Italian microsound maestro Fabio Perletta presents an exquisite and elegant sequel to his 2017 mix for Secret Thirteen. Both mixes solely feature composers and musicians from Japan. Fabio freely intermixes a variety of genres and time periods, producing a stunningly complex and listenable tableau. These two mixes complement each other not unlike Perletta’s last two full length studio albums, Genkai (2016, with Haruo Okada) and Ichinen (2017), both released by LINE imprint. Despite being a prominent flag-bearer of contemporary Italian electronic music, Perletta’s aesthetic is very at home amongst LINE’s roster, drawing on their tradition of electronic minimalism and freely incorporating elements of his beloved and influential Japanese composers. His attention to space, movement, silence, and detail elevates his work. Perletta creates some works out of imposed composition limits, while at other times is more organic and mysterious, but always pensive and intuitive.
In addition to his recorded work, Perletta also produces site-specific sound installations, and is co-director of Mote, a Berlin-based visual and sound design studio. He is also the founder of 901 Editions (formerly Farmacia901), which has released an incredible body of work over its decade in existence, including records from MB + Ics, Tiziano Milani, France Jobin, Franz Rosati, Robert Crouch, Yann Novak, Richard Chartier.
It’s a great pleasure to share with you Fabio Perletta’s Japanese Composers II. And join us in two weeks for our 100th edition and some big announcements. (Joseph Sannicandro)
Download/stream at SoundCloud
MINI-INTERVIEW
Please introduce yourself.
I am a sound/installation artist living and working in Italy. In my work I investigate notions such as presence, silence, and impermanence, encouraging different levels of experience, engagement, and contemplation. My work encompasses recorded compositions, performances, site-specific interventions, and installations.
Tell us about the mix. How was it made (DAW)? Can you explain the theme or organizing principle?
I made it using Ableton Live. This mix is the follow up to the Secret Thirteen’s one released last year which features only Japanese musicians. I didn’t follow particular rules, I’ve just tried to gather different genres together, in the attempt to let apparently distant sounds coexist. I also like the idea to mix old and new composers.
We use to think about music scenes and this of course demonstrates humans’ social instinct and the need to belong to a group in which they can recognise themselves. Living in the countryside, I’ve never been part of any music scenes and that’s probably good as I don’t like to be tied to anything. I think that music, and whatever concerning art travel on different levels, without boundaries.
This mix is also a way to say thanks to all the wonderful people and friends I met during my last trip/tour in Japan last November… Takamitsu Ohta, Asuna, Minoru Sato, Eisuke Yanagisawa, Sawako, Tetuzi Akiyama, suzueri, Yoshiyuki Suzuki at Ftarri, Hideki Umezawa, Hakobune. It was truly awesome.
After some years in Berlin you have relocated to your hometown in Abruzzo, is that correct? You seem to travel a good deal and collaborate with musicians in other cities, and have a strong interest in Japanese culture and aesthetics, but you also are still strongly tied to your home region and have mounted installations and residencies there in the south of Italy. Can you tell us something about your local “scene”? Are there artists, labels, or institutions that we might not know about that you’d like to share with us?
I lived in Berlin in two different periods, 3 months between 2013-2014 and one year in 2016. It was cool, but that city is not for me. I still have many links to it though, as the multidisciplinary studio Mote I work for is based there. I like to travel a lot, and despite the undeniable fascination I have for big cities, I’ve realised I need silence around me and I like to live slowly, far from the frenetic pace of big cities. This is not necessarily better, I simply like to have my mood and personality closer to nature’s rhythms as much as possible. Life in the countryside is totally different: you don’t have everything here, and you are forced to imagine, think, explore more and push yourself forward every day. This is at least what happens to me.
Yes, I have a strong interest in Japanese culture. The profound respect Japanese have for nature (and everything), the invaluable skill for making details and small things so precious, the zen aesthetics with its wonderful teachings made me a better and happier person. I owe them really a lot.
As for your question about local scene, we cannot properly define it a scene. We are a group of people making similar things and of course we all know each other: Marco Marzuoli, Rossano Polidoro (now Triac) and Emiliano Romanelli, formerly known as TU M’, Vincenzo Core, Lorenzo Balloni who now lives in Tokyo, Giustino Di Gregorio known for his bizarre album Sprut on John Zorn’s Tzadik in 1999. Marco, Rossano, Carla Capodimonti and I also run the curatorial project Lux, exhibiting the works of William Basinski & James Eleaine, Thomas Köner, France Jobin, Yann Novak, Richard Chartier, Christina Vantzou and now Arnold Dreyblatt (vernissage September 1st). All the works were mainly exhibited at the stunning setting of Museolaboratorio — an ancient building, formerly a tobacco manufacturer — and other small venues and churches in Città Sant’Angelo, but we also co-curated exhibitions at Berlin Atonal 2017, Dancity Festival 2016 and Eremi Arte – Percorsi tra natura e spiritualità (Hermitages Art – Routes through Art, Nature and Spirituality), an impressive contemporary art event taking place in more than ten hermitages in Abruzzo at the same time, curated by Museolaboratorio’s artist and director Enzo De Leonibus and others.
So many lovely sounds coming from your little corner of Italy, as France Jobin recently reminded us, with her mix of field-recording based sounds for Framework.
What do you have coming up in the near future you’d like to tell us about? new albums, installations, performances etc?
I recently performed at Todays festival in Turin on August 24, for the new edition of Ambienti Digitali curated by Riccardo Giovinetto which features the installation Touch Movement, and the performances of Philip Jeck, Simon Scott, and friend Giuseppe Ielasi.
