This September I began a three-year visiting artist-researcher position at IRCAM with Gerard Assayag’s Musical Representations team, under the direction of Jean-Louis Giavitto. I will be working on tools related to my upcoming project with the Philharmonie de Paris, a blended intensive program linking IRCAM with Oslo, Vienna and Paris conservatories, and a new opera for Grand Théâtre de Genève. I look forward to sharing more as each takes shape.
My electroacoustic work L'eau la colonne le fer (2023), in collaboration with poet Laura Vazquez, got a facelift this summer as I remixed it for IRCAM’s Espace de Projection in high-order ambisonics. It was then performed to a wide range of audiences: at the International conference on Audio for Virtual and Augmented Reality (AES AVARIG), the Traversées du Marais Festival, and the European Heritage Days. It remains available for online binaural streaming on IRCAM’s Circus app.
Antiwords, my 2013 collaboration with Spitfire company, has travelled to Berlin, Osaka, Tokyo, Washington, New York, London, Beijing… and finally made it to Avignon Festival this summer for eight shows, where it received the Prix Lueur for best direction. The press called it “a gem of dark humor” (Un Fauteuil Pour l'Orchestre), “with a sense of rhythm and image that never falters” (M La Scene) and “a powerful physical and visual score” (Sceneweb).
This month I’ve been leading a composition workshop with three amazing soloist from Ensemble Intercontemporain: Renaud Déjardin, Valeria Kafelnikov, and Lucas Ounissi. Yesterday, five new composition were brought to life by the participants: Yifan Guo, Marta Haladzhun, Donghyuk Lee, Jasmine Morris, and Rodrigo Pascale. Congratulations to everyone for a very special concert!
I was invited to Wilmington this month to participate in the 2026 Opera America Conference. I presented The Nine Jewelled Deer, for which I was awarded the 2024 Opera America Discovery Grant , and discussed North American collaborations for my new opera The Ice Palace. I look forward to sharing more details soon!
Juries are always a good way to discover new, exciting composers, and this Spring I had the privilege of sitting on three of them: The inaugural Prix Pichon Comtesse at the Philharmonie de Paris (Festival Explore), the Camargo Foundation’s Residency Program, and the ICMC (International Computer Music Conference) in Hamburg. Congratulations to all the winning artists!
Alongside my professorship in Oslo, I continued my international teaching and mentorship activity this Spring, as a visiting artist in the composition department at Cambridge University, and as a mentor in the Adami Jazz program. A special congratulations to composer-guitarist Paul Jarret, with whom I got to work over several months through the Adami program, for receiving this year’s scholarship!
Last month, Mivos Quartet continued touring Solicitations, this time at the Wiener Konzerthaus. Ö1 will broadcast the live concert recording on its Zeit-Ton programme in June. You can listen here.
The year opened on a strong note, with the book-CD of Like Flesh being selected as one of the top five albums of 2025 by Le Monde, and as the Critics’ Choice Award from the Académie Charles Cros. Another highlight was the revival of A Woman Spilled in Basel under the baton of Elena Schwarz with the Basel Sinfonietta.
December was busy with presentations on my musical research: a three-day residency at the New Musical Aesthetics conference at the Conservatorio Alessandro Scarlatti, alongside composer Vito Zuraj and musicologist Gianluigi Mattietti, and the three-day Improtech conference at IRCAM, where I spoke about composition and improvisation in contemporary opera with researcher Jean-Louis Giavitto and RIM Augustin Muller. You can learn more here.
A new production of Like Flesh premiered last month at Interfinity Festival. Staged by Dominique Pitoiset with original video design by Luca Scarzella, this production highlighted the scientific research that went into the writing of the libretto, created for this occasion in collaboration with biologists, botanists, environmental scientists, and urban ecologists at ETH Zurich, University of Basel, and NCCR Microbiomes. The press called it “subtle, refined, compelling… a forest brought to life!” (zbb Basel). Watch a feature on Telebasel here.
I am thrilled to announce that this Fall I joined the faculty of the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo as Professor of Music Composition, where I am mentoring students in the bachelors, masters, and PhD programs. More info about the program here.
After three intense years of work, The Nine Jewelled Deer was born last month at LUMA Arles, then travelled to Théâtre du Jeu de Paume as part of the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. The press are calling it “Deeply affecting” (Neue Zürcher Zeitung), “refined and cathartic” (Opera Wire), “mysterious and spellbinding…. Goes straight to the heart” (Le Monde), “Intense and enriching… a mastermind collaborative project” (Opera Today), “moving, immersive” (backtrack), “breathtaking” (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung), “Pure enchantment” (d'Lëtzebuerger Land), “A rare and powerful convergence of music, myth, and visual art” (Hube). See HERE for more reviews, videos and photos.
The book-CD of Like Flesh is out, and so are the reviews. Chosen as Album of the Week by Le Monde, Pierre Gervasoni writes: “Like Flesh is an opera of contemporary resonance without equivalent since the beginning of the 21st century”. The book (EN/FR) features newly-commissioned articles and interviews, the full libretto, and a newly mixed surround sound recording. It is available for purchase here, and on all streaming platforms. Check out this trailer and interview for more info.
Next month, The Nine Jewelled Deer will have its world premiere at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. I invite you to read some of the articles in Le Monde, The New York Times, Opéra Magazine, and Beaux Arts Magazine about the inspiration for the opera, the work-process, and more.
I’m very glad to be joining the composition roster of Karsten Witt Music Management. More info here.
When I composed the closing chorus of Like Flesh, which speaks of nature’s death and resurrection, I imagined it being sung by children. Director Maëlle Dequiedt made that dream come true in her latest production for Antwerp Opera: An Empty House, pairing choruses from Like Flesh with Ravel’s L’Enfant et les Sortilèges. You can watch the trailer or buy ticket here.
A new semi-staged production of Like Flesh is underway! Staged by Dominique Pitoiset with original video design by Luca Scarzella, this production highlights the scientific research that went into the writing of the libretto and music. Part of the 2025 art-science Interfinity Festival. Tickets available soon here.
