“La Scatola”, an intermedia project by Manuela Barile and Rui Costa, live at Guarda Municipal Theatre (PT) in two complementary presentations:

Thu 5 June 08 – 9.30 p.m.
Guarda Municipal Theatre (PT)
Ó DA GUARDA – NEW MUSIC FESTIVAL

An intermedia performance by:
Manuela Barile (voice, performance and objects) and Rui Costa (electronics and sensors)
Admission: 5€ [festival admission: 13€] • 60 min.

“A submerged world.
The unreachable depth of the abysses.
Obscurity. Apparent stillness
Opposite forces.
The memories come and go
Faces. Bodies. People. Places.
The images of an instant.
An instant from the past.
The past is underwater
Visions of a distant reality, still alive and present”

“La Scatola” explores the notion of confinement using multiple approaches. Working on the border zone between the ‘I’ and the outside world, ‘La Scatola’ (“The Box”, in English) can be thought as a narrative device, that represents a diffuse space between the “inside” and the outside”, between the “I” and the “other”, in which multiple and sometimes opposite strength lines are present: sensitive manifestations of the incarcerated and/or protected body, distorted visions of the external world, anxiety, wishes and memories. We may define this zone in purely spatial terms (“forbidden zone”, “abyss”, “barrier”) but also in terms of bidirectional “energy fluxes” created by the sensorial and emotional projection of the incarcerated individuality into the outside world (pain, desire, resistance, impotence, etc.) and by the representation (idealized, distorted, diffuse) of the outside world in the mind and body of the incarcerated individual.

The project is developed in multiple metamorphoses and presented in several interchangeable contexts: installations, performances, concerts (solos / duos), site-specific presentations and workshops.

Thu 5 June 08 – 10.00 a.m.
Guarda Municipal Theatre
EDUCATIONAL DEPARTMENT – AQUA CRIATIVA PROJECT

La Scatola d’Acqua
by Manuela Barile and Rui Costa
Intermedia Installation / Performance • 2€ • Registration until June, 3rd • 60 min.

La Scatola d’Acqua is an interactive show conceived by Manuela Barile and Rui Costa mixing water, video, sound, voice and movement.

“The living matter started its adventure in our planet from the water. Every human being lives in his/her initial formation surrounded by the amniotic liquid. Water is the main constituent of living beings… It is a crucial element for life on Earth. Water is also an important element of fun and amusement for children, a matter that offers them the possibility of experiencing pleasurable sensations. of understanding and exploring…. “La Scatola d’Acqua” is a sound and visual journey in a submerged and mysterious world. A show that deals with affections, emotions, and recollections from our beloved ones. A past still alive and present”

Artistic Direction: Manuela Barile (Italy) and Rui Costa (Portugal)
Video Collaboration: Maile Colbert (USA)
Sound Collaboration: Mario Volpe (Italy)
Dramaturgic Collaboration: Bojana Bauer (Serbia)
Production Direction: Luís Costa
Artist Residencies: Nodar Guest Studio (Portugal) | MoKS (Estonia)
Funding: Portuguese Ministry of Culture / General Office for the Arts

Manuela Barile and Rui Costa were at MUSAC – Contemporary Art Museum of León (Spain) were they directed between February, 19th and 22nd, 2008 their workshop “La Scatola: The Amplified Expression of the Body”.

This workshop was structured with the purpose of creating a multidisciplinary performance through collaborative processes and intersecting body, voice, physical-acoustic space and sensors as a way of amplifying their expressive possibilities. A group of 20 enthusiastic performers, musicians and students helped to conceive a very powerful body-voice-electronics improvisation that was seen by an audience of about 30 people.

Here are some photos of the workshop:

La Scatola
An intermedia project by Manuela Barile and Rui Costa

“La Scatola” explores the notion of confinement using multiple approaches. Working on the border zone between the ‘I’ and the outside world, ‘La Scatola’ (“The Box”, in English) can be thought as a narrative device, that represents a diffuse space between the “inside” and the outside”, between the “I” and the “other”, in which multiple and sometimes opposite strength lines are present: sensitive manifestations of the incarcerated and/or protected body, distorted visions of the external world, anxiety, wishes and memories. We may define this zone in purely spatial terms (“forbidden zone”, “abyss”, “barrier”) but also in terms of bidirectional “energy fluxes” created by the sensorial and emotional projection of the incarcerated individuality into the outside world (pain, desire, resistance, impotence, etc.) and by the representation (idealized, distorted, diffuse) of the outside world in the mind and body of the incarcerated individual.

