COMPANHIA NACIONAL DE BAILADO & VICTOR HUGO PONTES

One of the peculiarities of this work is the appropriation of works from other composers as well from Saint-Saëns former works which are revisited in a parody-like tone and disguised under animal names. Although Saint-Saëns’ original title is abridged, Carnaval will resort to a similar technique (even if reverse) of composition. Several contemporary Portuguese composers will compose an original theme associated to the Carnival of the Animals‘ fourteen movements. To achieve this, they will be challenged to use another artistic technique whose fame and heyday date back to the European 20th century and that was prolific in inspiring several other artistic currents: the cadavre-exquis. In other words, in Carnaval each guest composer will begin his composition at the end of the previous theme, leading it to the following one. Aside these more technically specific issues involving the musical composition, to the articulation of the concepts inside/and between each movement, to the attunement and contrast between each guest composer, there is a set of other subjects we wish to work up in Carnaval. On the one hand, it is ineluctably called into question the symbolic significance – be it Christian or pagan – of Carnival and of all other problematic cultural and philosophical matters that revolve around this symbol.

Victor Hugo Pontes — may 2015