A beautiful idea! Invited at the beginning of 2020 by the Geneva gallery Le Labo for a project called Waiting Room, the Swiss artist Nathalie Rebholz wanted to reflect on the notion of the waiting room, on a way of occupying the art space during the moments between exhibitions. This waswithout counting on the confinement, which reshuffled the cards of theproject.

In response to the chaotic situation of the pandemic, the Geneva-based artist, a specialist in visual and digital arts, came up with the idea of a new online platform, with a pop and acidulous look, with colours that evolve along the way and move while listening, a platform that brings together original sound works offering a new form of sound mediation. And the name chosen says a lot about the resolutely lively and joyful spirit of this project which favours audio over visuals: Joyfully Waiting ! A room full of sounds and surprises, preferably in a bazaar, an unidentified musical object that is worth a visit.

• 

• 

• 

Nathalie Rebholz has therefore become a curator and invites other artists from different countries to create a variety of sound capsules: carte blanche! These miniatures range from readings of texts, guided mediation sessions to sometimes pungent, ironic, sometimes hypnotic and soaring pieces, some even proposing... a hatha yoga session! So many singular contributions, with intriguing titles - "Fuck the world I'm staying in my bed drinking hot chocolate with ice" - which are posted every week and which make Joyfully Waiting an amazing digital music box. 

Among the latest deliveries, "Neither or Nor Either", an ironic piece by Italian composer Elena Radice, for the Real Madrid collective, a haunting and heady sound loop inspired by... the Skype ringtone, but transcribed and sung by a five-voice digital choir. 

• 

• 

Another discovery, the young Chinese artist Galaxia Wang, confined in Australia during the year 2020, where he discovered the astonishing lyre bird, capable, even better than the parrot, of imitating human noises and voices... An animal that she paraphrases in a series of ten musical miniatures.

A space for musical escapes and sonic detours, Joyfully Waiting thus allows for the manifestation of a teeming and dazzling artistic life, despite the restrictions. To be enjoyed without moderation, preferably with headphones in your ears!

Suzanne Gervais