Dédales [Mazes] is freely inspired by music composed for Les familiers du labyrinthe (2005) [Regulars of the Labyrinth], choreographed by Michèle Noiret for the Paris Opera.

Significant structural changes have been made to the original work and new elements have been integrated. Every now and again, the piece sets up the notion of a strange, undefinable presence by means of ‘coloured silences’; sonic chiaroscuro-like moments which open a door to the unknown. At times, very distinct and rhythmic sonic structures cause the hostile, mechanical and unpredictable universe of the labyrinth to materialize, in whose machinery the performers’ bodies are lost and found again. Emphasis is placed now on its inescapable permanence, now on its kinetic vivacity.

This machine, however, is not only external — it inhabits the souls and bodies of the performers and also reflects them, as only they can perceive and imagine it. It is therefore an echo of the apparent fragility of men and women, whose sonic presence is symbolically represented by breath and vocal sounds. These sounds appear throughout the composition in diverse forms, their multiple transformations retaining the imprint of their original source.

Dédales also explores the juxtaposition of distinct spaces and sounds that appear, disappear, and react to one another, as well as unusual combinations, disturbances and accidents. This kind of superposition is made possible, without compromising listening transparency, through extensive exploration of the possibilities offered by multichannel diffusion. The different strata of sonic material are subjected to distinct types of temporal distortion, fragmentation and metamorphosis — disrupting and altering our perception of time and space.

— Todor Todoroff [English translation: Stephanie Moore, i-19]

Dédales was realized in 2008 at the ARTeM (Art, recherche, technologie et musique [Art, Research, Technology, and Music]) studio in Brussels (Belgium) and premiered on November 29, 2008 during the Concert électroacoustique of Festival Loop 1 at the Espace Senghor in Brussels (Belgium). Dédales received support from the Service de la musique of the Direction générale de la culture, ministry of the Communauté française de Belgique.

Premiere

• November 29, 2008, Festival Loop 1: Concert électroacoustique, Le Senghor, Brussels (Belgium)