   RECEPTION The Sons of God: RECEPTION a way of bridging DEATH. To in a limited period of time and in an enclosed space try to create the conditions necessary for a miracle. We see this as a meeting, a meeting place, where both the living and dead take part in order to create the best possible conditions. We take our starting point in the form of heaven and hell, in the first state of man after death and in life on the other side. We do this under the direction of Emanuel Swedenborg. His book Heaven and its Wonders and Hell from 1758 is a common reference point. Performance by The Sons and Daughters of God. Solo by Per Jonsson. Cello: Nora Kvassman and Amit Sen. Several guest artists will take part during the evening performances. Music, installation, and production: The Sons of God. In a leading role, we also see Jesus Christ. Not to mention God and all the worlds´ saints and prophets. And Pope John Paul II, he sings and blesses all who participate. And all the politicians and all the leaders of the world who have sent so many to their deaths for their own profit, they are also a part, they dance and smile. But also all those who have been died and been killed, in fact, all who have ever been participants in the play we call The Earthly Life are there. Both people and animals. All who have lived and suffered. All these nameless extras throughout history. They are a part. They create the choir that constitutes the background radiation for this Earthly Hell (or Paradise, if you prefer). Emanuel Swedenborg has been attendant to our work since early on. It was a natural step to approach his great work: Heaven and Hell. A work that takes on the most difficult and incomprehensible aspect of out human nature: life after death. The only thing we know for certain in our lives is that we are going to die. We do not know what life will be like during, and we do not know what happens afterwards. Swedenborg was one who tried to see what happens, one who said that he could. One who said that he had contact across the borders, contact with "the other side," with the angels and the demons. Swedenborg is a brightly burning, unique figure in Swedish cultural history. No one else has written and published as much as Swedenborg. Almost no other Swede has had as much influence internationally as Swedenborg. He wrote everything in Latin (except for the Dream Book); everything had to be translated into the pertinent language. A universal and globally active figure who was of critical importance to William Blake, Comte de Lautreamont (Isidore Ducasse), August Strindberg, Dostojevskij, not to mention the entire Modernist movement. Both pataphysicists and surrealists counted him a member retroactively. Swedenborg is a serious and humorous seer who does not flinch at anything. Swedenborg can also be terribly enervating and boring, but it makes no difference since it is his attitude and his immutable faith in what he does that is important. The Sons of God have worked together since 1985 and have had several productions and concerts in Sweden and abroad. The Sons of God consist of Leif Elggren and Kent Tankred. The Sons of God are based in Stockholm and see Fylkingen as their home stage. The Sons of God collaborate often with other artists in different media and are sometimes expanded to include both the Sons and Daughters of God. The Sons of God operate in the borderland between performance, installation, and music; everything creates a whole and supplies a basic foundation for the investigative and broadening attitude that is clearly defined by the way the Sons work. Objects that sound, prerecorded tape compositions, physically taxing activity, spoken language, the meetings and situations onstage, the objects; everything supplies the foundation from which they try to create the recondite moments where daily life becomes as one with the heroic nature of the inner life. The Sons of God serve our civil defense, and wish to infuse strength and courage. http://www.thesonsofgod.se Presentation of the project: The Sons of God say that they have always attempted to create those recondite moments where daily life becomes as one with our inner lives´ dreams and battles to reach an iota of understanding of the incomprehensibility that we call life. The Sons of God have always seen their artistic endeavor as a tool with which to attain another sort of experience and accordingly knowledge about that which is difficult to understand in our existence. The Sons of God strive in each situation to create prerequisites so that a miracle may happen. Swedenborg said that he had