Otomo Yoshihide will perform at CityU
The School of Creative Media (SCM) at City University of Hong Kong will feature Mr Otomo Yoshihide, Japan’s most prominent experimental musician and composer, performing with four local musicians in a unique setting.
It will be the second event of “30 years of Sound Art in Hong Kong, China, and the World”, a series of performances organised by SCM throughout the year in celebration of the 30th anniversary of CityU.
Over the years, Mr Otomo’s music has spanned Free Jazz, Noise, Free Improvisation, Sound Art, popular music, film scores, and compositions for large amateur ensembles.
Carrying the lineage of the Japanese Free Jazz movement that developed in the 1960s, Mr Otomo has exploited the sonic possibilities of both the electric guitar and turntable.
He is one of the key figures who defined a now internationally recognised genre of Japanoise. His band Ground Zero, which was active throughout the 1990s, is legendary for its extreme stylistic collages and hyper energetic live performances.
In the late 1990s, Mr Otomo led Tokyo’s Onkyo (音響) movement, which crossed between minimalistic improvisations and Sound Art. Parallel to these, he led the Otomo New Jazz Quartet (ONJQ) and scored award-winning sound tracks for independent films and documentaries.
After the tragic earthquake and tsunami that hit northeast Japan in 2011, he initiated Project Fukushima, an outdoor festival and community art project in areas of Fukushima where he grew up. Every year, together with local residents and artists, they host events that aim to remind people that life still goes on, even after the environmental destruction caused by the nuclear reactor meltdown.
In 2013, Mr Otomo won national recognition for his soundtrack for the TV drama Ama-chan which aired every morning on the national public broadcasting network, NHK. Combining many musical styles from Jazz, Pop, Big Band, and hints of experimental music, the soundtrack became a household hit.
Interestingly, during the early 90s, Mr Otomo spent much of his time in Hong Kong before extensively touring Europe and the US. On each visit to Hong Kong, he collaborated with local experimental musicians.
For this exclusive performance at SCM, local musicians Sin:Ned (Mr Wong Chung-fai) (Electronics), Ms Fiona Lee (Electronics), Ms Chin King (Guzheng), and dj sniff (Mr Takuro Mizuta Lippit) (turntables) will join Mr Otomo in a unique performance inspired by his installation performances Yuheisha (幽閉者) and Ensembles. Performers are dispersed around the audience with no centre stage and without much visual contact with each other. Silence, time, and space become equally significant elements in the loosely composed music being made on the fly.
The following week, he will give a talk about his work in music and film. He will also talk about the responsibilities felt by Japanese artists after the disasters in 2011 and the actions they took.
The details of Mr Otomo’s concert and lecture:
Event 1: Concert by Otomo Yoshihide
Date: 25 April 2014 (Friday)
Time: 7:30pm
Venue: M1060 Multimedia Theater, Run Run Shaw Creative Media Centre, CityU, 18 Tat Hong Avenue, Kowloon Tong
Featuring Artists:
• Otomo Yoshihide (Guitar, Turntable)
• Sin:Ned (Electronics)
• Chin King (Guzheng)
• Fiona Lee (Electronics)
• dj sniff (Turntable, Electronics)
For more details: www.scm.cityu.edu.hk
Event 2: Lecture by Otomo Yoshihide
Date: 29 April 2014 (Tuesday)
Time: 7:00pm to 9:00 pm
Venue: M6094, Future Cinema Theater, Run Run Shaw Creative Media Centre, CityU, 18 Tat Hong Avenue, Kowloon Tong
For more details: www.scm.cityu.edu.hk
Media enquiries: Christina Wu, Communications and Public Relations Office (Tel: 3442 6819 or 9841 2774)