A Luminous Brocade
Angelique Po, pipe organ
Joël Tibbits, composer
“A Luminous Brocade” is a new work for pipe organ composed by Vancouver-based multimedia artist Joël Tibbits, as part of his ‘The Books of Magra’ sonic ecosystem. The ‘Books of Magra’ is a large-scale multimedia project of acoustic music, art, and literature, which draws from a number of influences ranging from classical music to rock, to minimalism, science and philosophy, architectural design and mysticism.
Art by Joël Tibbits as part of A Luminous Brocade
This concert combines five miniatures written for pipe organ and first performed and recorded in Vancouver by organist Angelique Po in 2024, along with three larger movements premiered in the UK in 2025 and never before performed in Canada.
The Books of Magra
The Books of Magra is an ecosystem of literature, sound and images devoted to the exploration of consciousness through an ongoing process of experiential and creative enquiry. The series is built upon mythologies created from the composer’s evolving views on consciousness and Being. TBOM utilizes a rich integration of diverse modalities that include mysticism, science, martial arts, sound, bioenergetics, and architecture. The literary epicentre is a multi-volume epic set in the fictional solar system of Ras-Tor. Each book of the series is based on unique concepts that morph and evolve symbiotically to reveal multi-dimensional and multi-functional relationships of character and place. It is intended to be experientially broadening, bringing attention to the nature of Being and the expansive and integrated nature of All. In tandem with this epic are character chronicles, books of poetry, as well as conceptual and technical compendiums. Sound is a major component to the content of TBOM. The use of sound in the writings is dynamic and expansive as it weaves throughout the series metaphorically and literally. It is complimented by an extensive sonic tapestry referred to as Prismatic Sonic Architecture. It is based on Listening (the quality and capacity for profound and dynamic reception and expression) and is forged of a rich palette of instrumentation, compositional approaches and architectural designs. It is comprised of recorded and live music, as well as architectural imaginings based in the merger of acoustics and consciousness. Images used in TBOM are predominantly geometric and architectural. All images are multi-dimensional and multi-functional in their intentions to weave the effable with the ineffable. To learn more, visit www.thebooksofmagra.com.
Listen to a preview of Joël Tibbits work below.
