Architecture Concert | Music Lecture

“I Would Rather Be Horizontal” is a multidisciplinary music performance that addresses the context of Kongreßpark in Vienna. The work explores the park through the dual perspectives of contemporary violinist Jacobo Hernández Enríquez and architect Sara Novi.

Taking inspiration from the Sylvia Plath poem “I Am Vertical,” the performance moves between the vertical and horizontal planes of the park, looking for different languages to acknowledge and experience them. 

“I Would Rather Be Horizontal” is a synergy between a solo violin concert and an architecture lecture. The music program played by Jacobo, with pieces by Kristine Tjøgersen, Clara Iannotta and Jennifer Walshe, among others, puts the focus on nature and the creatures that reside in the park: trees, plants, flowers, birds, insects,... Meanwhile, Sara brings her approachable “Experiencing Architecture” practice, focusing on the design and the history of the park in which the performance takes place. She analyzes the space from an emotional angle, embarking the audience on an imaginative and often humorous journey. Together, they aim to create a balanced and playful atmosphere interweaving sound and text.

The performance invites the audience to be aware of what surrounds them in the present moment, bringing into focus what usually goes unnoticed. By constructing and describing an imaginary map, the gaze and ears of the audience are conducted through the vertical and horizontal planes of the park, traveling from the ground we step on to high up in the sky.

Isang Yun – Das Vögelchen (1984) 

Tom Johnson – 

Kristine Tjøgersen – Avian Chatters (2021) 

Clara Iannotta – Dead Wasps in the Jam Jar (2014-2015) 

Jennifer Walshe – dirty white fields (2001) 

Adriana Hölszky – like a bird (2006)