Rerememberer (all the threads) is a translation of an old Danish peasant fabric into a performance / installation. I wanted to apply the instructions for the creation of a simple, honest textile to sounds, actions, lighting and staging, transforming a small, flat scrap of material into an hour of noise and unearthly atmosphere. The idea for the piece came from the realization that weavers codify their instructions on a 5 line staff - exactly how composers write music. The proportions of the thread count and the numerical ordering of the loom tie-up for the weaving pattern serve as the score and scenario for the entire installation, generating the music, the lighting and the placement in space.
Rerememberer is scored for amplified weaver, accordionist, dj, sound design, lighting, underscore, conductor and an orchestra of fifty violinists who have never played violin before. The use of amateurs refers to the folk tradition of the weaving, returning the homespun quality of the fabric to its origins.
Rerememberer premiered at Judson Memorial Church in New York City on January 17, 2009. Original performers were weaver Gail Gondek, accordionist Frode Andersen, d.j. Ejnar Kanding, conductor and violin instructor Todd Reynolds. Underscore by David Lang, lighting by Laura Mroczkowski, sound design by Greg Hanawalt.