ARCHIVES 2018 / Here on Earth

When voices create feelings, when melancholy and desire echo more than they ever did... Here on Earth has contemporary artists performing Gabriel Fauré's melodies outside of a classical context. By giving those often little-known tunes to fifteen singers from diverse backgrounds, from jazz to pop, guitarist and composer Olivier Mellano and show creator Sonia Bester, along with musicians Simon Dalmais (piano), Anne Gouverneur (violin), and Maëva Le Berre (cello), open up a whole new world to those subtle compositions from the 19^th century. The show Here on Earth is at once a unique evening with fifteen singers to close the Festival d'Avignon and an ambitious project born of a desire to break away from classical singing, whose power often comes as a detriment to the subtlety of this repertoire. A dreamlike evening out of time which will bring together spoken words and music, poetry and the night. Between two guitar sonic arches, each performer will come give his or her voice to those “songs” that are ancestors to ours, and which will be revelations for many of us, thanks to those artists.

Sonia Bester
Sonia Bester, also known as Madamelune, creates unexpected shows. She founded her company in 2017 after writing and directing the shows La Tragédie du Belge (The Belgian's Tragedy, 2014) and On a dit on fait un spectacle (We said we'd put on a show, 2015). She is currently working on Ah ! Félix n'est pas le bon titre (Ah! Félix isn't the right title), a musical play, and Comprendre (Understanding), while On a dit on fait un spectacle is on tour with seven singers appearing in Ici-bas.

Olivier Mellano
A guitarist who loves to work on his own as much as with other artists from all sorts of musical backgrounds (rock, hip hop, electro, contemporary music), Olivier Mellano also works as a composer for the theatre, cinema, dance, and literature. He recently co-founded the project No Land with Brendan Perry and the Bagad' Cesson.