Sciarrino: Carnaval

Vocal ensemble EXAUDI specialise in radical and transgressive iterations of contemporary music. Complemented by the vision and energy of the young Explore Ensemble – returning to hcmf// for their third consecutive year – they deliver the UK premiere of Salvatore Sciarrino’s Carnaval, a composition in 12 movements written for five voices, piano and ensemble. It is a work that contains Sciarrino’s delicate, stark and yet often explosive compositional style, holding catharsis hostage to tension. Requiring meticulous and attentive players, the ensembles recreate the piece’s disquieting sparsity, performing declarative a cappella, instrumental vignettes and dramatic silences.