Jean-René Combes-Damiens

…Thébaïde

The thebaid is the place searched by the wise man to find serenity and calm. A solitary retreat. These music and text alone are to me a new form of "thebaid", a place where to revitalize, a place of the soul where peace strives to prevail… I describe the place by images, sensations, feelings; it is my description, I don't impose anything, I am a witness, a sheer witness… I am searching for calmness in me; this musical thebaid is a step forward on the path to it.

And as there is no coincidence, dreams meet the crudest reality in that: I have a house, not far, a house with a name that I did not choose, contrary to what is often the case…The house's name is "La Thébaïde"!

…Thébaïde was commissioned by flutist Hélène Lazartigues to whom it is dedicated.

(translation Philippe Do)

Details: flute in G with or without narrator