Exhibition on DEMETRIO STRATOS in Ravenna: A journey into voice search

“Up to the limits of the impossible” opens today at Palazzo Malagola in Ravenna. Demetrio Stratos' vocal research 1970-1979. Second movement”.

The exhibition, curated by Ermanna Montanari and Enrico Pitozzi, artistic directors of the Malagola International Center for Vocal and Sound Research, represents a new chapter in the exploration of the artistic and intellectual legacy of Demetrio Stratos, an iconic figure of the twentieth century for his research on vocality .

The exhibition, which will remain open until 22 December 2024 and will reopen from 7 to 31 January 2025, is the result of a choral work that includes the contributions of associate curators Marco Sciotto and Dario Taraborrelli. It offers a selection of materials from the Demetrio Stratos Archive, acquired by the Municipality of Ravenna in 2022 thanks to co-financing from the Emilia-Romagna Region and the collaboration of the artist's widow, Daniela Ronconi Demetriou.

A voice without borders This “second movement” follows Lovingly progress, lovingly regress, a first exhibition which had already attracted the attention of the public and scholars in 2023. If that initial stage focused on Stratos' dialogue with artists such as John Cage, the current exhibition opens up to a non-European dimension. The musician's research here comes to a comparison with world music, harmonic singing and diplophony, themes which find a symbolic culmination in a room dedicated to immersive listening.

POETRY

The poetics of breath and gesture According to Montanari and Pitozzi, the focus of the exhibition is the technical and anatomical awareness that Stratos poured into his art, combining breath control with repetition. This approach, which recalls the asceticism and experiments of Antonin Artaud, is intertwined with the sound traditions of distant cultures, such as Mongolian diphonic singing and Mediterranean music. An exploration which, in the words of the curators, translates into “vocal gestures” that leave material and sound traces: notes, sketches, a-systematic scores, but also recordings that return a multifaceted and elusive figure, so distant from the official scene of rock as well as the auteur currents of the Seventies.

THE PATH

A multisensory journey The exhibition is divided into seven rooms, each dedicated to an aspect of Stratos' artistic production. From posters of Area and his solo work, to audiovisual materials of performances and lessons, up to personal objects and vinyls from his collection. Particularly evocative is the room for immersive listening, where the public can live an all-encompassing sound experience, alongside rooms where it is possible to explore traditional songs from the world or the music composed for the Satyricon directed by Gabriele Salvatores.

THE CATALOGUE

An updated catalog On the occasion of the event, an updated edition of the catalog will be published. We don't believe in style. The vocal research of Demetrio Stratos 1970-1979, which includes both exhibition movements, helping to document a project that is both celebration and exploration of a unique artistic journey.