Skamander - A Water and Underwater Opera - 2001

Live-Electronics

«Skamander», was a particularly fastidious concert, a water and underwater opera by Beat Gysin, which took place in the indoor swimming pool Rialto in Basel. The audiodesign consisted of various multi-track tape elements and live-electronics, both played through a 40-channel AROS loudspeaker orchestra.

«...for the first part of the piece the audience sat around the pool. The second part was experienced in body temperature water inside the pool. One lay relaxed on two flotation devices, one‘s head supported by one of the musicians, who alternately dipped one or both ears under water, where sounds were transported via underwater loudspeakers to the eardrum. In combination with the complex loudspeaker orchestra above water, it created a completely new hearing experience, where two sound worlds (over and underwater) harmonized perfectly with one another...» (Basler Zeitung)

More about the AROS here.

Credits

Composition: Beat Gysin; Choir: Basler Madrigalisten; Solo Voices: Gillian Macdonald, Alenka Gotar, Skelt, Helmut Seidenbusch; Drums: Daniel Buess, Matthias Würsch; Video: Sarah Derendinger; Audio Design: Daniel Dettwiler; Direction: Björn Jensen; Musical Direction: Jürg Henneberger