The sweet story of Sadako Sasaki and 1000 origami birds is translated to music and poem by Klangriket & Sjors Mans. First popularized in the book Sadoko and the Thousand Paper Cranes, the tale of a Holocaust survivor attempting to complete the project before dying of radiation has touched many a heart and become a metaphor for peace. Fabian Rosenberg (Klangriket)’s poem is read in two languages by three generations of women, connecting the line back to its genesis, while a string quartet suffuses the tale with an additional melancholic hue.
The words are the focus of the opening minutes, soft brass tones surrounding the speaker, wordless singing offering a serenade. After this ground level has been established, the music takes center stage: a melange of sounds swirling about, carrying those cranes to places unknown. “Where You Have Never Been” begins as an ambient soundscape before drifting into electronics, a humble beat leading to a lullaby of tones and eventually a cavalcade, mirroring the momentum of a crusade.
“When You Have Folded a Thousand” begins with the clacking of a train, intimating not only travel but a message being spread. In one version of the tale, Sadako’s classmates complete the project. Every year, people gather at the folder’s statue to honor departed loved ones. As indistinct voices rise and merge over drone and drum, one imagines a ceremonial chant, a prayer to the heavens. Quiet piano notes move to the foreground, each like a single bird being folded. How long does it take to play a thousand notes?
The poignancy grows as the album progresses, but a second electronic track, “A Million,” yields an uplifting tone that suggests higher ideals. Sadako isn’t just a child who died, but one who dreamed. Her spirit lives on wherever cranes are folded in the name of peace. As the narration returns, the contrast between this track and the first hinges on the music. One marvels at the difference made by context. The heroic brass reemerges in the title track, retracting to reveal field recordings that sound as if they have been recorded in an empty hall as the decorations are being taken down. A few minutes later the music surges, as if the birds have left the hall and begun to fly.
In Origami Birds, Klangriket & Sjors Mans bring new attention to an old tale, illustrating it with sound rather than image. One can already imagine the stage play. Their partnership has made incredible strides since The Amsterdam Sessions, one of piano and coffee records’ first releases. This is one of the label’s finest albums to date. (Richard Allen)
a closer listen 