GABRIEL DHARMOO (FR) AND SOHARÓZA

Gabriel Dharmoo‘s solo piece Anthropologies Imaginires, that is, Imaginary Anthropology, presents and involves the audience in the vocal rituals of a fictional tribe. Gabriel Dharmoo‘s solo piece Anthropologies Imaginires, that is, Imaginary Anthropology, presents and involves the audience in the vocal rituals of a fictional tribe. Meanwhile a projector delivers various terribly serious but hilarious fake anthropological analyses “explaining” what is happening on stage. In the second half of the concert, Dharmoo leads the Soharóza choir in a joint improvisational performance.

Anthropologies Imaginaires (or Imaginary Anthropology) is a solo vocal performance that interacts interestingly with a video documentary. Dharmoo performs songs and chants that one might assume come from some distant, mystical corners of the globe, but are in fact pure and honest, and brilliantly highlight the virtuosity and versatility that the human voice is capable of. Meanwhile, on screen, self-proclaimed experts comment on the improvisation that the singer-performer executes live. They witness a truly memorable musical event: something they have never experienced before. The result is a soundscape that challenges our conception of normality, reminding audiences that people around the world use sound differently as a means of expressing their cultural identity and artistic sensibility. Post-colonialism, post-exoticism, culture war, globalisation and racism are all reflected in Gabriel Dharmoo’s performance.

Gabriel Dharmoo’s musical works are almost impossible to pigeonhole. They involve much more than composition: simultaneous presentation and vocal improvisations. Anthropologies Imaginires is unpredictable, challenging and entertaining, hovering somewhere on the fine line between satire and seriousness, and between discordant musical worlds. It is at once both traditional and astonishingly new, a mix of normality and delirium. Humorous and serious at the same time. In the second half of the concert, Dharmoo goes one step further and even improvises polyphonically with a choir, Soharoza, that is among the best in the country.

At 18:00 the concert will be preceded by a workshop led by the performer Gabriel Dharmoo, to which anyone that loves singing is invited.

Anthropologies imaginaires (Trailer) – Gabriel Dharmoo from Gabriel Dharmoo on Vimeo.