Language, one of the core mysteries of human existence, acquiesces to both illumination and secrecy. Music and mathematics are languages par excellence, understood at one level by all, and yet accessible at their highest levels by only the initiated few. Lingua occulta—language that is concealed, buried, unspoken, invisible, lost, or inaccessible—appears throughout history and across cultures, from Mesopotamian dream oracles to Homer's katabasis to medieval alchemy to the hermetic poetry of Paul Celan and today's LLMs. For three nights, soundON explores hidden languages and their ramifications through adventurous and groovy music created by composers in the 20th and 21st centuries.
January 7-9, 2027
Performances by San Diego New Music’s ensemble-in-residence NOISE, with guest artists Myra Hinrichs, Marta Tiesenga, Ariana Warren, and Matt Kline
January 7, 7:30 PM
Location: Athenaeum Music & Arts Library
Music by David Lang, Gabriella Smith, Jon Forshee, Jacques Charpentier, Avner Dorman, and Mark Applebaum
January 8, 7:30 PM
Location: Athenaeum Art Center
Music by Christopher Adler, David Lang, and Anthony Pateras, and featuring saxophonist Marta Tiesenga and NOISE’s new percussionist Fiona Digney
January 9, 7:30 PM
Location: Athenaeum Music & Arts Library
Music by Christopher Cerrone, Feliz Anne Reyes Macahis, Christopher Adler, and Judd Greenstein