Lucilin: Now! – A Ritual for Lucilin

A Ritual for Lucilin
This is a ritual for renewal, created by soprano Juliet Fraser for and with the members of United Instruments of Lucilin. Renewal requires a letting-go of some matter and implies a surge of energy that might take unexpected forms — be ready! Out of this theme of renewal, and a lot of experimentation, have emerged circular canons, moments of spring-like blossoming, and the determination to do things with curiosity, courage and sometimes even humour. This is a ritual that incorporates movement, gesture, singing, whistling and, yes, also the playing of instruments. The music has variously been improvised, devised, arranged or traditionally composed, and ranges from the twelfth century to the present day, featuring two world premieres. At the heart of the project are two commissions. Patricia Bosshard (Switzerland) has composed three ‘bubbles’ that draw inspiration from her own morning ritual in
remembrance of the dead. These miniatures hover between notated and improvised
music, the sound swirling smoke-like into the space. Erin Gee (USA) continues her
‘Mouthpiece’ series in a new work for the full ensemble that explores the circular idea of
renewal: ideas return; there’s a sense of endless starting again, but nothing is ever quite
the same. What is the trunk? What is new growth? Music by Guillaume de Machaut is
woven through the programme, chosen for his links to this city: for some twenty years
Machaut was secretary to John I, Count of Luxembourg and King of Bohemia. James
Weeks (UK) pays homage to Machaut in his specially composed introduction to, and
then arrangement of, Machaut’s Rose, liz, printemps.

Juliet writes:
It’s not every day that, as a performer, you are invited to curate a project for other people
to perform! It would have been easy simply to programme an hour of interesting
contemporary repertoire for Lucilin to play but this felt like a very special opportunity, so I
wanted to make the most of it and do something a bit different… The theme of RENEWAL,
around which this ‘ritual’ has been built, came out of conversations with the players, and
has proved a wonderfully fertile container for experimentation. I have been thinking a lot
in recent years about how and why we make music, and the limitations that we often place
upon ourselves as professional musicians. We are encouraged to specialise and then,
sometimes, it becomes difficult to play music outside of that specialism. We are trained in
excellence, which can sometimes stop us having fun! For this project, then, I wanted to try
and give us all permission to play—to experiment, to roam freely across time and
traditions, and perhaps to renew and refresh our sense of possibility on stage. Huge thanks
to Lucilin for coming on this adventure with me.

Programme:

Christian Wolff (1934) Exercise 27 (Snare Drum Peace March) (1988)

Patricia Bosshard (1965) Bubbles of Smoke I (wp, 2026)
Guillaume de Machaut (c.1300-1377) Je vivroie liement
Cucurbita (improvisation)
Aldo Clementi (1925-2011) Canone Circolare (2006)
Kristine Tjøgersen (1982) beak (2022)

Stephen Chase ‘why can I not’ from Jandl songs (2007-)

Patricia Bosshard Bubbles of Smoke II (wp, 2026)
James Weeks (1978) / Guillaume de Machaut Rose, Lux (wp, 2026)
Erin Gee (1974) Mouthpiece 44 : for Lucilin (wp, 2026)

Christian Wallumrød (1971) Stompin’ At Gargarin (2004)

Patricia Bosshard Bubbles of Smoke III (wp, 2026)
Aldo Clementi Canone Circolare (2006)
Hildegard of Bingen (c.1098-1179) O viridissima virga
Lawrence Dunn (1991) Maya Verlaak (2018)

Guillaume de Machaut (c.1300-1377) Douce dame jolie

With:
Juliet Fraser, Curator

Photos: © Philharmonie Luxembourg / Dimitri Djuric / NN / Cheryl Richards / Alfonso Salgueiro