designed to be adaptable to many different performance locations and will be completely collapsible for ease of transport.

Practicalities and Timeline

If you are willing to participate we will conduct scheduled individual and group meetings (via video stream) to collect sound and visual material. During these meetings we will discuss the specifics of your role and work together to build an outline for a personal performance strategy based on your skills and interests as well as the needs of the composition. The score, instruments, and stage for the piece will be written and constructed by myself and the students of the LUNGA school between January-March of 2016 in Iceland. You will arrive in Seyðisfjörður Iceland in early April, where I will procure a nice group living arrangement, access to a kitchen, and a rehearsal space. We will begin with rigorous group rehearsals for 3-5 days, followed by dress rehearsals/experimental performances for 1-3 days at various venues around Seyðisfjörður (in the amphitheater, in the workshop of the art collective, in the local bar, possibly outside around the fjörd, etc). The second week we will leave the town to take our performance on tour around Iceland, playing at a variety of small strange galleries and venues along the north coast, two nights at a well known performance theater and art gallery in Reykjavik, then a few more spontaneous happenings on the return journey. I expect that different individuals will be living on various schedules so the composition will be constructed to expand and contract according to who is present - if no one shows up I will perform it alone with the students of Lunga, but that's the worst case scenario. I have other obligations beginning in May so the performance/tour must take place sometime in April, however the dates are very flexible according to your availability. *Unfortunately I cannot offer you any help with flights to/from Iceland, but I will try my damndest to get us some free housing, possibly food, and as much of the equipment as we need (although your ability to bring some of your own gear would be greatly appreciated!).

This will absolutely be the most ambitious and important work I will have attempted to date, but I must stress that my motivation in this project is to work with you (!!!) and other friends/collaborators that have been essential in my life. I have been looking for an opportunity to bring us together in a focused creative environment and I believe this is it. I hope you feel the same way and are willing and able to make the journey and spend the time in making this thing happen. This is a very rough proposal, just to plant the seed, and much more detailed descriptions will be provided if you come on board. Please respond to me when you can, as soon as possible, so I can try to convince you further. If you want to participate I would ask that you prepare a small sample of your work so that I can compile it into a kind of portfolio for the other members to experience.

One more thing.... I really believe this project could evolve into something much greater than an absurdist opera performed for a society of elves at the edge of a dying world. If we come together to make this happen I believe the result will have lasting repercussions throughout our lives and percolate deep into the public spheres. We should take the documentation and apply to group residency programs, grant opportunities, festivals, etc. We should continue the tour through the USA, through Europe, through India, or anywhere else you think might be relevant. If you have specific desires or demands from this collaboration then we must make sure to incorporate them. Let's come together and eat our own tail!

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