SATURDAY 21 MAY 2022
AT 21.00

Trio XTRO
a WASTE of time

Patrick Ellis                            
Objects and Portrait Projections

Lam Lai Keng                      
9Election

Hugo Morales                     
Batucatta

Ann Southam                     
Natural Resources

Thierry De Mey                  
Musique de table

Compagnie Kahlua            
Ceci n'est pas une balle

Trio XTRO
Antonio Bove, Gabriele Segantini, Miguel Varela percussion

a WASTE of time is a new show that combines music and theatrical elements through the performance of pieces by contemporary and modern composers. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that many of the instruments used during the show are objects that have been found and gathered in the places that host the exhibition, so that the performance always has different sounds. Aware of the situation in which our planet is living, we believe it is time to send a clear message in as many ways as possible. By carefully choosing the compositions to include the collected objects, we intend to demonstrate how recycling can actually help our creativity, as a painter or sculptor might do for their works. The goal is to make it clear that objects destined to be thrown away can be used for a different purpose, thus increasing awareness of the problem of pollution and the need to take more useful actions.

Trio XTRO

Objects and Portrait Projections, by Patrick Ellis
This piece explores the pairing of sounds produced by plant pots and crockery, with human-manipulated images and fixed electronics. The work is inspired by various sources found in the day-to-day and artistic worlds; zoom meetings, archive footage, home recordings, interaction and repetition…

9Election, by Lam Lai Keng
I wrote this piece to explore the sounds produced by different objects collected by percussionists. It’s like eating a 9-grid hotpot, taking whatever you want to taste. Enjoy the “meal of sounds”. Lam Lai Keng

Batucatta, by Hugo Morales
Piece for three donkey jawbones, an unusual traditional Mexican instrument. A combination of motifs played on the animal’s teeth and skull make this work very special for its groovy rhythms, which change according to each player.

Natural Resources, by Ann Southam
Southam composed a score, essentially a set of instructions and a tool bag containing bolts, wooden dowels, hooks, screws, rope thimbles, chain links, and so on. The score describes the work as “a sound game for players” which in no way relies on any energy sources other than the players themselves. The underlying message was that the composer was bidding farewell to electronic music.

Musique de table, by Thierry De Mey
Playing on three wooden boards, the musicians perform elegant movements with both hands and arms, generating a surprising choreographic impact. Thanks to the intervention of lights that illuminate only certain points of the room, the rhythmic pattern and the timbres of the boards, amplified by contact microphones, emerge from the surrounding space.

Ceci n'est pas une balle, by Compagnie Kahlua
Recorded tracks and body percussion characterise Ceci n'est pas une balle. Originally written for a theatre company, this piece is full of energetic and comical moments, made so by the actors who, from the beginning, have trouble with an imaginary ball.

XTRO is a group that creates and performs mainly new music and contemporary works, combining theatrical elements, dance and video. Winners of the Grote Kamermuziekprijs 2021 (jury and audience awards) and influenced by minimal, electronic and alternative music, the ensemble engages all kinds of audiences, stimulating imagination in an ethereal reality made of musical, visual, dramaturgical art and concepts. A connection between acoustic and electronic sounds creates an unexpected bond, enriching the show.

Since 2019, XTRO’s work as performers, producers and composers has led to collaborations with a wide range of artists including Slagwerk Den Haag and new generation composers - Nicholas Morrish (Gaudeamus Muziekweek nominee), Germán Medina Calle (with a studio recording of his piece “Imbue”) and Patrick Ellis (with the commission “Objects and portrait projections”). The group, composed of Antonio Bove, Gabriele Segantini and Miguel Varela, has made important appearances at the Gaudeamus Muziekweek, Mittelfest, Dag in de Branding, Grote Kamermuziek and In Bloom festivals. The three members come from classical backgrounds and developed their skills in the most renowned musical institutions in Italy, Belgium and Portugal. Born in The Netherlands, the aim of XTRO is to communicate, create and experiment through sound, and explore which moments of explosion, pulse and tension lead the audience to discover new spaces, time and emotion.