The several narrative devices to be used will be organized in order to create enigmatic situations, between the familiar and the weird (or distant). The images or objects to be used, in its simplicity and depuration, can be transformed in a mirror capable of facing the audience with their own memories and individual experiences.

The project is developed in multiple metamorphosis and presented in several interchangeable contexts: installations, performances, concerts (solos / duos), site-specific presentations and workshops.

Artistic Direction: Manuela Barile (Italy) and Rui Costa (Portugal)
Video Collaboration: Maile Colbert (USA)
Sound Collaboration: Mario Volpe (Italy)
Dramaturgic Collaboration: Bojana Bauer (Serbia)
Production Direction: Luís Costa
Artist Residencies: Nodar Guest Studio (Portugal) | MoKS (Estonia)

Funding: General Office of the Arts | Ministry of Culture, Portugal

Acknowledgments: Associação Cultural de Nodar (Portugal) | S. Pedro do Sul Municipality (Portugal) | Zoom – Associação Cultural (Portugal) | Amigos do Museu de Olaria de Barcelos (Portugal) | ZDB Gallery (Portugal) | MoKS (Estonia) | Vel-Net (Italy) | Villa Franchin (Italy) | Madcap Collective (Itália) | Città di Venezia (Italy) | MARCO – Contemporary Art Museum of Vigo (Spain) | Sinsal Collective (Spain) | MUSAC – Contemporary Art Museum of León (Spain) | Junta de Castilla y León – Consejeria de Cultura y Turismo (Spain) | Almazen. Serial Artist (Spain) | La Casa Encendida de Obra Social Caja Madrid (Spain) | Asociación Musicalibre (Spain) | Centro Huarte – Contemporary Art Centre of Navarra (Spain) | Presence Capitale (France) | Erratum (France)

Upcoming Presentations:

28 January 08, 8.30 p.m.
Manuela Barile
Concert for voice and sound objects
Festival Hurta Cordel 2008 – International Festival of Musical Improvisation
La Casa Encendida, Madrid (Spain)
http://www.lacasaencendida.es

5 and 6 February 08, 8.00 p.m.
Manuela Barile and Rui Costa
Intermedia installation-performance (5 Feb.) and intermedia concert for voice, electronics, sound objects and video (6 Feb.)
Almazen, Barcelona (Spain)
http://www.almazen.net

19 to 22 February 08, from 5.00 p.m. until 9.00 p.m.
Manuela Barile and Rui Costa
Workshop “La Scatola: The Amplified Expression of the Body”
A theoretical-practical workshop with the purpose of creating a multidisciplinary performance through collaborative processes and intersecting body, voice, physical-acoustic space and sensors as a way of amplifying their expressive possibilities.
A workshop for musicians, sound artists, performers, actors, either professionals or self-teaching, with interest in experimental and multidisciplinary artistic creation.
MUSAC – Contemporary Art Museum of León (Spain)
Applications to be received until 19 February 08
http://www.musac.es

29 February 08, 9.00 p.m.
Manuela Barile and Rui Costa
Intermedia concert for voice, electronics, sound objects and video
Villa Franchin, Mestre – Venice (Italy)
http://www.veneziagiovane.net

4 and 5 April 08, 9.00 p.m.
Manuela Barile and Rui Costa
Intermedia concert for voice, electronics, sound objects and video
Centro Huarte – Contemporary Arte Centre, Navarra (Spain)
http://www.centrohuarte.es

Artistic Biographies:

Manuela Barile is an Italian vocal researcher and an interdisciplinary performer presently living in Portugal. Her artistic research is based on a project-oriented work that combines vocal sounds with different media (video, photography, installations, performance, concert-performance, drawing, writing). Her sound vocabulary was enriched through a series of studies and researches, around oriental and occidental vocal traditions, either made by herself or with teachers such as Amelia Cuni (Druphad) and Tran Quang Hai (Harmonic chant). Her CD, “Creature Sonore” was released in 2007 on Alg-a netlabel.

