“I, the hybrid and the antidote” LIVE IN BEIRUT

After two successful world premieres at Le Guess Who? and Ancienne Belgique in November 2024, “I, the hybrid and the antidote” will be presented at Metro on May 7. Featured in the best 20 shows at LGW?, the performance finds Liliane Chlela delving into sound design, electronic beatmaking, and artistic collaboration in an effort to forge her own path and advance a complex dialogue about the split expectations of having to either cater to a set sound with traditional arrangements or assimilate into generic electronic music genres. With “I, the hybrid and the antidote,” she opts to do neither.

At its core, the project is aligned with Chlela’s signature intuitive composition style. Born out of spontaneous improvisational creation, the tracks bring to life an inner logic of vulnerable feelings and sonic musings. “I, the hybrid and the antidote” consists of a series of Phases in which Chlela works with instinctive rhythms and scales, analyzing and dissecting them using synths, field recordings, and her computer.

But the project doesn’t stop at these recordings. To truly create the antidote to a bifurcated existence, Chlela will turn to a group of Beirut-based musicians and collaborators to bring the music to life. Farah Kaddour (buzuq), Paed Conca (clarinet), Inger Hannisdal (violin), and others will join Chlela for the live Beirut premiere. The artists will fill out the recorded segments of Chlela’s Phases with deeper shadings and arrangements, in a powerful amalgam that cuts across genre.

“I, the hybrid and the antidote” has been produced as part of Mophradat’s 2023/4 Consortium Commissions for music.

Poster designed by Richard Kahwagi.