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NEON is a musical project that explores synthetic voices as an extension of vocal identity. By modeling his own voice, Tovel develops a unique sonic language in which the voice becomes a malleable medium, capable of transcending its natural limits while retaining a human touch.
Through a series of hybrid compositions, the project reimagines the song form and explores fundamental questions: the identity of the voice, its authenticity, and the line between interpretation and transformation.
NEON continues the sonic exploration begun with *Songbook*, *Opus*, and *Gravity*, where contemporary music, electronic music, jazz, and rock intersected, while examining the complexity of musical composition and its legacy. Here, this exploration deepens through an in-depth exploration of the synthesized voice, conceived as an extension of the body and vocal identity.
At the heart of the project lies a personal and symbolic endeavor: to create a synthetic voice based on a model of Tovel’s voice, with the aim of opening up new avenues of expression. This voice, which is both familiar and transformed, allows us to explore registers, textures, and nuances that would be impossible to achieve otherwise, while retaining a deeply human quality.
NEON thus develops a unique musical language in which the voice becomes a malleable medium, capable of extending beyond its natural limits. The pieces span a wide sonic palette while maintaining a high standard of composition, giving rise to hybrid and innovative forms.
Through a series of compositions, Tovel deconstructs the traditional structure of the song, introducing dynamic shifts and sharp contrasts. The challenge is to maintain overall coherence while exploring new rhythmic and harmonic approaches, without succumbing to an excessive blending of genres.
This work on synthetic voices also raises fundamental questions: what defines a voice’s identity? Where does the line between interpretation and transformation lie? By shaping his own voice, Tovel examines the concept of authenticity and explores a new way of inhabiting sound, somewhere between presence and alteration.
Mentions
With the support of
La Coopérative — Network for Musical Creation DRAC PACA
Biography(s)
Matteo Franceschini
Composer
Under the name TOVEL, Matteo Franceschini explores the figure of the singer-songwriter in order to develop a sound "from within": composition, confronted with instrumental practice, opens up new perspectives on the theatrical awareness of sound gestures. His direct involvement on stage and close collaboration with other musicians constitute a truly creative act: transforming the score into sound energy. TOVEL blurs the boundaries between written creation (the score) and invention at the moment of performance, while seeking to blur the boundary between performers and spectators. Born into a family of musicians, he began studying composition with his father before training at the Milan Conservatory. He then perfected his skills at the Santa Cecilia Academy in Rome, before studying composition and computer music at Ircam in Paris. Silver Lion for Music at the Venice Biennale (2019), SACD New Music Talent Award (2024) and winner of the Banque Populaire Foundation prize. In 2014, he received the Fedora – Rolf Liebermann Prize for Opera, and in 2011, the title of Italian Affiliated Fellow in the Arts awarded by the American Academy in Rome. He composes operas, symphonic, choral, and chamber music works, performances, choreographic projects, and film scores (notably Vermiglio, nominated for Golden Globes and Oscars in 2025). His artistic universe is based on the power and exploration of the meaning of narrative content, as well as on the need to combine languages from different matrices, following the rules of contrast and fusion. His research into timbre feeds into his work, which reveals a dreamlike universe and a keen sense of musical narrative and theatricality. He regularly collaborates with soloists, choreographers, directors, and artists such as Renaud Capuçon, Bertrand Chamayou, Francesco Tristano, Silvia Gribaudi, Leonardo Guerra Seragnoli, Maura Delpero, Jacopo Mazzonelli, 1024architecture, and Seconde Creative Design. He receives commissions from prestigious institutions such as the Filarmonica della Scala, the Venice Biennale, the Ensemble Intercontemporain, the Philharmonie de Paris, Wigmore Hall in London, Ircam–Centre Pompidou, the Orchestre National d'Île-de-France, the Orchestre National de Belgique, the Opéra de Saint-Étienne, the Grand Théâtre de Provence, the Opéra Grand Avignon, the Festival Milano Musica, the Haydn Foundation, and the Accademia Filarmonica di Roma. After being named associate artist with the Orchestre national d’Île-de-France, the Accademia Filarmonica di Roma, and the Haydn Foundation, he is composer-in-residence at the Opéra Grand Avignon for the 2024–2025 and 2025–2026 seasons. Since 2011, his works have been published by Casa Ricordi – Universal Music Publishing. — tovelmusic.com
NEON
Tovel aka Matteo Franceschini
Distribution
Tovel (aka Matteo Franceschini)
, live electronics, vocals, and electric bass
Antonino Siringo
, piano and keyboards
Gioele Balestrini
, drums and percussion
Jean-Damien Juille
, sound engineer
Dan Azzopardi (Second Design)
, lighting and set designer
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