Scored for: Flute Oboe Bass Clarinet Violin Viola Cello

Duration: 5:30

Hovor II is a 15 foot by 15 foot "tapestry" created by El Anatsui, a Ghanian artist living in Nigeria. El Anatsui is particularly intrigued by recycled materials, and this monumental work served as a basis for Recyclate. From a distance, the work appears to be frozen in a state of motion, one that is hard to capture with a two dimensional photograph. Upon closer inspection, it becomes obvious that each individual unit is actually a piece of foil from a liquor bottle. The style of weaving is inspired by kente, a traditional Asante or Ewe cloth.

El Anatsui insists that this isn't necessarily African art, it's human art, as geographically based genres box in the potential impact of a work. Consumption and obsolescence are common to all cultures. I decided to recycle fragments of pieces and sounds that have been bouncing around in my head for years, some are obvious, and some not so obvious, but altogether I think this “analog sampling” creates a work that is entirely new. Highly rhythmic, the work is a dance that glitters and turns on a dime, revealing the different styles and composers that have had the biggest impact on me.

Thanks to the Left Coast Chamber Ensemble for making this piece possible. - Nicolás Lell Benavides (2015)

Hovor II was commissioned by the De Young Museum in San Francisco to celebrate their new opening. It can be seen here: https://art.famsf.org/el-anatsui/hovor-ii-2004109

Note: Recyclate is pronounced like “recycle it” (IPA: riːˈsaɪkleɪt).

Performances by Left Coast Chamber Ensemble (2015), Orchestra of St. Luke’s Five Boroughs (Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music, 2022), and Wild Shore New Music (2018)