"Engram", Bach's "III. part of the Clavierübung" with music by Laura Marconi, Gianluca Castelli, David Lang; Sjaella (vocal sextet), KMD Christoph D. Minke (organ)
"Engram is a general term for a physiological trace that a stimulus leaves behind as a permanent structural change in the brain. The totality of all engrams results in memory."
This is how Laura Marconi (*1989) and Gianluca Castelli (*1985) described their "contemporary chorales", which they composed for Sjaella to Johann Sebastian Bach's "Clavierübung III. Theil". They asked: "How can we create a connection to the past that is respectful, but also rich in new insights and relevant to our present?"
Inspired by their interest in human emotions and how the brain works, they used ideas from different approaches to brain research. In their pieces, they interweave different approaches to Bach's material with poetry, inspired by memory mechanisms such as dreams, earworms and flashbacks. With associations and reminiscences, they create a place of sound where collective and individual experiences meet and where one can rediscover oneself as part of a whole that exists or is emerging.
In addition to music by Bach, Laura Marconi and Gianluca Castelli, the opening concert of the 38th Schönberg Music Summer will also feature songs by David Lang, Eriks Esenvalds and Knut Nysted.
Sjaella is one of the most prominent a cappella groups currently singing on the world's stages. To be able to experience the sextet from Leipzig again in Schönberg shows the close connection they have had for years with the Schönberg Music Summer and the people behind it.
With the kind support of Lotto Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
