Performed by Kamerkoor JIP
www.kamerkoorJIP.nl
Video | Felipe Pipi
Sound | Tijmen de Vries
Conductor | Imre Ploeg
Solo singer | Paloma Lázaro Arteaga
MAAR DE ZON IS NOG OP...Composer | Gerard Beljon (*1952)
In 'Maar de zon is nog op' (but the sun is still up) composer Gerard Beljon (1952) replaces the ideal of unity among choristers with that of individuality. How can singers maintain their individuality when singing in groups?
For Beljon, dialogue is the beginning of music. The singers did not have to master his composition; in this case the choir members became part of the piece. Beljon collected fragments that are close to the hearts of the individual members of the JIP Chamber Choir. These melodies were his building blocks. By stacking, listening, playing and feeling, a structure was created without a prior plan.
Various fragments of songs can be heard in the composition. Bob Dylan becomes involved in a duet with Annie M.G. Schmidt. Lines of Dutch, English, Bulgarian, Arabic and Spanish together form a colorful sound painting. The relationship between choir members is constantly in motion: sometimes unity is formed, then it disintegrates into free melodies. Every now and then the music calms down for a serene moment. Then soloist Paloma Lázaro Arteaga sings words from the poem Silencio by Octavio Paz.
Maar de zon is nog op... is celebrating the different languages in which a heart can speak. Apparent contradictions are transcended by the universal language of music: the language of communication and emotion. This essential, but elusive thing shines high in the sky. It gives energy like a child who has to sleep while the sun is still up.