Nordic Voices at Neo Arte Syntezator Sztuki in Gdańsk

Martyna Kosecka – Ab Origine

A multidisciplinary ritual for six voices, electric string quartet, electronics, and projections

We find ourselves on the threshold between times and mythological beliefs. Souls, objects, and events from the past speak to us, hidden in the whispers of what once was and what still remains.

Ab Origine is a multidisciplinary ritual that delicately intertwines Norse, Slavic, and Persian mythologies through the idea of the Eternal Return. This concept, developed by historian Mircea Eliade, carries the conviction that truly modernity—or a return to the “mythic age”—can only be achieved when myths of the past are brought to life.

I deeply believe that the way we express reality is the sum of our experiences, filtered through images of the past. The need to be here and now gives us the strength to create and imagine new worlds. Myths are stories of people who, through their journeys, intertwined different thoughts and beliefs, assigned them new meanings, and anchored them in their perception of the world.

For me, Ab Origine is a space where my own myth is born — woven from experiences, memories, and dreams. I share it with others, inviting them to jointly discover this story.

“Symbolic thinking is not the exclusive privilege of a child, poet, or a disturbed mind: it coexists with human existence; it precedes discursive language and reasoning. Symbols reveal certain aspects of reality — the deepest ones — that escape all other means of cognition. Images, symbols, and myths are not irresponsible creations of the psyche; they respond to a need and fulfill the function of bringing to light the most hidden ways of being…”

Mircea Eliade, Images and Symbols, 1952