Exercises in Estrangement III Mycorrhizia: Quasar and Sandeep Bhagwati join forces for a unique multisensory concert

Montreal, January 18th 2024 – Le Vivier has just launched its Semaine du Neuf program, and with it the next concert in Quasar's Montreal Series: Exercises in Estrangement III Mycorrhizia. Presented as part of the Société de musique contemporaine du Québec's (SMCQ) Hommage à Sandeep Bhagwati series, this first collaboration between the quartet and the composer is in line with Quasar's commitment to showcasing innovative, multi-disciplinary performances that value new musics.

The work explores the most basic process of interspecies communication: the exchange of molecules between trees and the fungal network that connects their roots. The four musicians become, in a way, the trees, linked to each other by a surface attached to their waist, like a costume that will also serve as a score and projection surface on which spectators can watch the animated fungal filaments grow and wither, see the iconic molecules of the score follow their own paths and listen to Quasar transform their messages into music. The visual component plays an important role in this piece, which is as much about listening as it is about observing. That's why three creators have been brought on to the team for this ambitious project: Alex Bachmayer for textile score design, Mike Cassidy for the score's digital interface, and Sarah Cliche for lighting.

“A haunting music, an elaborate, hour-long comprovisation that makes us sense our interconnectedness with the world.” – Sandeep Bhagwati, composer

Exercises in Estrangement III Mycorrhizia will be presented one night only in Montreal on March 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the Espace Orange of the Wilder Building, in co-production with Le Vivier. A fiery encounter will be held before the concert.