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Le miroir triste

Gilles Gobeil

Le miroir triste has been performed in Banff, Berlin, Birmingham, Calgary, Cologne, Dresden, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Halifax, Huddersfield, Karlsruhe, Leicester, London, Montréal, Oslo, San Francisco, São Paulo, Toronto, Weimar and Winnipeg…

Freely adapted from a few scenes from an unshot scenario by Russian filmmaker Andrey Tarkovksy (1932-1986) entitled Hoffmanniana (1975) and picturing the tormented life of Romantic-era German writer/composer E T A Hoffmann (1776-1822).

A dialogue between Donna Anna (a character from Don Juan by Mozart) and Hoffmann), taken from Hoffmanniana:

— “Have you ever had, if only in a dream, the certitude that everything was possible, that no matter what you could want, it would have to happen? — And that everything would happen if, suddenly, you were to decide to believe that your impression was real?

— “Yes, but only in a dream.”

— “But is not the dream as real as reality?” she says, smiling. Then, noticing he is not looking at her but at her reflection in the mirror, she turns around and adds: “You should not be looking into mirrors at night.”

Gilles Gobeil [English translation: François Couture, viii-08]


Le miroir triste [The Sad Mirror] was realized in the summer of 2007 at the studios of the Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie Karlsruhe (ZKM) in Germany. It premiered on December 1, 2007 during Akousma (4), presented by Réseaux at Monument-National’s Studio Hydro-Québec in Montréal. Thanks to the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ), the Canada Council for the Arts (CCA), and the ZKM for their support.

Premiere

  • December 1, 2007, Akousma (4): Trois songes, Studio Hydro-Québec — Monument-National, Montréal (Québec)

Details

Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42
5.1-channel fixed medium

Calendar

Broadcasts

Date Work Programme
April 14, 2008 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (Germany)
November 2, 2008 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 CKLN 88.1 FM (Canada)
January 13, 2009 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Moacrealsloa / Radio Panik 105.4 (Belgium)
February 19, 2009 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Opposition de phase / RCV Lille 99 FM (France)
March 14, 2010 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Café sonore (Netherlands)
June 6, 2010 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 KNTU 88.1 FM (USA)
September 12, 2010 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Martian Gardens / WMUA 91.1 FM (USA)
November 13, 2015 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Radio Horizon 93.9 FM (South Africa)
January 3, 2017 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Radio Horizon 93.9 FM (South Africa)
September 27, 2020 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Pulsar / CISM (Canada)
May 16, 2021 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Pulsar / CISM (Canada)
April 23, 2023 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Sonorama / Radio Campus Orléans 88.3 FM (France)
January 27, 2024 Gilles Gobeil, Le miroir triste (2007), 13:42 Episode 1182 / Martian Gardens Podcast (USA)