Discover Crosswinds, our new stage creation combining music and dance

From the second half of the fifteenth century onwards, dance came to be regarded as a truly learned art. At the court of Burgundy and in the cities of Italy, dancing masters taught, experimented with and theorised the movements of the body in close relationship with music. Their treatises describe a set of principles — measure, memory, manner, division of space, air, diversity of things and movement — which underpin choreographic practice and finely organise the relationship between space, music and gesture.

Crosswinds follows the thread of these seven concepts to explore the musical and choreographic universe of the early Renaissance. Each of them is associated with one of the seven planets, echoing the worldview of the time, when the motion of the heavens and their spheres was believed to influence and reflect the earthly order and human actions. On stage, these correspondences become driving forces of creation: reconstructions of historical choreographies, compositions inspired by early styles, recompositions and moments of contemporary improvisation intersect and respond to one another. They also echo the musical sources of the period, which travelled widely and wove connections among numerous composers across Europe.

From the solemnity of courtly dances to the virtuoso variations of the dancing masters, from the earthy energy of rustic dances to the search for ideal proportions, Crosswinds explores a universe where gestures, sounds and cosmic order intertwine in a shared invisible harmony. Carried by the distinctive breath of historical wind instruments, it tells the story of the founding union of music and movement beyond borders, forms and eras.