Japanese Noise Project

Otomo Yoshihide's ongoing work Ensembles, a large-scale musical exhibition held last year at the YCAM InterLab in Eastern Japan, comes to Tokyo for a short string of performances. The credo of discovering and utilizing new, or 'found,' sounds in composition remains at the core as Yoshihide continues working to "create a variety of musical devices in all sorts of places."

I'll continue on by extracting a lengthy quote from the Ensembles Manifesto:

The life-changing fascination with music that came over me in my teens was rooted in the discovery that new and unfamiliar sounds could cause a reaction among a large number of people gathered in one place. All of the music I loved--free jazz, free improvisation, noise, alternative--had this kind of effect. The fascination was not only with the music itself, but also with the feeling of total unity that came from the aura and power of the space and the gravitational pull existing among the people who were there. I wanted to get away from the kind of music that leaves no distance between sound source and eardrums; I wanted to bring back space and noise. I wondered what would happen if I tried to make music not just for individual listening, but music that emerged as it passed through the ears, hands and bodies of many people. This is how ENSEMBLES got started.

Its entitled ENSEMBLES, in the plural form, for the reason that Yoshihide envisioned an aggregate of works that were intertwined both in implication and development- something multilayered. With intentions less aligned as a single event but rather more in the direction of being plural and integral; which for Yoshihide means sometimes happening simultaneously or sometimes unfolding at a more comfortable pace yet leaving room for inconsistency and contradiction.

Referring back to the Ensembles Manifesto, Yoshihide continues:

For now, the idea is that between July and October, in a variety of venues, we'll present a wide range of new and previously existing works, performances, etc.--from very small to medium-sized events and from nearly individual creations to works involving many people-- that unfold semi-improvisationally at times, guerrilla-style at others. The plan itself is not fixed; my intention is to develop something that will adapt flexibly to each situation, something that could not be realized in an established art museum or concert hall. What's more, based on the results this time, I'm hoping to continue ENSEMBLES next year, the year after that, and into the future. It will be a challenge, but I'm sure it will be interesting.

For now, here are details of the coming Tokyo performance:

Otomo Yoshihide ＋ Yasutomo Aoyama ＋ Takayuki Ito/YCAM InterLab ＋ Masayoshi Takada ＋α

Date:　7.4(Sat)-8.9(Sun)　13:00-20:00
Place:　Vacant　(3-20-13 Jingumae Shibuya-ku, Tokyo/ 03-6459-2962)
Admission:　￥500 / ￥1,000 (with DVD!)
Organized by:　N0 IDEA, ENSEMBLES Committee
Supported by:　Fostex Company, Shiseido Co., Ltd.
Cooperated by:　Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media[YCAM]
Technical Supported by:　YCAM InterLab

There are also a few events scheduled around so here is a rundown of more happenings:

Sunday July 5th brings the opening event with live sets by:
DJ トランキライザ (Tranquilizer), Aoyama Yasutomo+Otomo Yoshihide, Mori Yuko, Sachiko M and two others whose names I couldn't make out.

Sunday August 2nd features a talk event held with Otomo Yoshihide and Guest(s).

Sunday August 9th there is a closing event with a performance by Otomo Yoshihide and α which opens at 18:30 and starts at 19:00.

Last night, popped by the opening of a new space, Vacant, where film critic Masaya Nakahara aka Hair Stylistics (formerly Violent Onsen Geisha) was and will be screening selected films. Titled "Masaya Nakahara's Room," I believe its an on going series of screenings based on our brief conversation last night. I didn't get a chance to ask him what will be showing but we bookmarked an interview for the future and he was more than kind of enough to pass me a disc of some unreleased stuff from his previously finished subscription series of releases- can't wait to pop it in the player.

A few details of whats going this Golden week at Vacant:

May 4th -- Live
Yoshihide Otomo x Seiichi Yamamoto
Open 18:30/ Start 19:00 (schedule may change)
Fee: ¥2500 (advance), ¥3000 (same-day) + 1 drink

May 5th -- Live & DJ
Oorutaichi with YTAMO (from Urichipangoon), Takuma Watanabe x Muneomi Senju x Special Guest, Eiko Ishibashi with Muneomi Senju, Mao Yamasaki (Akichi Records)
Open 15:30/ Starrt 16:00
Fee: ¥2500 (advance), ¥3000 (same-day) + 1 drink

May 6th -- Live & Performance
Hasro & Bokka, Jun Takahashi x Kan Takagi x Fuyuki Yamakawa x Atsuhiro Ito
Open 17:30/ Start 18:00
Fee: ¥3500 (advance), ¥4000 (same-day) + 1 drink

Full info at Tokyo Art Beat:
Vacant Opening Event "Wrong Dance, Right Steps"
Venue: Vacant
Schedule: From 2009-05-01 To 2009-05-06