Following the success of its inaugural virtual edition of JAPAN CUTS: Festival of New Japanese Film, Japan Society is pleased to present the world premiere of Reiko Yamada: Sound Installation on Silent Movies, a unique commissioned performance that kicks off a robust fall season of entirely online programming in the fields of art, theater, music, and film. Premieres October 21 at 8 PM (EDT)
For this innovative interdisciplinary collaboration, Barcelona-based composer and sound artist Reiko Yamada will live-score a variety of short-length Japanese silent films from 1900-1932 with vintage accordions filtered through the latest technologies in electronic processing. Immediately following the concert, ticket holders are invited to participate in a live, interactive talkback forum with the artist, moderated by Japan Society's Artistic Director Yoko Shioya.
“I have an affinity for the accordion, says Yamada, “and though it has no significant role in the history of Japanese silent film, I find the instrument, even (and perhaps especially) in a dilapidated state, can convey a depth of experience and an almost tactile sense of sound. By filtering my performance live through a computer, I can better isolate the unique personality of each instrument.”
Scanned from original materials provided by the Kobe Planet Film Archive in Japan for digital presentation, Yamada's selection of early Japanese cinema works include a Meiji era recording of sumo wrestling matches, a semi-abstract animation, and a short documentary on the history of railroads in Japan.
“The three antique films that I have selected for this concert were the new technologies of their day, light entertainments in the truest sense,” says Yamada. “Re-contextualizing these movies as ‘streaming performances' supported by music provides me a canvas to present our relationship to entertainment over time.Much like each frame of these films has been renovated by both analog and digital processing—painstakingly digitized, recaptured like butterflies on pins for a modern audience that may find them rendered alien out of context—I will be transforming these nearly non-functional accordions into time machines, linking the performance's many parts across oceans and centuries.”
Films listed below in alphabetical order by title. Descriptions adapted from the National Film Archive of Japan.
The Development of a Train (Kisya no hattatsu), 1932, Yasuji Murata, 14 min.
An educational movie that uses animation and documentary footage to help children understand the history of trains and how they work. Includes images of a variety of locomotives including steam, diesel, and electric.
Spring Song (Haru no uta), 1931, Noburo Ofuji, 3 min.
A playful short animation by Noburo Ofuji that was originally made as a talkie with “The Spring Song” on the soundtrack, a piece of music known as the theme song for the Spring Dance Performance presented by Shochiku Kageki Division at the Osaka Shochikuza theater.
Sumo Activity (Ozumo no katsudo shashin), 1900, Tsuneji Tsuchiya, 13 min.
Various documentary footage of Meiji era sumo wrestlers performing for the camera in Ryogoku Ekoin. Popular wrestlers of the time are featured, including Konishiki Yasokichi, Ozeki Manemon, and Ozutsu Manemon.
Tickets: $15 or $12 for Japan Society members. All proceeds help support future programming at Japan Society. After the live premiere on October 21, a recording of the concert and talk-back will be made available to ticket buyers through November 4. For more information about this event and about Japan Society's online offerings, call (212) 832-1155 or visit japansociety.org
