The INORI Project

I have been invited by eight arts institutions in the United States and Brazil to perform Karlheinz Stockhausen's INORI (1974), an evening-length work for gesturing soloist and audio playback. This is an historic time for INORI; this season marks its 50th anniversary, yet the piece has never been performed in the United States or Brazil.

With the help of Australian dancer/choreographer Philippa Cullen and American anthropologist Nancy Wyle, composer Karlheinz Stockhausen catalogued an index of prayer gestures and poses from religions across the world. He then created his own hybridized system of musical notation to chart the movement of these gestures across the soloist's x-, y-, and z-axes. INORI was originally conceived as a work for one or more soloists with orchestra, but is often performed with a recording of the orchestra. 

I discovered INORI while conducting research for my 2019 doctoral dissertation, "At the Intersection of American Sign Language and the Performer-Percussionist: A Hybrid Practice." My work addresses topics of abstraction, gestural iconicity, corporeality, and cultural ownership. I hope to use these performances to spark interest and forge collaborations with composers and creators, in both the hearing and Deaf communities, for the creation of new works for ASL-signing percussionist.

I have spent the past three years studying the piece, and traveled to Germany in 2022 to work with Alain Louafi and Kathinka Pasveer at the Stockhausen Courses.All funds will be used for the tour's travel and accommodation expenses. Thank you in advance for your generosity!