Emptiness
Performance series | Documentation | 2013-2014
Continuing in the vein of my previous performance's theme, I sought to further explore the dynamic between music and environment in my next piece from “Emptiness Series." This performance investigated the mutual influence between a musical piece and its surroundings, and how this interplay can birth new meanings. Hosted within the evocative Galeria u Jezuitów, a space steeped in the rich aesthetics of baroque architecture and mannerist art, the event promised to be an immersive experience.
The audience arrived with expectations of witnessing a conventional performance but encountered something altogether different. As part of a video exhibition, I performed ensconced behind a screen, my presence known only through the silhouette cast by strategic projection lighting. Here, it wasn't just about the music—it was about the point of intersection where the music met the listener.
In this sanctuary turned gallery, the echoes of the Setar bridged the gap between the tangible and the ethereal. The audience found themselves at a crossroads, their reactions shaping the event's outcome. They anticipated the familiar crescendo of a concert, yet that climax never arrived. Instead, the sound wove itself through the grandeur of the space, becoming a conduit between the musician's hidden form, the listeners, and the enclosing walls. The performance thus became a meditation on expectation, presence, and the visceral power of sound to transform space and perception.
I began my journey with the Persian Setar at the tender age of nine, and there was a time when music dominated my life as I pursued it with professional rigor. However, as my path veered towards visual art and design, music settled into a quieter corner of my existence—important, yet no longer the centerpiece. My relocation to Europe marked a new chapter; I found occasions to play and hold workshops, and the unique timbre of the Setar struck a chord with European audiences, unaccustomed as they were to its enchanting sound, so distinct from the classic music they knew.
In an endeavor to heighten this sense of wonder, I conceived a performance piece that plays with the idea of presence and absence. Inspired, albeit loosely, by Plato's allegory of the cave, I chose to remain unseen, performing live from the seclusion of a balcony in an old hotel—a place historically resonant with politicians’ proclamations. The audience, gathered in the hall below, is swathed in the mysterious melodies I play for an hour, yet they are never privy to the source. After the performance, as they are ushered out by a guide, they leave with a palpable sense of emptiness, yet filled with their own interpretations. This duality—the physical void contrasting with the lingering fullness of experience—challenges the audience to grapple with their perceptions and the unknown depths of their auditory encounter.