Showtime for this performance will be 8PM. Admission is $10 and there will be refreshments by donation.
Pierre Bastien (born Paris, 1953) post-graduated in eighteenth-century French literature at University Paris-Sorbonne. In 1977 he built his first musical machinery. For the next ten years he has been composing for dance companies and playing with Pascal Comelade. In the meantime he was constantly developing his mechanical orchestra. Since 1987 he concentrates on it through solo performances, sound installations, recordings and collaborations with such artists as Pierrick Sorin, Karel Doing, Jean Weinfeld, Robert Wyatt, or Issey Miyake.
“A composer’s dream: a fail-safe orchestra at one’s fingertips obeying ever so gently to his every command: a timeless sounding orchestra, both futuristic and slightly dada, conjuring ancient traditions in its surprisingly sensuous music. This is, in a nutshell what Pierre Bastien’s “Mecanium” is all about, a daydream of sorts that he has successfully pursued since 1976. The musicians of his orchestra are machines. And the idea behind it is simple, efficient, and poetic: to have traditional instruments (Chinese lute, Morrocan bendir, Javanese saron, koto, violin, sanza, etc.) played by a mechanical instrument made of meccano pieces and recycled turntable motors. These hybrid and self-playing sound sculptures perform a series of short pieces, charming, and hypnotic.” – Michel F. Côté
Pierre Bastien is also performing in Moncton at the RE:FLUX Festival and in Halifax as part of the Obey Festival. His website is: www.pierrebastien.com.
Showtime for this performance will be 8PM. Admission is $10 and there will be refreshments by donation. For information on Surgery Series, Surgery Radio and all of its elements please contact Eric Hill per_mutations@yahoo.com