WEAVINGS II

A durational improvisation structured in the manner of a long fabric of sound, Weavings is conceived by Nicolás Jaar. The original project was recorded in 2020 during the pandemic, with performers joining remotely from around the world. Already released as an album in digital form, it’s a timeless document of a discomfiting time. 'Weavings 2' was recorded a year later, while the pandemic still raged, this time IRL in Kraków as Unsound Festival’s closing concert. Performers were packed onto a stage, using their own unique methodologies to knit a subtly-hued sonic mesh. The concept behind 'Weavings 2' remained the same: participants did not rehearse beforehand, and performed in duos and clusters according to a visual score. The ensemble included four artists from the first online Weavings – Aho Ssan, Angel Bat Dawid, Paweł Szamburski, Resina - and Jaar, who also once again mixed the show live. The first-time performers – or Weavers – were Antonina Nowacka, Khyam Allami, Oren Ambarchi, Pak Yan Lau, Raphael Rogiński, Tomoko Sauvage and Valentina Magaletti. The musicians are therefore not only ‘woven’ between one another during a single concert, but some of them between the first and second performances, online and IRL. Deep listening and the concept of waiting also connects the performances, both from the perspective of the audience and also the performers, who would very often sit in silence, as instructed by the score. For 'Weavings 2', the concert has been mastered and spliced into individual tracks, and like its predecessor feels like a coherent album, where the sum is greater than its parts. And again, it’s also a document of the pandemic, now examining the period in which we stepped out of our isolation and towards each other. A durational improvisation bringing together twelve artists from around the world, the project is a testament to the ability of music to communicate in a language beyond words.