CONCERT PROGRAM:
Dominik Strycharski – ReHuman
Piotr Peszat – Digital Environments
Paweł Hendrich – Djentle // Bruthall
Solists:
Wojciech Jeliński – trombone
Łukasz “Dzvon” Cyndzer – electric guitar
In conversation:
Paweł Hendrich and Łukasz “Dzvon” Cyndzer
Spółdzielnia Muzyczna Contemporary Ensemble:
Małgorzata Mikulska – flute
Tomasz Sowa – clarinets
Krzysztof Guńka – saxophones
Paulina Woś – violin
Barbara Mglej – viola
Jakub Gucik – cello
Aleksander Wnuk – percussion
Aleksandra Płaczek – piano/keyboard
Piotr Peszat – electronics
We close this year’s INTERACTIONS with new compositions by Piotr Peszat, Dominik Strycharski, and Paweł Hendrich. In these works, the composers engage with current phenomena related to digital technology and expand the stylistic boundaries of contemporary music — which, if understood as a continuation of the academic-classical tradition, draws inspiration from popular music genres.
The piece ReHuman for the Spółdzielnia Muzyczna ensemble attempts to give an imperfect answer to the question: What is our favorite music? Does AI meet our expectations, or does it introduce chaos into our lives and turn everything upside down? Do we have a response to the growing manipulation of our perception?
In Digital Environments, the physical presence of the performers is juxtaposed with their digital resonances and avatars. Materiality becomes fleeting within a space arranged using digital tools. Both performers and the audience participate in a situation whose fragment is contained within the several-minute form of the piece for chamber ensemble and multichannel electronics.
Djentle // Bruthall is an innovative composition exploring the boundaries of contemporary classical music and metal, written for the full Spółdzielnia Muzyczna Contemporary Ensemble with the additional participation of two soloists: Wojciech Jeliński, an outstanding trombonist, and Łukasz “Dzvon” Cyndzer, a renowned guitarist from the metal scene (including bands such as Acid Drinkers and Truism). The combined sound of the ensemble and soloists is immersed in a multichannel electronic layer.
The title of the piece is a deliberate play on words, referencing stylistic contrasts and two key musical genres: djent and thall — characteristic of contemporary metal for their rhythmic complexity, heavy sound, and technical precision. On a second level of meaning, Djentle // Bruthall alludes to opposing ideas: “gentle” and “brutal,” which define the fundamental sonic and formal principles of the composition.
The work consists of two parts within a meta-form: the main composition (ensemble, soloists, electronics) and a strictly metal promotional piece — created as an audio-video clip in the style of djent and thall. Musically, the piece is characterized by extreme contrasts, unexpected rhythmic structures, and variable dynamics and timbre, all immersed in a surround electronic layer.
Djentle // Bruthall is a bold attempt to merge aesthetics, showcasing a dialogue between delicacy and brutality, while exploring the expressive possibilities of a contemporary ensemble alongside metal virtuosity.
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Co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund – a state special-purpose fund – under the “Music” programme implemented by the National Institute of Music and Dance.
The project is also co-financed by the City of Kraków and the Fund for the Promotion of Creativity of the Society of Authors ZAiKS.
Co-organiser of the event: The Centre for the Documentation of the Art of Tadeusz Kantor CRICOTEKA in Kraków.
📢 Project funded by the European Union under the National Recovery Plan.
Financed by the European Union NextGenerationEU.
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