before before & after after
a sound installation and experiential choral piece

In 2022, Anaïs Maviel workshoped the first iteration of Before before & After after (B.A. BA), a sound installation comprised of 100 bells and immersive choral piece for 12 performers. Another public workshop happened in 2023 at the Greenwood cemetery's catacombs, which also marked the AÏM choral collective debut. The cross-disciplinary piece for choir explores song’s capacity to exceed language, with a strong connection to cosmologies of sound and speech rooted in spiritual traditions such as mantra and ring shout. The work also engages with Robert Kocik’s work with prosody, as a research angle to the edges of memory, perception and existence. The title pays homage to the divine feminine that precedes all that ever existed and follows everything that will ever exist.

Please in quire for a link to the full evening length performance video documentation and for scores. B.A. BA was made possible by a commission grant from NYSCA and Jack Arts, as well as the Jerome Fellowship. Jack workshop collaborators include Thea Little, Rose Stoller, Rema Hasumi, Sound Brown, Bonita Oliver aka French Leave, Eli Berman, Ben Bath, Brian McCorkle, Brandi Holt, Larkin Grimm, Polina Ionina, Tuçe Yasak & Melanie Maar.