Duet for solo cellist

In 1901, famous cellist Pablo Casals had been climbing Mount Tamalpais, near San Francisco, when a large rock somehow became dislodged and fell on his hand, crushing some fingers. Casals said that the first thought that came to his mind at the time was, « Thank God I'll never have to play the cello again! ».

When a musician chooses a musical instrument in the quest to reach an artistic ideal, he seals an implicit pact by which he renounces a significant part of his freedom. He embarks on a long road that is both fraught with stealthy pitfalls and painful repetition. However, this road sometimes gives way to fleeting moments of grace. It is for these brief instants of esthetic communion, which they hope to prolong, that artists continue to practice, evermore.

Duet for solo cellist explores the complexity of the relationship between musician and instrument by bringing to the stage scenes from the life of a cello and its cellist. This show will use techniques developed in Magie nouvelle (new magic): an artistic movement that aims to reinvent magic as we know it - transforming it into a language of artistic exploration and a means to creative expression (for additional information, visit this website). The day-to-day struggle of our cellist will be portrayed like many artists have described it: as the excruciating fight with silence and the attempt to tame an object, which - at least in their eyes - breathes the power of will and alternates between the role of master and that of slave.

In an environment where, under the tyranny of a metronome, the act of repetition in the hope of reaching a perfect artistic execution will hold a key dramaturgical role, a few moments of fleeting grace will emerge. They will be rendered visible by the magic of an image born out of the vibratory quasi disappearance of a musical sound.