Festival Archipel 2018, Genève

D.R.

Machina Humana

Machina Humana by David Hudry (1970) plunges into the heart of the industrial world of the Arve Valley in Haute-Savoie, an area known for turning and precision engineering. The piece was ordered by Archipel and the Lemanic Modern Ensemble. Contrary to robotisation, here the machine works thanks to the man who programs it. This industrial microcosm, where men and machines cohabit daily, fascinated Hudry. The confrontation takes the form of a composition of mixed music where classical instruments (processed live by electronic transformations) and concrete sounds (recorded in Arve Valley factories) intertwine.

Machina Humana is inspired by the dynamism of industrial activity and uses the sound material collected in a very concrete way. By processing the instruments electronically - in the Grame studios in Lyon - Hudry obtains a fusion of synthetic and concrete tones. Linking an Alpine valley's industry and a contemporary ensemble that has been based in this region for ten years, this piece invites the workers to perceive the sounds of their environment differently, and gives the music a dimension which surpasses the simple framework of a traditional concert (16 March, Alhambra).

Archipel 2018

Machina humana

D.R.

Marc Texier - director of Archipel