Babils du Nil

Babils du Nil invites us on a journey to Egypt, along the banks of the mythical river, at the origins of language.

Drawing on the ideas of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who believed that music is humanity’s first form of expression, the piece explores the birth of language through poetry, melody, and spontaneous sound. It also incorporates electronic devices that enrich and amplify the creation, highlighting the experimental and sensory dimension of the work.

This musical cycle blends poetry, theatre, dance, sound exploration and electronics to evoke the first vocalisations of humankind. It imagines a poetic “proto-language,” inspired as much by our scientific knowledge as by an artistic exploration beyond reality — through poetry, electronic music and the imagination.

Babils du Nil is the result of an artistic collaboration between French composer Manon Lepauvre, the Centre Henri Pousseur (Liège), stage director Lionel Ménard, and the Ensemble United Instruments of Lucilin — all united by the desire to resonate with the sensitivity of very young children through their first musical and electronic language.

Performances of Babils du Nil, aimed at a very young audience aged 1 to 6, will take place on April 16 and 17, 2026 in Liège, Belgium, as part of the Festival Images Sonores.