Northeast Asian Weekly Interview: No silent treatment – Classic film receives soundtrack from local ensemble2 min read

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Seattle’s ever-unpredictable Aono Jikken Ensemble brings a special one-night only presentation to the SIFF Cinema Uptown on July 11th:  A screening of Yasujiro Ozu’s classic silent film “A Story Of Floating Weeds,” with live music, sound effects, and bilingual narration from a Japanese-style benshi narrator.  The Ensemble’s founder, Bill Blauvelt, took some questions over email.

NWAW:  When and how did the Aono Jikken Ensemble get started, and what were its first projects?

Blauvelt:  Aono Jikken Ensemble began in 1997 and grew out of a group of musicians and performers who had been collaborating in different configurations for a few years. Much of it was improvisational in nature where music, sound, art, and movement were openly explored. The idea for a group took shape with a performance I put together for a festival at the Northwest Asian American Theatre where we combined traditional Asian, western and world instruments, with toys, found objects, and electronics, along with movement and visual art. At that time I was also programming the Seattle Asian American Film Festival and wanted to bring a Japanese avant-garde silent film called “A Page of Madness” and have it accompanied by live music. The festival didn’t have the budget to hire anyone so I asked the musicians I had been working with to help me create an original live score. We performed it in a midnight screening at the old Speakeasy cafe in Belltown to an enthusiastic response and the rest is history.

NWAW:  What were the biggest influences of the Ensemble, and how have its influences changed over time?

Blauvelt:  The group’s influences are very far ranging and include pretty much all forms of music from around the world. Each member has their own set of influences which would be too many to list but as an example my own influences include modern classical and film composer Toru Takemitsu, jazz musician John Coltrane, composer/musician Teiji Ito, pop producer Brian Wilson, and taiko artist Eitetsu Hayashi. The group’s projects are usually, but not exclusively, rooted in Japanese music, art and culture.

That’s the root of things and the springboard we take off from. Music and sound wise though we are wide open and very ominvorous, always looking for new or different things to incorporate. With our score for “A Story of Floating Weeds” you’ll hear a range of Japanese music, including chindon (street music), minyo (folk), kabuki, and Taisho-era pop tunes alongside, or sometimes intermingled with, Jewish klezmer, African folk, Americana, and experimental soundscapes.