Reviews

“Like Flesh is an opera of contemporary resonance without equal since the beginning of the 21st century… Sivan Eldar writes with the assurance of the great masters of opera, while her musical language ventures into entirely new territory, teeming with invention… The listener is transformed by the end of this journey.” (Le Monde)

“The score is a highly imaginative fusion of acoustic and electronic sounds… a rustling depiction of pain, wisdom, violence and beauty… the concept is strong and urgent, with sonic and philosophical tensions skillfully woven through the fabric of the music.” (BBC Music Magazine)

“The music of Like Flesh is a vivid sonic object in its own right… a world as rhizomatic as the musical writing itself: a dense weaving of textures and interlaced sound layers... a highly rewarding experience” (Opera Magazine)

“An inventive and sensual opera, intensely lyrical… the vocal writing ventures into imaginative detours that highlight the libretto’s poetic language.” (Télérama)

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“The Forest, distilled to a vocal ensemble, is striking in its singularity and finesse. Sivan Eldar has created a highly poetic, occasionally madrigal-like writing to sing the story of nature” (Diapason)

“The music is subtle, refined, and closely attuned to the text. The electronics bring the forest to life in the hall: crackling, sawing, and rustling sounds are everywhere; fungi, roots, and lichens become audible. A powerful reminder of how we might reconnect with nature.” (bz Basel)

“Sivan Eldar’s writing is exceptionally expressive… the fluidity of the whole opera is impressive and draws the viewer into a hypnotic universe… a welcome reminder that opera loses none of its relevance when it addresses contemporary issues.” (Bachtrack)

“The spectator is at the center of a shamanic ritual, a form of trance… from the terrifying macrocosm of the forest to the teeming life of a world invisible to the naked eye.” (Olyrix)

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“The music is of great refinement… carefully sculpted and of a beautiful plasticity, both in timbre and in its fusion with the voices.” (ResMusica)

“A work where the intimate and the societal mingle… a contemporary gem.” (Les Inrockuptibles)

“An original, strange, beautiful and timely operatic experience… a sensory, musical and visual adventure.” (Crescendo Magazine)

“An absolute success… demanding, seductive and effective… a magical sonic and visual world… a musical language that is resolutely of our time… it speaks to everyone” (Forum Opéra)

“An exceptional cohesion… rarely in new opera has such an osmosis between text and music been achieved.” (Opéra Online)

“A work of exceptional boldness… inventive timbral combinations… a seamless fusion of acoustic and electronic layers… a work that challenges its audience in the best of ways.” (Première Loge)

synopsis

Woman/Tree – contralto, sixties | Forester – barytone, sixties | Student – soprano, thirties | The Forest – Chorus

Suffering in an unhappy marriage, Woman yearns for a world beyond the boundaries of flesh and an existence outside of the conventions of human society. A secret young Lover’s desire instigates an explosive metamorphosis, and Woman finds perfect release as a tree. But the world is a dark place for trees as well as humans, and deep in the forest, the Lover and a Forester lay claim to a body of wood and leaf, one for money and one for love. 

Inspired by Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Like flesh draws on modern environmental science to create a radical and passionate new myth about our broken relationship with an environment in crisis.

Musical forces

Soloists (3) 

Soprano | Contralto | Barytone

Chorus (6) 

Soprano | Mezzo-soprano | Countertenor | Tenor | Barytone | Bass

Instrumental Ensemble (13) 

Flute | Clarinet | trumpet | Trombone | Percussion (x2) | Piano | Accordion | String quartet | Double Bass

Electronics 

A modular array of distributed speakers