Marina Herlop^ES/CAT

Conservatory trained composer, vocalist and pianist Marina Herlop began her career by giving a contemporary flair to compositions from Debussy and Chopin, tipping her hat to the canons of the romantic era. Her first album, Nanook, relied heavily on her classical training, but for her second opus Babasha, Herlop started to integrate synths and assorted electronic sounds. She has since broadened her range of sonic tools to the decidedly more cybernetic aspect of music, as evidenced by Pripyat, her debut album on cult label PAN. Here, the hypnotic continuum of her early compositions clashes and grows through alien rhythms, layers of processed vocals and organic flourishes.

Drawing inspiration from South India’s Carnatic music and with piano still very much at the core of her music, Pripyat nonetheless marked Herlop’s irrevocable transition into electronic music. While her productions still rely on her understanding of her environment, she uses a variety of new toys to shape and reconfigure brooding new dimensions. Resisting any attempts at reinterpreting her own work, Marina Herlop prefers to craft multifaceted worlds that spur and feed the imagination. Her work was featured at a number of high-profile events such as Primavera Sound, WOS and MIRA

On stage, surrounded by five musicians, Marina Herlop draws the public into the dreamlike landscapes of worlds she creates. The Catalan artist’s technique is remarkable, but her passion remains aesthetics. Hands flowing seamlessly between machines and piano keys, hair tangled in assorted cables… Herlop does not simply play music, she embodies it.

Presented as part of the celebrations of the 25th anniversary of the Treaty of Cooperation between Catalonia and Québec with support from Institut Ramon Llull