Oblivia and the Basel-based contemporary music ensemble KlangLab are creating our first music theatre work together. To that end, I had a talk with KlangLab’s Chris Moy, Dino Georgeton and Zaca Maia in Helsinki about KlangLab and collaboration. We had just finished our second rehearsal period together and were very excited.
The schedule for Dreaming Turtles was tight, which led to quick decisions, and I was concerned that the musicians Chris, Dino and Zaca felt left out of the creative process, which luckily was not the case because as the work unfolded it became clear that collaboration is a many-faceted process, not only a symbiotic “we do everything together” creation process. As we had decided to work as closely together as possible in the framework of the project, we had been discussing how they, as musicians, do not want to “just” illustrate what we, the performers, do on stage. The key words here were “as closely together as possible in the framework of the project”.
As some of you may know, Oblivia is a group that highly values the collective process and each individual input. The contributions are always up for feedback and straightforward criticism regardless of the field they are coming from – design, composition or performance. My own rather blunt feedbacking way is along the axis of “this works/this doesn’t”. Others have more refined ways. The feedback relates to a shared conviction that the work guides the way. Usually we agree in the end, and when we don’t, we mostly let go, because the work is the main thing.
This is the universe where Oblivia operates and therefore it is not always easy for the guest artists to enter. By now we have understood that communication and the atmosphere of shared ground is the key for working together with new artists. Usually we lead the way, and perhaps unnecessarily much so. It is still a learning process.
We have previously thought about writing manuals on how Oblivia works (this did not work, the idea felt too didactic), we try to explain without too many presuppositions (you are warned, you will not get it anyway, we are not a cult, we postpone decisions which might be annoying, we are annoying) and so on. In the end, doing it is the best way into the work that is not rocket science, but shared ground and responsibility for oneself. The goal is a structured performance within a communicative and collaborative process. This time around it meant creating a music theatre performance for the opening of the Klang Festival in Copenhagen, within a tight budget and therefore a tight schedule. Will we succeed in making it with a sense of togetherness and collaboration?
What is the difference between collaboration and togetherness here? Transmitting a sense of togetherness to the audience as an antidote to neo-liberalism was one of the goals for the performance. In order to achieve that, we need collaboration that creates a sense of togetherness in the working group. Becoming turtles is one, listening to each other, another. Talking and doing, having space for differences and coming together in the work is the main recipe.
KlangLab was founded in 2019 and has ten members. They met during their studies at Musikakademie Basel, from where Oblivia’s Yiran Zhao knew them and suggested the Dreaming Turtles collaboration. Just when they got started, COVID-19 came, during which they worked remotely, digitally and recorded. Zaca explains that their first live concert outside the school was “Kleinste Gespräch” by Oliver Rutz during their season 201/22 “in Metall” at the Metallbau in Basel.
What inspired you to start your own ensemble?
They answer collectively: We wanted to try a laboratory approach to composition around Bertrand Gourdy (KlangLab member) when we still were at school, and then to go on with ideas about composition that we had experimented with while we were studying. We had some dogmas: to play the whole evening program without a break, work collaboratively and not only play our own instrument, but be able to make changes during the process and try things out. Music projects are generally organised in a certain preset way and this we wanted to transition out of and do differently.
It feels familiar. Oblivia started out in 2000 with the question whether it is possible to create ambitious experimental performance work in a friendly way, collectively and non-hierarchically.
So, what does collective composition mean to you?
Chris and Dino: Everyone takes on a compositional role and is active in the creative process. We all have individually different experiences with composition, so we also do collective compositioning. As well as asking composers to work together with us or non-composers to create together with us from other perspectives.
Zaca: We want to explore more in this direction with for example non-classical trained visual artists as composers. Then they are more like moderators.
Dino: This is a vision. How to expand past the medium of contemporary classical music and have more exchange with other media. This creates the opportunity for more conceptual collaborative work. With performers it is different, everybody does their own thing and gives comments of each other’s practice.
How do you make decisions in your collective practice?
A collective answer: During the process there is a lot of exchange between the invited composer or artists with the musicians of the ensemble. Decisions are made from that. If there are disagreements, usually the composer has the final suggestion. We have done two collective compositions and then everybody made decisions. Some stepped out and listened. We alternated between the responsibility for the rehearsal and who was responsible for today’s work. This creates an interesting dynamic in the work.
Chris: When we are all in it together, the bystander effect means that one easily remains polite and stands back. As the responsibility is divided it also lessens the need for politeness. It is really good to let go. You need to be agile to let go of your ideas and be ready to kill your darlings. It is then a give and take.
Zaca: And go with the flow, react to what happens, what is actual, current collectively.
How long does it take to make a work collectively for you?
Zaca: Normally we need some five days before the concert days, plus a meeting much in advance to see what is going to eventually come. For the future we wish for more time, which is not always so easy to organise because of the funding structures. Usually we need to be efficient. The two weeks that we have now spent with Dreaming Turtles is a lot of time for us.
In our collective performance world at Oblivia, two weeks is when you just get started, I point out. How was this process for KlangLab?
Collectively: We miss the other members, but we understand that ten people is very many.
Dino: There was a very natural collaboration already during the week in Basel. It is interesting because Oblivia communicates so much, which relieves us from thinking about efficiency. There is also a lot of invisible communication and exchange, invisible threads that connect us. Although in Basel sound designer Mikael was the outside ear and in Helsinki light designer Stine the outside eye, there is space for all, because all have ears and eyes and can give feedback from their perspective.
Chris: We had a common ground already, all that we had talked about in Zoom in September 2025 is there somehow.
We end by thinking about the future. My not so secret wish is to continue the collaboration with KlangLab within a longer, larger-scale project that would focus on the process of working together, and what that all could be about and to what new adventures and artistic outcomes that could lead.
Dreaming Turtles premieres at Klang Festival in Copenhagen on Monday 8 June 2026. Welcome!
