MIRA expands to new spaces in 2019, programming shows in different stage formats. Today we announce two exclusive A/V projects that will take place at the Teatre Lliure de Gràcia on Wednesday 6 November: Colin Self presents “Siblings” and Sote presents “Sacred Horror in Design” feat. Tarik Barri, Arash Bolouri and Behrouz Pashaei. Both of them will make their Spanish Premiere.
The ticket for these concerts is valid for both shows and is NOT included in the Festival Pass. You can buy it at www.mirafestival.com/en/tickets. If you already have the Full Pass for MIRA 2019, send us an email to info@mirafestival.com to receive a discount code and get it for 12€ (while supplies last).
This collaboration with a historical institution in the city, as is the Teatre Lliure, was born out of our desire to programme content in spaces with stage formats that are different from those we can offer in Fabra i Coats, and in that way establish links with this and other key cultural agents in Barcelona.
Colin Self is an artist, vocalist, choreographer, composer and activist who creates music, performances and environments as devices for disrupting binaries, expanding consciousness and altering the boundaries of perception. Born in a small town in Oregon and currently based in Berlin, their work seeks to generate and celebrate community, kinship and caring, refreshing the DIY ethos and transforming it into Do-It-Together.
Following various performance, choir and A/V projects (including being part of Holly Herndon’s live trio), Self’s second release “Siblings” (RVNG Intl., 2018) marks the culmination of “Elation”: a six-part trans-feminist opera about transfiguration and global uncertainty. Partly inspired by the work of pioneering feminist theorist Donna Haraway, both the album and its performance explore themes of alienation, empathy and the role of non-biological family, and questions how we can carry on collectively in the midst of social and environmental collapse.
Colin Self will present their latest work together with a string trio and a group of local performers.
On his side, Ata “Sote” Ebtekar is an Iranian electronic music composer and sound artist. Currently based in Tehran, he is at the centre of a vital scene of artists making bold artistic statements in a country plagued by strict cultural restrictions. Active since the early 2000s, he is known for his ground-breaking releases on labels such as Warp, Opal Tapes, Diagonal, Morphine, Sub Rosa and Repitch.
Developed from a commission by CTM Festival as an A/V project in collaboration with Tarik Barri, Arash Bolouri and Behrouz Pashaei, “Sacred Horror In Design” reveals a dramatic blend of acoustic Persian instrumentation, contemporary electronics and live generated visuals. The project takes on the paradoxical task of preserving the beauty of tradition while bending and morphing existing patterns into unique shapes, devising an idealised fusion of the musical and visual heritage of Iran with the most forward-thinking audio and video techniques.
Sote will present this work live alongside visual artist Tarik Barri (collaborator with Thom Yorke, Monolake and Nicolas Jaar) and two of Tehran’s most active musicians: Arash Bolouri (santoor) and Behrouz Pashaei (setar).
