SU Studio Talk 81: Eugene Ughetti – Bird Cage World – Wing Wands

Eugene Ughetti is the co-artistic director of Speak Percussion. Eugene is known for tackling complex and ambitious art music projects whether as director, composer, performer or conductor. He has worked with some of the world’s guiding lights in new music including Pierre Boulez, Liza Lim, Steve Reich and John Zorn.Eugene’s works have been presented at Darmstadt (Germany), Roulette (New York), SONICA (UK), Ruhrtriennale (Germany), Mona Foma (Hobart), Arts Centre Melbourne, Sydney Festival, RISING, Transart (Italy), Lucerne Festival (Switzerland), Noordezon Festival (The Netherlands), PICA (Perth), SIPFest (Jakarta), National Museum (Singapore), George Town Festival (Malaysia) among others.

Eugene’s Sounds Unheard Studio Talk series, “What is a musical instrument?”, looks at his philosophy of musical instruments. Over 4 episodes Eugene explores how any object can be rendered a musical instrument through an inseparable combination of materials, semiotics, and practices, Where material refers to physical substance, including its form and structure; semiotics encompasses all the things an instrument refers to, points to, or symbolizes and practice refers to the physical actions and manipulations involved in producing sound.

In this final episode, Eugene delves into the creative development of the Bird Cage World, section of the Speak Percussion show, Pigeons. He illustrates his philosophy of musical instruments in action. 

A key focus is the creation of wing-like instruments, inspired by the crested pigeon’s unique alarm sound. Ughetti details the process of creating a “wind wand” to evoke flight and bird calls. 

Eugene highlights his approach to instruments as active collaborators. He uses the show Pigeons to demonstrate the powerful semiotic dimension of instruments, where objects can evoke multiple meanings and stories, enriching performance. His final takeaway emphasizes the indeterminate nature of percussion, where any object can become an instrument, and encourages all musicians to explore the worldly connections of their instruments to create richer music.

For more information on Pigeons, please visit: https://www.speakpercussion.com/work/pigeons/

To purchase tickets to the premiere of Pigeons, please visit: https://www.melbournerecital.com.au/whats-on/current-productions/pigeons

Thank you for joining us for Eugene Ughetti’s Studio Talks Series, ‘What is a musical instrument?’. For more information on Eugene, please visit www.speakpercussion.com

[Photo © Jess Busby]