April Newsletter
Dear colleagues, friends and family,March was quite a special month here in the Netherlands, filled with sunny days and barely a drop of rain.According to the KNMI (the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute)...The month was very dry with an average of about 6 millimeters of rainfall over the country against normally 53 millimeters. This made it the driest month of March at the automatic weather stations since the beginning of the measurements in 1906.With an average of 247 hours of sunshine across the country, it was the sunniest March since at least 1965. The long-term average is 146 hours.(Meanwhile in Portugal, rain was a constant for the month of March...)(on the way to the Studio - tree at Frederik Hendrikplantsoen)Over the past few months, I’ve stepped away from social media, choosing to focus instead on more intentional ways of sharing and staying connected.This shift has been both refreshing and challenging — but I’m enjoying finding new (and sometimes old) ways to keep in touch.I also launched a new section on my website called Scribbles, where I post blog entries and updates. It’s still taking shape, but you’re warmly invited to follow along there.In March, I had the opportunity to present my artistic research at two wonderful gatherings: the Sound Studies Center Workshop at Leiden University, and the Convergence Seminar on Co-creative Strategies in Interdisciplinary Artistic Practices at the Royal Conservatoire Antwerp.The response from both colleagues and audience members was incredibly encouraging. It’s a truly special feeling to see a project spark curiosity and resonate with others in unexpected ways.Still in March, my work Seeing Quintuple and the sound piece for The Butterfly Effect project were both featured at IDFA Shaping Bonds program.As I near the end of my AFK Research journey, I’m thrilled to let you know that some of the sounds that have been quietly fermenting will soon be ready to share.Expect two album releases and a solo performance at Tell Me More #4 in Dokzaal — details coming very soon!
Bica à BoavistaJanuary in Vila de Frades was spent between research writing, a LOT of reading, chamomile and oranges.I did my first pruning of the vineyard, and......well, wish us luck!The cats are doing well, they have now their own two story house and a pool.Don't think we'll be getting any complaints any time soon.Next week, I’ll be completing a course focused on the strawberry tree (medronheiro) — a resilient, native shrub that thrives in the Portuguese climate.Thank you ACOS for providing free courses for farmers in the South :)
Seeing Quintuple @ IDFAShaping BondsI was very happy to have my work Seeing Quintuple exhibited at the IDFA Shaping Bonds festival this March.At the same time, a film from The Butterfly Effect by Mathilde Renault — for which I composed a sound piece based on meteorite data — was also screened.It was a truly special experience. The team was incredibly welcoming, and I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to share these projects in such a beautiful place.Thank you to Wotienke for the invitation, and to everyone who came by and supported the work!
Photo by: Zsolt Szederkenyi
Benjamim
Last February, I had the pleasure of being invited by my dear friends from movimento patrimonial pela música portuguesa - Catarina Távora and Duarte Martins—to take part in a concert from Catarina’s Benjamim cycle. It was a wonderful experience to return to preparing and re-working music by Portuguese composers, particularly Eurico Carrapatoso’s Le tombeau de Germaine Tailleferre. At the same time, I had the chance to further develop my own composition, Ondas Sonoras, inspired by the (non)audible chants of whales and the mysterious depths of the ocean.more info here
Patternist novels: Mind of My Mind, Survivor, Wild Seed and Clay's Ark.
by Octavia Butler