Sunday, 30. September 2007, 23:05. - 23:45, Ö1




The Snake Project

von Sheila Concari

“The Snake Project is a voyage through sound that seeks out the hidden, inner voice of humankind. It is inspired by the myth of Melusine, the snake woman whose reptilian nature is cloaked by her human appearance.

In this creature, half woman and half snake, there are the transmuted forms of the matrix,
the ultimate root: the sign of the life formula.

All that is in what we know of the universe, is made of the same elements, as if there is no difference between what belongs to the mineral, mental or vegetal world.

Like all organic and inorganic creatures mankind is made of calcium, iron and water.

Spiritual and material elements, animals and humans are constantly mixing.

This work represents a sort of “trans-human-kind” in search of the mystery of its nature, and looking for an identity which is written in the chemicals of its cells, aerial and even mineral substances.

The components of different kind of creatures are as well the same.

The part of the human brain called limbic brain is a derivative of reptilian cerebral matter.

Based on a mix of languages, the very fragmented and onomatopoeic texts, the performance oscillates between song and spoken words.

Nearly all sounds in this work have their starting block, normal voice or voice mixed with electronic samples, which is the foundation of The Snake Project..

The voice as well as the sounds create musical phonemes composing through little fragmented melodies, a kind of leitmotiv that alludes to the magic ritual of metamorphosis.

Ambient sounds are made of snake noises, like barely audible snake’s hissings, with forked shaped tongues, crawling bodies or rattlesnakes.

Words and sounds that create a mysterious cryptic language emanating from human sentences or words.

The result is fuming hell, generating fabulous creatures : half human and half animal.”

(Sheila Concari)


Winner of the XIII Radio Creation Works Contest CDMC and Radio Clàsica
Commissioned by: CDMC-INAEM (Spanish Ministry of Culture)
Co-produced by CDMC (Centro para la difusión de la Mùsica Contemporànea) in Madrid and RNE (Radio Nacional de España) Radio Clásica