When I was composing splinters of ebullient rebellion, the unique political era we experience at the moment manifested itself in more and more aggressive ways. Politicians or global market forces are certainly not the only ones who influence the development of society nowadays. Innovative methods and messages from “ordinary” individuals that have a sustainable impact on the political discourse are more and more common. Humble but bold initiatives spread with snowball effect through social media and become an obvious part of news reports. 

In times when the official discourse is moving with accelerating speed in diametrically opposed directions, we hear politicians tirelessly lament the deplorable status of the opposite side’s agenda, while constructive ideas for the future are conspicuous by their absence. We are also witnessing many influential institutions, organisations, and even governments gradually facing collapse as their actions and manifestations collide with the core values of the individuals they are made up of. We see how this friction generates a new spine of idealism with the aim of shifting the focus back from simplified, one-dimensional explanations to contexts where the full spectrum of intricate details makes its presence, and where the multitude of voices that surround us are also present. 

To me, the orchestra is a dynamic platform for exploring the relation between the individual and the collective, and for examining the vulnerable communication between an institution and its members. The orchestral structure consists of two harsh, mechanical, contrasting blocks that are gradually transformed by different factors that make the blocks interact and entwine. One of these factors consists of fragments of recent songs that have become symbols of democracy and human rights, a unifying force in the struggle against different types of discrimination around the world. The second influencer is made up of the voices of the orchestra’s members, of individual initiatives that may look, from a distance, like collective clouds of noise. The third influencer is the typewriter; to me, it is the ultimate symbolic representation of dedicated writing of carefully though-out texts, used by courageous individuals who quietly oppose the current oppression. 

What keeps my spirit ebullient is the fact that now, in 2018, everyone can make their own choice of “typewriter,” and start a wave of actions to support democracy with the power of the word. 

Malin Bång