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Clarinetist Fie Schouten's 'Open Space' Out on Relative Pitch, Feat. Georges Perec's Work The new album Open Space by bass clarinetist Fie Schouten and her international ensemble, consisting of Vincent Courtois on cello, Sofia Borges on drums and actor Pierre Baux, will be released in March. The improvised music on this album is inspired and structured by the iconic 1974 book Espèces d'espaces (“Species of Spaces”) by French writer Georges Perec. The musical narrative follows the chapters and emotional development of the book. Several tracks incorporate texts from the book, recited by French actor Pierre Baux. In Espèces d'espaces, Georges Perec explores humanity's relationship with everyday and extraordinary living environments, each time from a different spatial perspective. Through Perec's eyes, the safety of the familiar and the defined becomes far less self-evident. The void, however intangible, becomes tangible. The book's chapters address progressively larger living spaces: from the bed to the room, the flat, the apartment building, the street, the city, the country, the world, and the universe. Fie Schouten says, "Perec is someone who carefully observes, and I find that fascinating. You essentially get a glimpse into how he views the world. And at the same time, he makes you think about how you could observe it yourself." OPEN SPACE Music, too, generally needs space to move. It calls for openness and is thus an invitation. Being in the world is a negotiation with space – how to enter it and share it with others, a continuous search for balance. In Open Space, the ensemble members each claim their own space within the improvisations. Spontaneous impulses inspired by the text, followed by responses to one another, are central. There is a designed structure, but within it, much freedom. The musical narrative follows the book's chapters. Together with Pierre Baux, Schouten selected fragments to create a dramaturgical arc with contrasting elements: lying horizontally on a bed, the bustle of the street, philosophizing in a café where the letter "to her" still remains unwritten, through to the immeasurability of the universe. Through choices in instrumental combinations, the selection of specific clarinets, the design of textures, and the use of harmony, the different spaces with their distinct emotional charges come to life. The spoken voice tells the story in words and also provides articulation and pitch; the voice is equally part of the music. "With Open Space, I want to communicate in a gentle yet activist way, that I wish for people to be generous with space and grant that to one another. And my language is music, so that's how I communicate it to others, " Schouten explains and goes on, "I've read the book in different languages – each language gives a different character, and it's also interesting to reflect that in the music." TRACKS 01 SPACE [3:50] 02 the bed & the room [6:30] 03 the appartment - moving in [3:43] 04 the appartment – walls [4:04] 05 the street [2:07] 06 a letter [4:04] 07 the neighbourhood [2:44] 08 the city [5:15] 09 the country – borders [4:19] 10 UNIVERSE [3:04] All compositions by Fie Schouten, Vincent Courtois, Sofia Borges, Pierre Baux. Excerpts from Espèces d'espaces by Georges Perec spoken by Pierre Baux Recording, mix, master by Arjan van Asselt, BIMHUIS, Amsterdam July 1, 2025 ABOUT FIE SCHOUTEN AND THE ENSEMBLE Bass clarinetist Fie Schouten is praised for the flexible sound and virtuosic command of her instrument. She is known as an interpreter of composed music, and develops her own projects in improvised music, in which literature plays an important role. Schouten has been collaborating for several years with the lyrical French cellist Vincent Courtois. Their earlier project and eponymous album VOSTOK Remote Islands (2023), also inspired by literature, received widespread critical acclaim. More recently, Schouten has begun working with the versatile Portuguese percussionist Sofia Borges. Pierre Baux has been collaborating with Vincent Courtois for over 20 years and has dedicated himself to exploring the relationship between music and literature. Schouten is an in-demand musician, educator, curator and festival founder, who received numerous awards. Further info about her: https://fieschouten.nl/about/bio/ |
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