Istoar: the musical duo that teaches history through a unique live show
Share
Together, Victor Elkaim and Baptiste Geniey-Camara form the duo Istoar. By rapping, slamming or singing, they tell the ancient Greek legends. The two artists performed on the stage of the Rio Loco on the occasion of the 29th edition to present their unique live show: a conference. Toulouscope met them and was able to learn more about these two artists and their “legendary” songs, to say the least!
Learning history differently
Both artists have a degree in history and were initially planning to become teachers. They practiced the profession for 2 years, but quickly understood that they wanted to go further.
“We wanted the students to learn differently, Greek stories were told in music by the bards so it made sense to offer the same thing”.
Victor Elkaim and Baptiste Geniey-Camara are passionate about music. “By proposing this, it was an opportunity to make the connection between our two passions”. From telling the story to becoming Istoar, there is only one step!
A multitude of techniques and musical genres come together in Istoar's pieces: rap, slam, poetry, blues... Voices that are accompanied by instruments from Eastern Europe or North Africa such as the dobro, the mandolin, the duduk or the bendir. The two artists complement each other. “We created our music based on what we knew how to do, personally I was already rapping” explains Baptiste. Victor, himself, mastered acoustic instruments “I played a lot of rock, folk, blues and country. Finally the mix of our two worlds worked very well.”
Istoar released his first EP in 2020. Entitled Muthos, it contains 6 tracks that reinterpret ancient Greek legends. So we find music that highlights Ulysses, Persephone, Icarus… All with the artistic eye of the two musicians.
“Myths are so rich that we can choose the way we approach them” explains Victor.
Baptiste adds “we chose them because they resonated with us at first, but also to highlight some that are less well-known, like that of Atalanta which tells the story of a female heroine. For the myth of Ariadne we wanted to approach it by showing that without her intelligence, Theseus would never have gotten out of the Labyrinth”.
On stage, the duo offers spectators an artistic and musical interlude punctuated with humor. Young and old are invited to attend a concertference , a mix between a musical show and a history lessonlike no other. “We play two characters, a lecturer and a Greek from antiquity. At first it is very serious and academic, then there is a change of atmosphere with songs and music. From there, we create an alternation between history and music.” Enough to learn while enjoying a melodious performance!
< /div>
Workshops for schools
Istoar performs on different stages but also in < strong>establishments schools where they offer The Aèdes Workshop. Students are invited, just like the duo, to transform legends into music. “In group, after learning more about the myths, they produce and write songs. A sound engineer records them professionally. These are moments of laughter and emotion, because they bring their own vision to the stories, some rediscover themselves: shy people end up singing into the microphone! "
For his future project, Istoar plans to tackle around fifteen myths through a narrative framework that will immerse the listener in the heart of a musical story. “We plan to integrate a storyteller who will make transitions between each song in order to guide the listener of the album, like a book.” With a release scheduled for early 2025, the duo also wants to bring a more modern touch to it and will be accompanied by a drummer and a bassist to give it a more hip-hop side .
“We want to reach more people, students in classes but also make festival-goers dance! "