I also have various upcoming works to be released: a collaboration with friend Luigi Turra inspired by the work of Tadao Ando, a collaboration with Ken Ikeda recorded at Iklectik in London last May, a reissue of work dedicated to Steve Roden which I’ve released in just 35 edition book for my Japanese tour.
Also, I am launching a crowdfunding campaign in early September to relaunch my label 901 Editions, which is now 10 years old! Artists already confirmed are Nicolas Bernier with the very last edition of the ‘frequencies’ series, Yann Novak with Stillness, a collaborative work between Ken Ikeda, Rie Nakajima and Makoto Oshiro, and another very exciting surprise… Stay tuned!
Grazie mille, amico!
TRACKLIST
1. Yoshio Machida, Synti No. 25, Music From The Synthi (Baskaru, 2014)
2. Takefumi Naoshima, Hirozumi Takeda, Utah Kawasaki, Mitsuteru Takeuchi, Toshihiro Koike, Takahiro Kawaguchi & Yasuo Totsuka, Untitled # 2, Septet (Meenna, 2007)
3. Takahiro Kawaguchi, 2, n (Hibari Music, 2009)
4. Eisuke Yanagisawa, Frogs in a forest, Hodokeru Mimi: Live at Ryosokuin Temple in Kyoto (901 Editions, TBR 2018)
5. Kiyoshi Mizutani & Kiyoharu Kuwayama, Interlude 8, Interlude (either/OAR, 2011)
6. Takahiro Kawaguchi, watching, s/t (Senufo Editions, 2014)
7. Adachi Tomomi Royal Chorus, Pusu, Yo (Tzadik, 2003)
8. Akio Suzuki, Stones, Mu Ro Bi Ko (Senufo Editions + O’ Editions + Gan, 2014)
9. Sachiko M + Ryuichi Sakamoto, Snow, Silence, Partially Sunny (Commmons, 2012)
10. Adachi Tomomi Royal Chorus, Gu, Yo (Tzadik, 2003)
11. Toru Takemitsu, Bryce (For Flute, Two Harps, Marimba And Percussion), Chamber Music (Naxos , 2003)
12. Kozo Inada, a[0], a[] (Staalplaat, 2000)
13. Taku Sugimoto + Moe Kamura, Choucho, Saritote II (Saritote Disk, 2010)
14. Sachiko M + Toshimaru Nakamura, Unlisted, Un (Meme, 1998)
15. Seijiro Murayama + Kazushige Kinoshita, 3 1 4 3 1, 59:01.68 (Ftarri, 2012)
16. Minoru Sato & Ami Yoshida, 2007, Composition For Voice Performer (Ao To Ao, 2008)
17. Minoru Sato & Ami Yoshida, 1997, Composition For Voice Performer (Ao To Ao, 2008)
18. Akira Yamamichi, Topography I To V, Chiky(u)u (Ash International, 1997)
19. Otomo Yoshihide, Cathode #1, Cathode (Tzadik, 1999)
20. Tamaru, Bifu Sekai (Zephyr World), Improvised Music From Japan CD 3 (IMFJ, 2001)
21. Tadashi Tajima, Tsuru No Sugomori (Nesting Of Cranes), Master of Shakuhachi (Network Medien, 1999)
22. Masafumi Ezaki, Untitled # 6, Trumpet Solo Vol.2 (Hibari Music, 2001)
23. Sachiko M / Tetuzi Akiyama / Taku Sugimoto / Toshimaru Nakamura, 07/07/99, The Improvisation Meeting At Bar Aoyama (Reset, 1999)
24. Atsuhiro Ito, Radio O.P.T., Improvised Music From Japan CD 4 (IMFJ, 2001)
25. Yumiko Tanaka, Music For A Four And A Half Tatami Mat Room – Fragment 1, Improvised Music From Japan CD 7 (IMFJ, 2001)
26. Hideki Umezawa, Howling Of Tubes 06, Suidô-Kan (mOAR, 2012)
27. Masahiko Okura, Ittcc, Improvised Music From Japan CD 9 (IMFJ, 2001)
28. Toshimaru Nakamura, Heater/Refrigerator, Egrets (Samadhisound, 2010)
29. NHK, Ch. 8, Program (LINE, 2015)
30. Kiyoshi Mizutani, Hail At Mt. Tanzawa, Scenery Of The Border: Environment & Folklore Of The Tanzawa Mountains (and/OAR, 2005)
31. Hakobune, Shadow On The Lawn, Shadow On The Lawn (Organic Industries, 2011)
32. Miki Yui, Mucaci, Lupe Luep Peul Epul (LINE, 2001)
33. Ken Ikeda, Kiro (Return), Kosame (Spekk, 2010)
34. Hisato Higuchi, Watashi Wa Asa O Matteita, Dialogue (Family Vineyard, 2006)
35. Asuna, Distant Month Old, This (Vectors/Headz, 2008)
36. Toshimaru Nakamura + Ken Ikeda + Tomoyoshi Date, balcony iii – δ, Green Heights (Baskaru, 2013)
37. Taku Sugimoto, Milano 2, Italia (A Bruit Secret, 2001)
38. suzueri, the poincare’s small lands, Childisc Vol. 7 – Seven-Minute Stories (Childisc, 2003)
39. Takamitsu Ohta, Son/mage 005, Takamitsu Ohta with Senufo Editions Exhibition at space_inframince Osaka (Unreleased, 2017)
40. Sawako, Incense of Voice, Hum (12k, 2005)
41. Keiji Haino, Untitled 4, The 21st Century Hard-Y-Guide-Y Man (P.S.F. Records, 2008)
42. Fushitsusha, Hermitage, A Death Never To Be Complete (J-Factory, 1997)
43. Keiji Haino, Third Blackness, A Challenge To Fate (Les Disques Du Soleil Et De L’Acier, 1994)
a closer listen 