Mira Calix
| Mira Calix | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Chantal Francesca Passamonte |
| Born | 1970 |
| Origin | Durban, South Africa |
| Genres | Electronic, Classical |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Labels | Warp |
| Website | www |
Mira Calix is the stage name of Chantal Francesca Passamonte (born 1970), a British-based artist signed to Warp Records. Although her earlier music is almost exclusively electronic, in recent years she has incorporated classical instrumentation into her work for performances, recordings, and installations.
Born in South Africa, in 1991 Chantal Passamonte moved to London.
Mira Calix's earlier music specialised in mixing her intimate vocals with jittering beats and experimental electronic textures and natural sounds. In 2003 she collaborated with the London Sinfonietta for the first time. Nunu premiered at the Royal Festival Hall in London at a concert titled "Warp Works and 20th Century Masters". The critically acclaimed piece, then toured internationally performed by live insects, orchestra and Calix on electronics. Since then, Calix has incorporated orchestration and live classical instruments in her performances and recorded work. An avid collaborator, she regularly works with visual artists and musicians from other disciplines to create music for dance, theatre, film, opera and installations. Mira has been commissioned to write new works for many leading art institutions and ensembles including: the London Sinfonietta, Bang on a Can, the Aldeburgh Festival, The Royal Shakespeare Company, Opera North, Streetwise Opera and the Manchester International Festival.
In 2004 she formed Alexander's Annexe – a band/ensemble with pianist Sarah Nicolls and sound designer David Sheppard. Their debut performance was at the Ravello Festival in Italy, followed by performances at the Aldeburgh Festival and Parco della Musica in Rome. Alexander's Annexe released the album, Push Door To Exit, on Warp in November 2006.
In early 2008 Mira was commissioned to set Shakespeare's Sonnet 130 to music. The project was curated by composer Gavin Bryars for The Royal Shakespeare Company. Other participants in Nothing Like The Sun were Nico Muhly, Antony and the Johnsons, Gavin Friday, Natalie Merchant and Alexander Balanescu. During 2007 there were two theatrical works; the first, an opera titled Elephant and Castle, for the Aldeburgh Festival, was a collaboration with composer Tansy Davies, directed by Tim Hopkins, Libretto by author Blake Morrison. The second, Dead Wedding premiered at the first Manchester International Festival. Extracts from these performances appear on the album The Elephant in the Room: 3 Commissions. The album also includes pieces from a video installation work titled Natures, a collaboration with video artist Quayola and cellist Oliver Coates.
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