L'histoire du Soleil (2016)

"L'histoire du soleil" (Story of the Sun) is a children's piece inspired by and begun in the the glorious mountain village of Saas-Fee, Switzerland, and specifically written to be premiered at the Talis Festival in 2016.  Fans of 20th Century music will undoubtably recognize the name as related to Igor Stravinsky's piece, "L'histoire du soldat", also written in Switzerland nearly 100 years ago.  While Knable's 'soleil' is not exactly continuing the story of Stravinsky's 'soldat', it certainly emulates its spirit and utilizes a similar ensemble of 7 players.  The story was written by Swiss-native Valentine Biollay, whose words tell the tale of a boy and his quest to return the sunlight to his village.  It was translated into German for its premiere, but it is also available in French and English.  The factory in this fictional village is meant to represent the negative effects of the modern world on nature; will the boy be able to save his beloved village?  We'll just have to listen well to find out!