Mira Calix is the recording name of Chantal Francesca Passamonte, a South African-born, British-based audio and visual artist and musician from Durban, England. She is associated with Warp Records and works across electronic music, experimental sound, classical instrumentation, performance, film, and multi-channel installation art. She is also known for treating sound as a sculptural material.

Career

Before focusing on her own work, she works as press officer for Warp Records. She then leaves that role to concentrate on producing music and related art projects. Her early releases are largely electronic, but from the 2000s onwards she broadens her practice to include writing for classical instrumentation and multidisciplinary performance.

Recordings on Warp

Her first release on Warp is Ilanga, a 10-inch record co-produced with Autechre. This is followed by the Pin Skeeling single in 1998, which includes a remix by Boards of Canada. Her debut album, One on One, is released by Warp in 2000, followed later that year by a CD release of her John Peel radio sessions. In 2001 she releases the Prickle EP, which includes a remix by Andrea Parker.

In 2003 she releases Nunu, a limited-edition CD and T-shirt designed by Catherine Haines. The CD includes a 13-minute excerpt from a 30-minute piece made for the Micro Music-la Batie Festival de Geneve in 2002, later performed at the Royal Festival Hall, and the piece is based around insect sounds. Her second full album, Skimskitta, also comes out on Warp in 2003 and is described as more intricate and darker in melody than her debut. In 2004 she releases 3 Commissions, a collection of installation and art soundtracks that includes the full version of Nunu. Push Door to Exit, a live recording, is released on Warp in 2006. Her third full album, Eyes Set Against The Sun, appears in 2007. Her album absent origin is released in 2021.

Other work and collaborations

Passamonte is a member of Alexander’s Annexe, an ensemble that also includes David Sheppard and Sarah Nicolls. She is married to Sean Booth of Autechre.