Perceiving eternity from sound: the expanded violin of Gibrana Cervantes.
In recent years our country has witnessed significant growth in the experimental scene, artists such as Gibrana Cervantesoriginally from Guerrero, have been in charge of taking music to the limit and transforming it into a dizzying site of sonic revelations.
Recently, the violinist premiered her debut How do we spend eternity? which marks a before and after in his career and, without a doubt, represents one of the most interesting Mexican proposals of 2023.
I started playing the violin from the age of 10 with classical training, it was not until 12 years ago that I began to explore new sounds with Victoriaa project in the company of friends, where I discovered different possibilities of music and how to make a violin sound beyond its conventional sound,” he commented. Gibrana about his growth in his musical path.
The artist always had a concern for the experimental and for finding different ways of expressing herself in music. However, it was not until recent years that she began to delve deeper into her own sound and create a much more personal proposal.
It was during the pandemic when isolation prevented me from collaborating, which is what I was used to, which pushed me to make music within my means. I had more time for myself, which led me to explore my music more, I was able to finish songs that I had been writing for several years, I began to consolidate my own sound.”
When composing a new album, especially if it is the debut, the theme is very important, the emotions and atmosphere that said material will transmit, are what in the end will lead us as viewers to connect with the artist and continue. his career closely. In this case, loss and the finite were some of the reflections that were born in Gibrana during this period, which are present in How do we spend eternity?
I was doing an analysis on the ‘Symphony no. 5’ of Mahler (the main theme of this symphony is centered on the funeral march) many questions came to me: ‘what lies beyond this?’ was one of them. At that time I went through some losses, I was in a very vulnerable moment, that’s why this album can sound a little sad, it is permeated with these sensations.”
Making music collectively has always been a priority for the artist, thanks to this, Gibrana has found not only a fertile space for its sonic expansion, but also a great community. His debut features collaborations such as Concepción Huerta and Dave Abramson in it track “Sleeper Ship”as well as with Camille Mandoki in recording and mixing, and with Sebastian Neyra (Member of Mint Field) in the mixture of bonus tracks.
I have always liked working with people with whom I feel a connection. I like to create community, even beyond music and do it with people I trust like Camille with whom I have collaborated for a long time, who is also a member of Love Dies”commented the artist.
Love Dies is one of the collaborative projects of which Gibrana is part, together with ConcepciĂłn Huerta, Camille Mandoki and Mabe Frattiwho have also been characterized by experimenting with sound from their different perspectives.
We are a group of friends who like to get together to make music, each of us brings her own voice, her own personal search to collaboration, which is why our solo projects coexist naturally when we get together.”
At the moment Cervantes He is on tour in Europe and will arrive in Mexico in December where he will have three different presentations. The first of them will take place on December 7, it will be in the room Carlos Chavez from UNAM and will be part of the circle of Sound Laboratorieswhere the piece will premiere “Art Loops” which explores rhythmic repetition through the violin and the use of pedals. On the 8th of the same month, she will present an improvisation duo with Mabe Fratti in 316 Center and finally, on December 9, he will play his new material at Lucid Theater.
I’m not a big fan of playing the same thing in the same city, so each Show In Mexico City it will be different. “I haven’t been to Mexico in a year and I’m very excited to play there again,” he concluded. Gibrana excited about the start of her tour.
