Photo : Kevin Calixte
Symphony of hearts
A breathtaking story about creation, the body and humanity, bringing together an ensemble of artists, several of whom are internationally renowned.
SYNOPSIS
A churning, beating humanity is evoked in this social symphony in constant evolution, a work that proposes a tempest of bodies, sound compositions, and immersive visual installations inspired by data culled from citizens and scientists. This grand gesture composed of musicians and dancers will attempt to illuminate and transform the stage into a great heart pulsing humanity. Tensions in a dance-music duet, a decagon of violins combining the impressive physicality of plural bodies and songs in invented language. The sum of it all will spring forth like an ode to the polyrhythmic power of the heart.
World premiere at the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, Place des Arts, co-presented by Danse Danse, April 3, 4, 5 in Montreal, in National Arts Centre on May 30, 2024, in Ottawa, in Lugano Dance Project (Switzerland), June 2024.
DESCRIPTION
The company's new work is Symphony of hearts (SYDC), a large-scale project combining the arts of dance and music about the heart, created for the first time in partnership with three philharmonic orchestras: Orchestre Métropolitain (Montreal), National Arts Centre Orchestra Ottawa (Ottawa) and Orchestra della Svizzera italiana (Lugano). The work is also supported by three producers, Danse Danse, the National Arts Centre of Ottawa and LAC Lugano arte e cultura (Switzerland). Based on Rhodnie Désir's choreographic-documentary approach, the research was supported by the Fonds de Recherche du Québec and carried out at two medical institutions: the Montreal Heart Institute and the Istituto Cardiocentro Ticino of Lugano. The research was also completed with testimonials from citizens and young students from Collège Jean Eudes (Montreal), as well as patient-partners living with heart disease.
SYDC is the original idea of Rhodnie Désir, following an inspiring meeting with maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin in 2021. Since 2022, following extensive documentary research at two institutions specializing in heart health, and over forty people interviewed, and more than a dozen recognized creators, the work proposes a tempest of bodies, sound compositions, and immersive visual installations inspired by data culled from citizens and scientists. This grand gesture made up of musicians and dancers will seek to transform the stage into a great choir, drawing on the storms and beats of the cardiovascular system as well as the romantic heart.
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Credits
CREATIVE TEAM
Creative Director (choreographer, documentalist, artistic director, vocal composer) : Rhodnie Désir
Conductor : Naomi Woo
Musical composer : Jorane
Orchestrator : François Vallières
Beatmaker and Sound Designer : Engone Endong
Costume Designer : Mélanie Ferrero
Scenographer : Olivier Landreville
Lighting designer : Chantal Labonté
Video and digital designer : Chélanie Beaudin-Quintin
Creative support : Isabelle Poirier
Dancers : Marilyne Cyr, Mara Dupas, Camille Gendron, Aly Keita, Luce Lainé, Emmanuelle Martin, Mya Metellus, Carlos-Alexis Mendoza-Bustinza, Ernesto Queseda Perez, Greg «Krypto» Selinger, Abe Simon Mijnheer
Musicians : Orchestre de l’Orchestre Métropolitain (à Montréal) / Orchestre du Centre National des Arts d’Ottawa (à Ottawa) / Orchestra della Svizzera italiana de Lugano (à Lugano) and the House Band of RD Créations (Engone Endong, Lasso Sanou) for all dates
Percussion arrangements : Rhodnie Désir and Jahsun
Artistic consultant : Philip Szporer
Researcher : Pascale Bilodeau (ONF)
PRODUCTION TEAM
Main producer : RD Créations
Associate producer : Frédérick Lalonde - JKFL Production
Production director : Cécile Doo-Kingué - RD Créations
Technical director : Bruno Lauzon
Stage managers : Julie Abran and Angie Pelletier
Communications officer : Caroline Rousseau - RD Créations
Representation agency : Avec Sheila (Sheila Skaiem)
PARTNERS
Co-producers and diffusers : Danse Danse, National Arts Centre, LAC Lugano Arte e Cultura
Majors partners : CNA National Creation Fund, National Film Board (NFB), Canada Council for the Arts
Principal partner : Fonds de Recherche du Québec
Creative partners: Montreal Heart Institute (MHI), Istituto Cardiocentro Ticino, Place des arts, Conseil des Arts de Montréal, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec
Artistic associate: Orchestre Métropolitain
Work composed for the choreographic production Symphony of hearts by Rhodnie Désir
Composition: Jorane, Engone Endong, R.Désir, A.Keita
Percussion arr.: R.Désir, Jahsun
Orchestration: F.Vallières
©2024 All rights reserved
SONGS
1. Neïa’yanga / Composition vocale : R.Désir, Interprétations : R.Désir et A.Keita, Arrangement vocal : C.Doo-Kingué / 2023
2· Fwô / Composition vocale : R.Désir, Interprétations : R.Désir et A.Keita, Arrangements : Engone Endong / 2023
3. Bognè / Composition vocale: A.Keita, Interprétations : A.Keita et R.Désir, Arrangements: Engone Endong / 2023
4. Nanayeom / Composition Vocale: R.Desir, Interprétation : R.Désir, Arrangement vocal : C.Doo-Kingué / 2024
Thanks
RD Créations would like to thank all the heart health specialists, patient-partners at the Montreal Heart Institute and the Istituto Cardiocentro Ticino of Lugano, as well as the young people of Jean Eudes College, and all the citizens who agreed to testify during the Symphony of hearts documentary research project, which began in 2022. Your powerful testimonials on the heart and cardiovascular system have brought Symphony of hearts to life.