direct contact with another dimension of existence. He considered himself an intermediary between the life we all share here on earth and the life that begins on the "other side." He saw himself as being in contact with spirits and angels, who supplied him with important information about what awaits us after death. He saw himself as a link between two states, or worlds. Even while he was alive, Swedenborg was seen as a madman and a ridiculous gestalt. At the same time, he attracted enormous interest and great respect. His books are perpetually printed in large numbers. His system of though has generated a religious movement with churches in many countries. He has always been a controversial figure. But whatever one feels about his attitude and his ambitions, it is impossible to ignore the poetic, suggestive power of his work. And the stimulation and inspiration resulting from his work cannot be overstated. Humanity has always longed to try to understand this inaccessible condition, this state between birth and death that we call life, the subjective (individual) as well as the collective. This is one driving force behind almost all human endeavor and activity: religion, science, research, and art. The Sons of God have previously performed a piece called RECEPTION: "To, with eight sheets of iron and two actors during approximately four hours, initiate and make the conditions for reception as favorable as possible. RECEPTION is a work adapted to the room that is used for the moment. The work is built around eight sounding sheets of iron (2x1.3 m) that for a number of hours or days or weeks are active and receptive. Our task is to during this period of time create the conditions necessary for a miracle." We have carried out this work on different occasions and in different places. We are now expanding the project to consist of 32 pieces of sheet iron in the large hall at Färgfabriken. Thirty-two sheets of iron lie on our speakers. An electromagnetic contact microphone is placed on top of each sheet. The microphone is connected to an amplifier that connects in turn to the speaker under the sheet iron. This forms a closed system, thirty-two closed systems that each lives its own life. The sound that is generated moves in the lower registers; thirty-two muted, low frequency voices create a large and complex soundscape in the room, like a choir. The sheets are dimly illuminated. Projections on the walls tell of miracles and wonders in our human existence, taken from the history of humanity. This production serves as an aural installation during the day. During the evenings, it will be populated and activated. Actors and choirs will, in an intimate collaboration with sounding sheets of iron, manifest Swedenborg´s visions and revelations. Newly written music by The Sons of God will bond with the sounding iron sheets, and the actors will take as their starting point the text of Swedenborg´s Heaven and its Wonders and Hell. We see this as a work of musical drama: new music and visual art, dance, and performance in collaboration with the spirit observer Swedenborg. We arrange a meeting, a production where both the living and the dead take part. With the help of Swedenborg, we will attempt to create the prerequisites for a Reception at Färgfabriken during February 2006. Heaven and its Wonders and Hell From Things Seen and Heard by Emanuel Swedenborg First Published in Latin, London, 1758 This book is a detailed description of the afterlife into which people awaken after the death of the physical body; about God, heaven, hell, angels, spirits, and devils. --- Mottagning är en del av festivalen Place and Space i regi av Stockholm New Music. Länkar: http://www.stockholmnewmusic.se http://www.fargfabriken.se Vernissage 18 februari 2006, 12-01 med uruppförande av föreställningen kl 21.00 Utställningen är öppen tor - sön, 12.00 - 18.00 18 feb - 5 mars. Föreställningar, ca 60 min.: 18/2 kl 21.00 Gäster: Nora Kvassman, Amit Sen, Lotta Melin, Wenche Sundsrud. 19/2 kl 17.00 Gäster: Lotta Melin, Nora Kvassman, Amit Sen, Wenche Sundsrud. 24/2 kl 17.00 Gäster: Daniel Rozenhall, Lise-Lotte Norelius, Nora Kvassman, Wenche Sundsrud. 25/2 kl 17.00 Gäster: Anna Koch, Daniel Rozenhall, Nora Kvassman, Wenche Sundsrud. 26/2 kl 17.00 Gäster: Lise-Lotte Norelius, Wenche Sundsrud. 4/3 kl 17.00 Gäster: Pär Thörn, Mats Gustafsson, Daniel Rozenhall, Wenche Sundsrud. 5/3 kl 17.00 Gäster: Mats Gustafsson, Pär Thörn, Wenche Sundsrud. Stort tack till: Peter Cederblom, Mattias Nilsson, Magnus Granberg. FÄRGFABRIKEN, Lövholmsbrinken 1, T-Liljeholmen, Stockholm. 08 645 07 07 |