Santa BUŠS : 'a chantar... (lacuna)' (2021)
for ensemble 
EnsembleSpectrum, conductor Matej Sloboda 
(studio recording : Clarissine Concert Hall, Bratislava, Slovakia)

The piece ‘a chantar... (lacuna)’ is inspired by trobairitz, the Occitan female troubador traditions, and their poetry that seems quite progressive for the times of both then and now, although touching upon the age-old problems and situations of women throughout history. 
Troubadours often wrote from the woman’s viewpoint, yet the works of the trobairitz often brought a much more personal view of themselves into their lyrics, beautifully using word painting to depict the meaning of poetry. They were not afraid to engage in harsh political discussions or speak of sexual exploits, even if at the time they might be considered forbidden.
There are not many works survived by these women and the only trobairitz song for which music has been preserved is canso 'A chantar m’er de so qu’eu no volria' by Comtessa de Dia, and this exceptional gem serves as one of the starting points for the piece written for EnsembleSpectrum. 
The notation that the troubadours used may have conveyed a wealth of information to the musicians who were familiar with its vocabulary, but modern eyes cannot determine those details... And exactly in this unknown territory and lack of certainty, or gaps of information, caused by time and distance, is where this composition comes to life... And that's also where something I refer to as 'lacuna technique' is essential part of decoding and interpreting the material... 
Lacuna... a gap in a manuscript, inscription, text, painting, or a musical work... or a lexical gap in a language... or an extended silence... or the lack of a law or legal source addressing a situation... or an intention to encourage someone to create their own stories... lacuna... words, sentences, or whole passages that are missing or illegible... caused by weathering, decay, and other damage to old manuscripts or inscriptions..

Santa BUŠS 'a chantar… (lacuna)'

santa.buss@gmail.com

Santa BUŠS is a Latvian composer especially interested in detailed pre-compositional process and working with extra-musical ideas (found in other art forms, physiology, history, mythology, nature, architecture, medicine, sports, philosophy, etc.). 

Though her main focus and form of expression has been linked with instrumental music, lately she has discovered a deep interest in the voice and its possibilities, as well as being keen to expand her approach towards sound, composition and exploring different forms of collaboration. 
This also includes exploring territories between conventional and unconventional notation and performance techniques, as well as experimenting between the boundaries of music, theatre and opera, often focusing on the physical manipulation of instruments and the presence of musicians as a source of drama. 

She has studied both composition and musicology at the Latvian Academy of Music and Hamburg University of Music and Theatre. 

Her works have been performed throughout Europe, in North America and Asia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgBltNTuhvU

Santa BUŠS 'a chantar… (lacuna)'

Santa Buss