Rui Costa is a Portuguese sound artist from Lisbon, Portugal. He has been performing live for more than 10 years. Rui’s artistic expression favours the creation of intricate sonic textures through computer-based sound manipulation techniques and using as a source field recordings and live sampling of acoustical instruments. He developed several conceptual projects, presented in art galleries and concert spaces across Portugal, Spain and USA. As an example, it is worth mentioning the intermedia work “Nodar”, developed with Iñaki Ríos and premiered at the Musica Ex Machina festival, in Bilbao, Spain. His work has been published in several sound art compilations (Sirr, Crónica, No Type, Universe International, Mandorla).

+info:

http://www.manuelabarile.com
http://www.myspace.com/ruigcosta

Manuela Barile presents in Bordeaux during “Burn Out – Post Crash”, 9th Symposium of Sound Arts and Mix Media, the solo voice+objects version of the intermedia project “La Scatola“, developed along with the sound artist Rui Costa. The symposium is curated by Joachim Montessuis (Erratum magazine) and Yvan Etienne, in connection with André Lombardo (artistic director of Présence Capitale).

Burn Out – Post Crash
9th Symposium of sound arts and mix media
Saturday, 24 November 2007
Entrepôt Lainé – CAPC Musée d’Art Contemporain
Bordeaux, France
from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Full program:

Giuseppe Ielasi + Thomas Ankersmit (IT / NL)
Manuela Barile (IT)
Samon Takahashi (FR)
Jorg Piringer (AT)
Bryan Saunders (US)
Raionbashi & Kutzkelina (DE)

Manuela Barile and Rui Costa presented last October, 12th 2007 at MARCO – Contemporary Art Museu of Vigo a second metamorphosis of the intermedia project “La Scatola“. With this presentation at the festival MARCO Sonoro 07 ended the preliminary phase of the project, in which some narrative possibilities and interfaces between the voice and electronics were tested. The project itself will start to be developed at NOGS on a 3 weeks residency starting in October 15th 2007.

Here are the sounds of La Scatola @ Marco Sonoro 07:

La Scatola @ Marco Sonoro 07 Play Now

Rui Costa presented last October, 4th 2007 at EME 07, a Festival of Experimental music held in Palmela, Portugal, the first installment of ‘La Scatola’, an intermedia project developed along with the italian vocal performer Manuela Barile.

‘La Scatola’ explores the notion of confinement using multiple approaches and works on the border zone between the ‘I’ and the outside world and will be materialized in several ways, according to the spatial context where it will be presented and the collaboration with artists of several areas. Artists such as Maile Colbert and Pablo Rega, and the theoricist Bojana Bauer will join the authors either in live performances or during the art residencies where the project will be developed.

Audio track from Rui Costa’s performance at EME 07:

Rui Costa | La Scatola Live at EME 07 Play Now

Binaural will be the production organization of the EME 07 – Encontros de Música Experimental, one of the most important experimental electronic sound and visual event in Portugal, directed by the portuguese sound artist Vitor Joaquim.

The Binaural member Rui Costa will present at EME 07 the first metamorphosis of “La Scatola”, a large scale collaborative intermedia project to be developed with the italian vocal performer Manuela Barile and other guests, such as Maile Colbert and Pablo Rega.

The program of EME 07 will be the following:

WORKSHOP
Resolume (painting with light): Hugo Olim
(from 2th to 6th October – Universidade Moderna Setubal)

CONCERTS
Igreja de Santiago, Castelo, Palmela

… 3 rd October
Miguel Cabral (PT)
Marsen Jules (DE)

… 4 th October
Rui Costa (PT)
Nook (DE)
Zavoloka (UA)

… 5 th October
Pygar (PT)
Tim Hecker (CA)

… 6 th October
Mosaique (PT) + Laetitia (PT)
Biosphere (NO)

INSTALLATIONS
Lia (AT)
Laetitia Morais (PT)
Hugo Olim (PT)
Paulo T Silva (PT)
Marta Traquino (PT)
André Gonçalves (PT)