Residencies

photo credits: Matteo Varisco

It stands for "conocimiento" in Spanish and "der stadt" in German, meaning "getting to know of the city".

A research project developed during the Sguardi Urbani residency at Casa degli Artisti that involves distance, the anthropocene, Andean stories and a concept of intertemporality.

During the residency, the artists were asked: "Which urban spaces make up our habitats and which communities do we inhabit?

Knowledge, the creation of knowledge, the creation of culture are elements that are conveyed in cities, but at the same time bring with them people, experiences, social struggles and cultural clashes. 

In a context in which "integration" often means learning one way of behaving, even in an artistic context. The opposite is the risk of not being understood. Getting to know the city for people of foreign origin becomes a path where nostalgia turns into shopping in a convenience store, a party in the park and wedding music. It is, therefore, a life of creating new symbols that connect two worlds.

In this project, the link between nostalgia and a sense of belonging to this city (Milan) is facilitated by a musical instrument made by the artist with material from the city.

Sounds and installation materials are generated by the urban nature that changes to the rhythm of concrete and gentrification. The sounds come from randomness, generated by the city itself and mediated by a spirit called 'Saqra'.

Article published on TRNSTN radio's zine "Under one sky".

This text reflects on the importance of conducting a critical reflection on ‘old’ and ‘new’ musical expressions in the context of global dynamics combining cultural heritage, interculturality and identity. 

Indeed, we must consider music not only as a medium for cultural identities and encounters, but also as a material for renewing social cohesion, identifying collective desires and considering the challenges of the present. 

During an artistic residency of mine in 2023, I discovered the tradition of the Pan flute in Lombardy, northern Italy, the region where I live.

In this context, when talking about ‘roots’, ethnic music or popular music, I described two contexts that developed in distant and independent areas: the Lombard Pan flute and the Bolivian Siku.

• La tricodance (feat Il Convivio): a song inspired by "La tricotea", a Renaissance madrigal. The lyrics are sung by an amazing group called "Il Convivio". The song wants to explore the intertemporality of music. Spending time with the group made me realise the influence of Renaissance music in modern pop. At the same time, their way of singing reminded me of Italian music from the beginning of 2000, which was part of a macro-genre called Euro-dance. During my music studies I realized that the first external influence in the Americas after the Spanish invasion was Renaissance and Baroque music. 

So how can we imagine a parallel dimension where Andean rhythms cross the madrigal and Euro-dance?

• Chulla (feat Rabii Brahim): It sounds Andean music, but not exactly. It sounds like charango, but it's not. A concept born by a shared space, some light-hearted improvisations with a pair of Qraqeb, a tipical instrument from Maghreb. I wanted to play with digital manipulation, sonic suggestion, our perception of genres and the idea of building a bridge between different music.

• Entre el Yumbo y Tonada: "we play only white notes on the piano keybord because we are racist" said a meme on the Internet. Serilalist music is mostly made with a technique that pre-arranges one or more musical parameters. In this case, the setting is a meme's provocation, which provides a formula: black notes. A composition inspired by two ecuadorian music genres or rythms: Yumbo and Tonada. Yumbo was also a term to to indicate, indigenous people from the area between the Pacific coast and the Andes.

• Sforzati e forzati (without lyrics): "Quarantena? costretti a lavorare senza scioperare; costretti a pagare senza lavorare", -translated -> "Quarantine? Forced to work without striking; forced to pay without working" says a writing on the wall of the Giambellino neighborhood. A song inspired by the walls of Giambellino. Version with lyrics availble live only

• Woobly Greesleves (feat Dorina): A music jam between Dorina, her celtic arp and myself.

Narrative sound performance by Ismael Condoii and Noura Tafeche

The performance explores a collective dimension in the essence of Abya Yala and Palestinian indigenism through sounds, anecdotes and excerpts from texts.

Language, understood as fluid and non-formal matter, is used in a complementary way to describe the complexity of a sonic phenomenon that touches the emotions and stimulates the creation of alternative imaginaries.

Throughout the performance, decades and centuries of resistance are explored, approaching the subject from the internal perspective of indigenous art and self-determination, aiming to avoid romanticising oppression and reducing it to a mere social issue.

In opposition to the colonial narrative that has been consistently imposed on indigenous histories, the performance seeks to forge new bonds of solidarity and re-center visions of the future.

Mijwiz-Siku is the semantic combination of this other dimension, in which two wind instruments (the Andean Siku and the Levantine Mijwiz), challenge the idea of universalism, giving the spectators the opportunity to rely on the performers' narratives.

The performance premiered on 11 July 2024 at Pirelli Hangar Bicocca , as part of the MILANO RE-MAPPED 2024 programme curated by Milano Mediterranea.

Listening and sound practice workshop developed by Ismael Condoii and curated by Senza Titolo Srl. The workshop debuted during Robot festival 2023 in city of Bologna.

Our cities are a symphony of sounds: from the roar of engines to the chirping of birds. Luigi Russolo, a pioneer of noise, catalogued them almost a hundred years ago in his 'intonarumori'. 

Today, many artists between art and music try to transform the apparently non-music using contemporary technologies, giving life to harmonies and disharmonies capable of narrating an unusual voice of cities. 

In this workshop, children will become real ‘sound hunters’ and we will refine our listening skills, identifying the most unusual and interesting sounds. Through a guided walk and experiments with audio instruments and technologies, we will learn to listen carefully to our surroundings and transform sounds into unique creations.

Starting from a personal and identity need, I search for the musical elements of my childhood, especially by studying andean popular music. 

On the one hand there is the indigenous heritage and on the other the African and European influence. In my musical practice I try to analyse these elements and to create new contents in order to keep alive the memory of the social changes in South America. 

The live performance is designed to be reproduced in quadraphony, where the sound is intended to be enjoyed together with the listeners: therefore, sitting together in a circle and surrounded by speakers. The sound is then manipulated by myself to obtain a rotating effect. In this way an increased sound immersion experience is achieved.