HIIIT - Battles and Silences
Music
Battles and Silences counters war with new instruments made from weapon waste and impressive music.
About the performance
During the First and Second World Wars, church bells were melted down on a large scale to make deadly weapons. With conflicts now raging on European soil in which our government is becoming increasingly involved, the sound virtuosos of HIIIT (formerly Slagwerk Den Haag) felt it was time to make a counter-sound. With Battles & Silences, weapon waste from the battlefield forms the basis for a new series of instruments and edge-of-your-seat music.
Kilograms of bullet casings from Ukraine were melted down to create an enormous church bell. Using analogue tape, Fiumara & Leeuwis from the electronic duo Poulson Sq. build up a dark, sinister drone, which is gradually broken up by percussion. The ringing of the bell reminds us that we should never take peace for granted; every now and then, we need to cherish the silence.
