Programme notes

Anatomia del delirio is part of a cycle entitled Cryptoanatomie. Each work in the series is an investigation of an anthropological concept, aimed at expanding its semantic and interpretative scope through a dialogue-conflict between different cultural, social, literary, philosophical and psychological sources.

Delirium is a state of mental alteration due to a profound transformation of the psyche and personality, which often leads to a misinterpretation of reality. The causes that generate it can be different (psychopathological factors, psychoactive substance use, emotional shock, states of extreme excitement and frenzy, etc.), as well as the manifestations (delirium of persecution, of grandeur, mystical, creative, etc.) and sometimes be intertwined.

The textual component of the piece consists of fragments drawn from writings, letters, poems, radio speeches, and other forms of expression that manifest the diversity and complexity of these multiple variants of delirium. Texts by Friedrich Nietzsche, Arthur Rimbaud, Jack Kerouac, and Allen Ginsberg form the sonic texture of the baritone/countertenor performer and an AI-generated voice. Two other sources — a radio speech by Antonin Artaud and a jazz concert by the American pianist and singer Charlie Beal — are used as elements of musique concrète and manipulated with various techniques.

These three layers interact to create a complex stratification of emotions, in which the boundaries between tragedy and humour are deliberately merged and blurred to provoke cognitive dissonance and dismantle univocal perceptions.