Delusion of the Fury at Grand Théâtre de Genève

Something to see, hear and discover…

Composer, stage director and director of the Ruhrtriennale Heiner Goebbels invites us to discover one of the most original 20th-century United States composers: Harry Partch (1901-1974). A contemporary of John Cage, Partch is often called the “Don Quixote” of contemporary music.
His novel soundscapes are light, humorous and poetic: they are the stuff of which Partch’s masterpiece Delusion of the Fury (1965-1966) is made. This last major work for musical theatre by the composer counts as the summit of his artistic career. Harry Partch dreamt of a musical universe in complete opposition with European academic music; he invented a tonal system of his own and imagined an absolutely beautiful array of instruments to go with it. Partch was a pioneer and a highly inspired philosopher of music.

Using African and Japanese myths as his starting point, Partch composes a work that oscillates between dreams and madness, using the traditional resources of theatre, such as light, movement and song, whilst integrating the visible and audible presence of his extraordinary instruments. Without occupying any particular space or time, the piece reveals its odd and yet familiar visual world to the audience.

Over the course of two acts, Harry Partch weaves a ritual pattern that celebrates life and the reconciliation of the living with death.

In the world of contemporary music, musikFabrik counts as one of the most famous instrumental ensembles. Some of today’s greatest creative artists have worked with musiFabrik as guest performer: Harrison Birtwistle, Peter Eötvös, Heiner Goebbels, Michael Jarrell, Mauricio Kagel, Olga Neuwirth, Wolfgang Rihm, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Sasha Waltz and Hans Zender. On the occasion of the European premiere of this work, musikFabrik has commissioned the first complete reconstruction of the composer’s instrument collection.