Moored at 61, quai de la Seine, in Paris's nineteenth arrondissement, each year La Pop hosts a work of art created for the site, with sound as its main focus. Since June 3, the floating creative space has been home to a symphony like no other: the Symphonie des souvenirs, an installation imagined and created by composer and visual artist Charlie Aubry.

"Words fail me", "I can't tell you", "I can't find the word"... The words leave their mark, discreetly engraved on the Plexiglas plates suspended, like little showcases, in the hold of La Pop. These mute voices are supported by music, thanks to the spatialized diffusion of the installation's soundtrack. Text and sound express the powerlessness to speak of the past, to bring memories, or snatches of them, to the surface.

Intergenerational work
In the room, cushions and blankets laid out here and there invite the visitor to settle down, to take the time, for once, to enter this enigmatic exhibition, to get used to the darkness of the room and observe the small Plexiglas panels, showcases where strange scores are engraved, mixing words and drawings, like bottles thrown into the sea. For the Symphony of Memories is an immersive work, a dreamlike labyrinth that is the fruit of intergenerational work. And that's what Charlie Aubry is most proud of. Working with the very young and the very old is essential," confides the artist. Last October, I carried out an entire project with children aged six to ten from an experimental school in Avignon, as part of the Yvon-Lambert collection workshops. Working with artists and non-artists is all too rare, and I wanted to pursue this approach."

In search of lost memories
It's perfect timing! Back in Paris, La Pop is giving him carte blanche, or almost. The theme of memory is very present in their programming," continues Charlie Aubry. It questions me a lot. I lost my grandmother to Alzheimer's last year. I saw with her the progression of the disease, the growing loneliness and the wandering of memories...". The artist then had the crazy idea of transcribing these memories into music. Yes, but which memories and, above all, what kind of music for memories that are filigree, damaged and blurred?

Graphic transcription
The idea of going to the COS Alice-Guy Ehpad, in the ^19th arrondissement, came very quickly. He won't be going alone, but accompanied by four improvising musicians: violinist Sebastian Adams, flutist Mié Ogura and pianists Imma Santacreu and Hèctor Parra, also a composer. The aim: to meet the residents over several sessions and take the time to immerse themselves in the moments of life they agree to share with the musicians. "Right from the first session, I gave the Ehpad residents - who all have memory impairment in common, some at more critical stages than others - some music paper and something to write and draw on. They drew what they wanted, sometimes the memories they could no longer retrieve, or express, in words." The musicians would then improvise on these strange scores, abstract or figurative, sketched in felt-tip pens, colored pencils, pastels and watercolors. It was great!" recalls Charlie Aubry. Imma and Hèctor's improvisation was very surprising. Great performances..."

Intergenerational work
Charlie Aubry could have left it at that. But he didn't. With his precious drawings under his arm, the composer then headed off to the Jacques-Ibert Conservatory, also in the 19th arrondissement. Between April and June, the work continued, this time with young people and living memories. They are in primary, secondary or high school and are part of the three improvisation classes led by Mié Ogura, the flutist who was part of the small musical squadron visiting the Ehpad. "They spontaneously seized on the drawing-partitions, in a very touching way, and, with Mié, over the course of the classes, came up with a real orchestral composition."

Electronic tinkerer
The third stage arrives: alone in his studio, Charlie Aubry works on the sounds recorded at the conservatory. This self-taught artist, who likes to call himself an electronic tinkerer, loves to tinker with recordings and mix sonic and visual materials. He adds noises and oddities here and there, because he's particularly interested in hijacking objects in his sound installations. "For example, one day I came across a large wooden cupboard. One of those imposing cupboards typical of grandparents' houses! What's more, the cupboard conceals an entire symbolism: that of secrecy, of buried memories. Charlie Aubry brings it home and records its creaks and squeaks, which he incorporates into his soundtrack. The doors of the old cupboard are present in the installation. They turn their backs, screwed together.

And on June 3, the opening day of the installation, the artisans of this Symphony of Memories - young student musicians and elderly residents - met. A project that has become, in turn, a factory of memories. 

Suzanne Gervais

Symphonie des souvenirs: Conception Charlie Aubry
Production La Pop
Acknowledgements Imma Santacreu, Hèctor Parra, Sebastian Adams, Mié Ogura, the team and residents of EHPAD COS Alice Guy, students in improvisation classes at Conservatoire Jacques Ibert

From June 3 to July 2, 2023, Installation open to the public, Wednesday to Sunday, 1:30 pm to 7:30 pm at La Pop - barge moored on the Bassin de la Villette - opposite 61 Quai de la Seine