Music from somewhere (2017),
for pianist's hands, lights and tape
by Fran MM Cabeza de Vaca
Performer: Haize Lizarazu
Video: Marta Azparren
Recorded in Barcelona in 2020.
(Flat response speakers or headphones recommended)
Music from somewhere shows us a simple scenic display to amplify the previous moment to the sound emission of the piano, working with the silence as material that precedes the music that is yet to come, the one that is in this other place.
Bringing that specific moment to the front means that the gesture becomes our main visual input, focusing on that virtual place where the performer is just before the sound materializes. They explore the different ways to connect the body to the instrument, linking it not only to the visible gestures, but also to the previous state where the non-visible movement stays: the pre-gesture.
This piece also challenges the performer to rethink the act of moving arms, forearms and hands, inviting them into a deep proprioceptive exercise —to feel and control their movements through new self-awareness.
Based on Paul Craenen’s ideas in Composing under the skin, the work explores the tension that exists between the sound here (audience), the sound there (performer) and that somewhere, where the music brings us, carrying away also the presence of the performer themself, becoming the pianist that could any of us, or none of us, be.
