Improviser-in-Residence 2026: Sarmen Almond
The International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation (IICSI) and Musagetes were thrilled to host the acclaimed Mexican vocal performer, artist, and educator Sarmen Almond in Guelph from October 6–16, 2026. In addition to developing her personal creative practice and giving masterclasses during her two-week tenure as the 2026 IICSI Improviser-in-Residence, Almond gave an artist talk and engaged in collaborative improvised co-creation with local artists across a series of sessions. These sessions culminated on Friday, October 16 in a free performance in the Arboretum, followed by a solo performance in ImprovLab.
Titled “Expecting the Unexpected: Three Sessions of Spontaneity, Structure, and Collaborative Art-Making with Sarmen Almond,” the collaborative sessions with local artists (students are welcome and encouraged to register) took place over the course of three evenings in ImprovLab: Wednesday, October 7; Wednesday, October 14; and Thursday, October 15 (all from 6:00 – 8:30 PM).
Participants investigated how spontaneous ideas can develop into structures, and how composed forms can remain open to the freedom and unpredictability of improvisation. The sessions were free and open not only to musicians, but also to artists of all backgrounds and disciplines— nyone interested in exploring improvisation as a creative process. Through a series of exercises, participants worked with breath, listening, awareness, silence, movement, and sound, developing greater sensitivity to themselves, to one another, and to the surrounding environment.
Almond also gave an artist talk at Musagetes (6 Dublin Street South, in Guelph) on Thursday, October 8 at 7 PM. Titled “Alquimia Vocal: The Transformative Power of Voice,” the talk drew from her background in the Roy Hart tradition, Sonic Arts, free improvisation, and somatic work. Almond will share stories, questions, and experiences that have shaped her journey as an artist and educator. She talked about her current work in voice performance, sound meditation, breath and somatic practices, as well as Alquimia Vocal, the pedagogical platform she founded to explore the voice as a space for learning and transformation. At the centre of the conversation was the voice—not simply as a means of producing sound, but as a way of being present, communicating, and relating to others. Almond reflected on what it can mean to “find your voice(s)”: trusting your own expression while learning to listen. Through voice, breath, movement, and attentive listening, she explored how creativity can open paths toward empathy, personal growth, and connection.
Sarmen Almond is a Mexican vocal performer, intermedia artist, and voice teacher specializing in the Roy Hart tradition. She holds an M.A. in Sonic Arts from Queen’s University Belfast. Her artistic practice explores extended vocal techniques, programming, and body movement, which she integrates into her compositions. Her work combines the voice with electronic media to investigate questions of identity and space through sound.
Almond creates multichannel compositions and sound environments for theatre and performs in free improvisation contexts. She is the co-founder of the downtempo duo Man In Motion and the director of Alquimia Vocal, a pedagogical platform and international voice gathering. She has performed and undertaken residencies across Europe, Mexico, and Asia. She is currently a DAAD fellow in the 2026 Music and Sound Artist Program.
