Harmonies Magnétiques

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“Harmonies magnétiques” continues the work initiated by composer Karl Naegelen with the musicians of the Quatuor Umlaut (Calques, 2021) and the musicians of the company Atelier de Papier, creators of the cordoniums (Cartographie de rythmes #3 – Battements, 2022).

In his writing, Karl Naegelen enjoys working with the relationship between similar timbres, capable of generating perceptual disturbances and acoustic illusions. His recent pieces often result from the exploration of “twin textures.”

“Harmonies Magnétiques” explores the unexpected closeness between a formation over two and a half centuries old (the string quartet) and instruments born from new lutherie (the cordoniums). The traditional bow of hair and wood dialogues with its electric, magnetic “aura.” This new kind of sextet provides an opportunity to shape new textures—vibrant, changing, and alive: the magnetism of the string excited by an electric field is answered by the magnetism between sounds and intervals, which in turn create beats and textures.