Carmencita…Study II
An investigation into how I fit, if I fit, and what it means when I don’t.
Study II of an exploration of the feminine archetype, Carmen returns to me again and again. Not as a role to perform, but as a myth to question.
The reference here is most directly the Habanera – a melody so embedded in culture that even non-opera audiences recognise it. But beyond its familiarity lies something deeper: Carmen as rebel, as woman who refused to fit the narrative of her time.
She does not follow societal rules. She does not soften herself to survive. She stands firm in her own truth, even when that truth costs her everything.
I am drawn to the word l’amour. Love is layered, uncontrollable, untameable. “L’amour est un oiseau rebelle” love is a rebellious bird. It cannot be forced, contained, or owned. Carmen understands this. She identifies with it.
These electronic investigations are organic and free. I never fully know what will emerge. Each experiment explores how Carmen might live inside my voice, through classical operatic mezzo sound, natural voice, spoken word, and electronic colour.
TouchDesigner allows the visual world to destabilise and pulse unpredictably. Plug-ins become spice, like building flavour in a sauce, shifting tone, heat, and texture within the voice itself.
This is not an attempt to recreate Carmen.
It is an attempt to fragment her.
To see what remains.
How the pieces come together.
To see where I fit.
Carmencita en Fragmentos | Study II
Link to Study I Love is a Bird
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