The Art of Invisibility

The workshop introduces three-part polyphony, basing on the various musical scales of Georgian music, both folk and religious, and making use of basic musical formulas. Through a selected set of exercises shaped throughout ten years of both teaching and learning experience of the leaders, it aims at developing what may be called a sense of polyphony. Working on a steady breathing, voice emission and colour, as well as on close listening during singing – not only to each of the three parts being sung simultaneously, but to the whole vertical aspect of the music performed at a given moment – results in obtaining such a quality of sound where each of the individual voices disappears in the whole of a given consonance and can be no longer distinguished. The art of invisibility is the art of searching for perfect harmony. It is not only the craft of melting away, however, as it also gives the sense of how best to bring the individual back into view. Polyphonic music taken in this approach is a tool for improving the quality of presence of a performer, enhancing their focus and awareness of the big and small composition in which they are placed.

The same principles translate into the rhythm work (including polyrhythm) and merging polyphony with the rhythmical, enhancing the performer’s awareness and coordination.

Application

Please email your completed application form to Justyna Rodzińska-Nair at justyna@grotowski-institute.art.pl by 24 October 2016. Please ensure that the subject line of the email reads: ‘Theatre Olympics’ followed by the name of the chosen workshop. The number of places is limited. Applicants will be accepted on a first-come-first-serve basis.