The encounter between a choir and machines is a perfect metaphor for our contemporary society.

Bodies of flesh and boxes of plastic. Voices and lines of code. The warmth of what is profoundly human facing the coldness of the computational executive — a familiar caricature of this restless world that overwhelms us.

But is the profoundly human truly so warm? In an age of the harshest inequalities, humanity seems never to have been so unjust toward itself — engaging in patriotic, communal, and religious wars, spreading obscurantisms of every kind, and sowing immeasurable suffering. The coldness of humankind at war is a burning reality. Bodies scorched by bombs — the consequence of the great game of power, still as icy as ever.

And is the computational executive truly so cold? When families communicate their love across the globe by satellite, when all the world’s knowledge lies beneath our fingertips, when conversational AIs fill the emotional void left by our own, when connected devices bring us pleasure, when programs generate paintings, poems, and symphonies — these machines come to offset the chill of our lives with a fire that no longer seems entirely artificial. To deny our dependence on all those zeros and ones has become impossible — as impossible as discerning whether it is humankind or the machine that now holds dominion.

Through a form of contemporary spirituality, the texts by Paul d’Antoine beautifully capture the sensations of submersion and helplessness that overwhelm us before these ambivalent perceptions. Understanding our world may seem impossible, yet through their deeply symbolic poetry, these texts still offer a significant space for hope — hope in humanity, and in the possibility of happiness.

In collaboration with GMEM, the Marseille Philharmonic Choir took part in recording sessions to capture the vocal material necessary for this work. Lucas Sonzogni and éOle warmly thank both institutions, as well as Martin Laskawiec and Mathilde Lavignac for their vocal supervision during these sessions.

Premiered on December 3, 2024, by Le Transcontemporain at Saint-Pierre-des-Cuisines in Toulouse.

Around scales based on the exponential function, here as a representation of the contemporary destruction, this piece deploys an iambic rhythm in an acoustic and electroacoustic double-space. Once the apex is reached, the harmonical opening follows its inevitable destiny of contraction, to found back its primal form.

Adagio for strings orchestra and quadriphonic recording, Op.6. Created 21st may 2012 at CNSMD Lyon conduct by Nicolas André.

Create 17th January 2011 at CNSMD Lyon, directed by Michele Tadini and Robert Pascal. Recorded here 24th April 2012. Cello: Raphael Guinzburg. Violin: Nicolas Sublet. Piano: Vincent Mardon.

Lucas Sonzogni, Stereophonic Piece, Op.3.

Create at Conservatoire de Toulouse June 2010.

Acknowledgements to Bertrand Dubedout.

Lost Piece n°1 "In Company", Opus 2, for two clarinets, piano et stereophonic recording. éOle order.

Create at the Conservatoire de Toulouse 6th Mars 2010 directed by Bertrand Dubedout. Piano: Marie-Laure Dupont, Clarinets: Anthony Lézian and Guillaume Pastre.