Lyon’s silk trade produced shimmering beauty and ignited fierce revolt.

The silk industry shaped the city's geography and architecture. Workshops were built with high ceilings to house massive Jacquard looms, while hidden passageways (traboules) crisscrossed the city to expedite deliveries and protect bolts of silk from the elements.

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Later, these same traboules sheltered revolutionaries from capture. In the early 19th century, following the French revolution, silk weavers (les Canuts) staged major uprisings to demand fair wages and better working conditions, using the traboules to evade soldiers and organize in secret. Over a century later during World War II, members of the French Resistance once again turned to these passageways to outmaneuver the Gestapo, convey messages, and move undetected. This secret network prevented the invading forces from completely taking control of Lyon.

Both the silk and the city were shaped by hands both delicate and defiant — and my music seeks to weave those stories together. Inspired by these intertwined legacies, my work reflects the the flowing motion of silk, the restless nature of the Lyonnais, and the unpredictable surges of revolt.