Jean-Marc Boucharc has dedicated himself to exploring the manifold aspects of new music as a performer, composer, improviser and an educator. A founding member of the Quasar saxophone quartet, he oversees artistic direction of the In Vivo improvisation series and has penned numerous compositions, including Le Cri des oiseaux fous, Jeux, L’éveil de la tortue, and notably, Les Cinq Orients, for which he was awarded the OPUS prize for Concert of the Year in 2010.

As well as acting as saxophone instructor at the University of Montreal, he also oversees their improvisation studio, which is open to composers and instruments from all areas of concentration.

Latent / Patent II (2014)
Having been commissioned to create a work that would echo the legacy of Fluxus, my research fairly quickly honed in on John Cage. I consider myself to be in a modest sense a student of Chinese thought and the correspondances between Fluxus, John Cage and the I Ching seemed a natural point of creative departure. This, in turn, led me to focus more particularly on the 14th Hexagram of the I Ching, at times translated as “Great Possessing” or “Possession in Great Measure”, and commented upon in the I Ching in this manner: “Possession in Great Measure is to make real. To pass from the latent to the patent.”

The first version of this piece, commissioned by the Western Front, was presented in Vancouver in 2013 and featured the participation of the musical collective Dissonant Disco. This version took the form of a “happening” which dovetailed well with certain aspects of Fluxus thought and practice.
The composition of the second version began by casting four hexagrams for each member of the quartet. The composition was to be comprised of four sections, each of which would be related to one of the hexagrams thrown. Additionally, from each hexagram it would be possible to derive the notes that would serve as the basic elements for a section of the piece or for one of the four musicians. I chose this process to include John Cage's cherished use of “chance”. I'll happily admit that a certain point I realized I could forget the idea of "chance" and simply follow my instincts. But just as it is not wise to consult ancient Chinese sages and then ignore their recommendations, I decided to remain faithful to my original intent. - Jean-Marc Bouchard.