Polyphème - Wassim Halal and Gamelan Puspawarna

Thursday 30 June, 19:15, Auditorium 250 - On reservation only

Created in 2018 for the recording of a track on Wassim Halal’s album “Le cri du Cyclope”, Polyphème brings together seven members of the Puspawarna gamelan and percussionist Wassim Halal. An original repertoire was born from this fertile encounter, including creations arount rhythm and time, under the shape of a singular and audacious dialogue between darbuka and Balinese gamelan. This series of compositions and free improvisations scattered with obsessing leitmotivs invites the listener into a magnetising sound whirlwind.

Wassim Halal got attuned with the wedding repertoire (Dabkeh) through numerous trips in Lebanon. His encounters brought him to open up to new sound universes, including Tzigane music from Turkey. From his interest in improvisation music, he developped a unique play on Darbuka and Doholla, suffused with multiple influences, working on rhythmical universes as much as on instrument tones. Throughout his path, his atypical approach allowed him to meet artists from various horizons, such as Laurent Clouet, Florian Demonsant, Benjamin Efrati, Diego Verastegui, David Brossier, Grégory Dargent, Anil Eraslan, Mathieu Pelletier, Erwan Keravec and Mounir Troudi, among others.

Gamelan Puspawarna is a music ensemble based in Nanterre and specialised in Balinese gamelan music. Founded in 2011 by Hsiao-Yun Tseng, Jérémie Abt and Théo Mérigeau, the group has since developped its repertoire with musicians such as Made Agus Wardana, Nyoman Kader Kariasa and Anak Agung Bagus Gedé Krishna Putra Sutedja. Gamelan Puspawarna has developped a close partnership with dancer Kadek Puspasari and actors Tapa Sudana, Mas Soegeng et Ketut Sariana, which gave birth to numerous performances associating dance, music and theatre. Since 2017, Puspawarna regularly collaborates with Balinese composer A.A.B.G Krishna Sutedja and has performed several of his original pieces written for the ensemble (Roi Soleil - 2018, Narasimha - 2019, Legong Tapak Dara - 2021). Puspawarna has played, among others, at Festiv’Alligre in Paris (2013), in Conservatoire de Gennevilliers (2014), Musée Guimet (2018), Théâtre de l’Échangeur in Bagnolet (2019), in Radio-France’s auditorium (2020), and at Philharmonie de Paris (2021). The ensemble seeks to develop and promote the rich and unique art of Balinese gamelan towards a broad audience in France.