Program note

The title of the piece relates two almost opposite ways of conceiving life. 

The first part comes from Harvey Mackay's book Swim with the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive, a bestseller published in 1988, whose spirit is representative of the capitalism of the last decades. The author proposes a series of effective strategies for business and negotiation, always with the aim of succeeding and winning over opponents, no matter what happens. As for the second part, Marcher avec les dragons is a French adaptation of anthropologist Tim Ingold’s writings and thinking, developed from his field research experiences.

To quote him, “I think there is a dragon among us today, and it's growing to such proportions that it's becoming increasingly difficult to adopt a sustainable way of life. This dragon inhabits the rupture we have created between the world and our imagination. We know from experience that this rupture is unsustainable, but we refuse to acknowledge its existence, as this would force us to question conventional scientific rationality. I believe this recognition is long overdue.”

Some sections of the piece draw their DNA from the sonic nature of the Babel Table: short improvised sequences on the instrument-have been re-orchestrated for seven musicians, then integrated into a series of contrasting tableaux that follow one another in the manner of the volatile states of mind characteristic of the uncertainty several of us can feel since the beginning of 2025. But one of the tableaux also features the dragon in its pure state, symbolized by the Babel Table.

Lastly, my everyday work in gaming and interactive audio has influenced the electronic part of the piece. The scenes are conceived like levels and present contrasting atmospheres and spatializations. The musicians have to interact with the ecosystems in which they are projected. Sound design also plays an important role in the piece; you could even find a few Easter eggs…