Chamber nôise I

Percussive sounds or dampened slap pizzicati are often introduced by a particular gesture (“raise left arm”). Performed in very slow motion, the gesture follows a natural trajectory, accumulating and concentrating energy in a manner reminiscent of sumo wrestlers preparing for a bout. Mutual awareness (not any cueing whatsoever) ensures that the musicians play the next entry in perfect sync.

At the beginning of Part II, both instrumentalists sing a text each, one in Japanese, the other in French, but the meaning is the same: Today… the duet… plays a tragic… love… story.The vocal expression should be quite unassuming and even, characterized by an intimist tone - more like a “half voice”, heard from afar. Facial expression remains totally neutral, blank and inscrutable.

Later on, the recitation of the “Heart sutra”, a major Buddhist text, includes Chinese and

Sanskrit words pronounced after the Japanese fashion: Shari-shi shiki fui-ku, ku fu-i shiki, shiki sokuze ku, ku soku-ze shiki ju so gyo shiki yaku-bu nyo ze.