For Félicia Atkinson, human voices inhabit an ecology alongside and within many other things that don’t speak, in the conventional sense: landscapes, images, books, memories, ideas. The French electro-acoustic composer and visual artist makes music that animates these possible voices in conversation with her own, collaging field recording and electronic and traditional instrumentation with snippets of essayistic language. Her voice, always shifting to create a sense of space, might whisper from the corner or assume another character’s tone. Her layered compositions tell stories that alternately stretch and fold time and place; stories in which she is the narrator but not the protagonist.

Atkinson lives on the coast of Normandy and has been active since the early 2000s. She has released many records and a novel on Shelter Press, the label she co-runs with Bartolomé Sanson. She has collaborated with musicians including Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, Chris Watson, Christina Vantzou and Stephen O’Malley, and with ensembles including Eklekto and Neon. She has performed at venues and festivals including INA GRM/Maison de la Radio and the Philharmonie, Issue Project Room, the Barbican Center and Le Guess Who, and returns to Cafe Oto following the release of her latest album, Image Language.