Jeux de bouches

An exhibition, a street parade, a public banquet and 2 evening of performances

Participating Artists: Gregory Aymar (Limoges), Jaap Blonk (Holland), Greg Gilg,(Grenoble),  Marc guillerot, (Limoges), Thomas Pailler, (Paris), Sebastian Lexer (UK), VINST (virtual world)

Local structures taking part: La luette agile, Méliscènes, l’Ecole intercommunale de danse et de musique Alexandre Ducasse , l’Union musicale de Saint-Yrieix, l’Ensemble vocal de Saint-Yrieix, Rhythm’O pays de Saint-Yrieix, l’Office du tourisme de Saint-Yrieix, la bibliotheque municipale de St Yrieix, les écoles de la Communauté de communes du pays de Saint-Yrieix, Batucada Koyam de Jumilhac.

My attempt at bringing together the various cultural, social and educational structures of a small city to work together with invited artists around a common theme – the mouth organ.

A weekend celebrating the mouth organ in all its glory where what comes in and what goes out will collide in true Rabelaisian style. With interventions in local restaurants with a Rabelaisian menu and local shops producing rabelaisien specialties: bread, meat….

The project is partnership with JPF cultural centre, CDLA (center for artists books) and the city council of St Yrieix la Perche).

Streer Parade

A carnival parade of over 200 happy hungry mouths seeking nourishments of all kind (en quete de mots et de mets) in the streets of the town on the Saturday afternoon. Local Schools, colleges, and amateur dance and music groups have worked on the design and production of mouth costumes since September 2007.

Opening evening

Rabelaisien homage with menu and drinks researched and produced by the cooking department of the local technical college.
Various readings or interpretation of a Rabelais word/text/extract by invited artists and local artists musicians and volonteers. And the performing of Cornelius Cardew The great Learning, paragraph 3  led by Sebastian Lexer with local musicians, and members of the local choir and the music school.

Second evening

A celebration of the human voice. la bouche dans tous ses etats.
Various artists reveal and share their masterful and sometimes peculiar use of the voice. The artists represents very differents genres, textures and uses of the voice, rarely brought together: chanson française, poetry, music hall, improvisation, electronic and interactive composition and dadaesque sound poetry. This event  concluded with a group improvisation of all involved.

Jeux de Bouches
(the great learning)

An experimental documentary weaving together traces and highlights of the project with the recording of Cornelius Cardew’s The great learning paragraph 3 performed by town people conducted by Sebastian Lexer.

JEUX DE BOUCHES (the great learning) (2008)
single screen projection – 24.20 mins

Directed by Emmanuelle Waeckerlé and Karen Livesey
Camera – Karen Livesey, Rikka Kassinnen
Photography – Rikka Kassinen, Emmanuelle Waeckerlé
Funded by UCA Farnham research fund 2008

Premiered at Jeux de Bouches Epilogue in CCJPF theatre in St Yrieix la Perche, in December 2008. In the audience were all the local people and groups that took part.

Interview and coverage of Jeux de bouches by FR3 TV, regional evening news (7th feb 2008).