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Japanese guitar improvisor Toshimaru Nakamura first came to the forefront of
the avantgarde with
A Paragon of Beauty (Art Union, 1995).
He soon realized that he was meant for a different kind of instrument and
proceeded to play the mixing board: he plugged the output into the input of
the mixing board and used the knob to shape the resulting waves of feedback.
Repeat, a duo with USA-born percussionist
Jason Kahn, concocted a sophisticated blend of
acid-rock, musique concrete, glitch music, free jazz and industrial music on
Repeat (december 1997 - Cut, 1998),
Temporary Contemporary (october 1998 - For 4 Ears, 1999), perhaps the best of the bunch,
Select Dialect (Cut, 2000), the most tribal and ethnic of the bunch,
Pool (july 2001 - Cut, 2002).
John Butcher's Cavern with Nightlife contains the 19-minute Practical Luxury (november 2002), a duet with Toshimaru Nakamura on "no-input mixing board"
Turning to the construction of electronic sound sculptures,
Nakamura realized two
collaborations with sampler/vocalist Sachiko M,
Un (Meme, 1999) and
Do (august 2000 - Erstwhile, 2001), that basically defined the aesthetic
of the "onkyo" movement: abstract and minimal textural studies that
toy with both the acoustic and psychological level.
Another important collaboration was
The Improvisation Meeting at Bar Aoyama (july 1999 - Reset, 1999) with Tetuzi Akiyama and
Taku Sugimoto
This led to a number of duo recordings with Tetuzi Akiyama:
Meeting at Off Site Vol 1 (Reset, 2002),
Meeting at Off Site Vol 2 (may 2002 - IMJ, 2003),
Meeting at Off Site Vol 3 (october 2002 - IMJ, 2003),
International Domestic (august 2002 - Corpus Hermeticum, 2003),
and to
Foldings (january 2002 - Confront, 2003) with Akiyama, Taku Sugimoto and Mark Wastell.
Nakamura's first solo album, No-input Mixing Board (Zero Gravity, 2000),
was the first part of a trilogy, continued on
No-input Mixing Board 2 (january 2001 - A Bruit Secret, 2001),
Vehicle (may 2002 - Cubic Music, 2002),
No-input Mixing Board 3 (march 2002 - Alcohol, 2003).
They all construct soundscapes without any external source, just by
mixing the internal feedback of the mixing board.
Other collaborations included
Siphono (november 2000 - SMI, 2001) with Bruno Meillier,
Weather Sky (june 2001 - Erstwhile, 2001) with Keith Rowe,
Aton (june 2000 - Rossbin, 2001) with Andrea Neumann,
Unplugboy and Toshimaru Nakamura (june 2001 - Alectroecoustic, 2002) with Daniel Weaver,
etc.
Side Guitar (june 2003) was a solo guitar album in the tradition of
the creative improvisers.
Between (july 2005 - Erstwhile Records) was a collaboration between Keith Rowe on guitar and electronics and Toshimaru Nakamura on no-input mixing board.
4G is the supergroup of Keith Rowe, Oren Ambarchi, Christian Fennesz and Toshimaru Nakamura, i.e. four former guitarists who mutated into digital composers. They debuted with the double-disc Cloud (Erstwhile, 2005) for guitars, electronics and laptop.
Tetuzi Akiyama and Toshimaru Nakamura released three improvised jams on
Semi-Impressionism (Spekk, 2009).
Egrets (recorded between 2004 and 2009)
features Tetuzi Akiyama on acoustic guitar and trumpetist Arve Henriksen.
Crepuscular Rays (november 2008) documents a duet between guitarist Håvard Volden and Toshimaru Nakamura (on no-input mixing board).
The double-disc
Good Morning Good Night (2011)
a collaboration between Sachiko M (on sine wave sampler), Toshimaru Nakamura (on no-input mixing board), and Otomo Yoshihide (on sampler).
Nakamura and Sachiko M also play together on Do (Erstwhile, 2011).
The triple-disc Rowe M Nakamura Yoshihide (recorded in may 2004) documents a live performance by Keith Rowe, Sachiko M (on sinewaves & contact microphone), Toshimaru Nakamura (on no-input mixing board), and Otomo Yoshihide (on electric guitar & turntables).
The solo Maruto (Erstwhile, 2011) contains a 46-minute improvisation on
no-input mixing board.
Dusted Machinery (march 2009) was another collaboration between John Butcher and Toshimaru Nakamura.
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(Translation by/ Tradotto da Andrea Marengo)
L’improvvisatore chitarristico giapponese Toshimaru Nakamura
entrò nelle file dell’avanguardia con A Paragon Of Beauty (Art Union, 1995).
Capì presto che era portato ad utilizzare un diverso tipo di
strumento, iniziò quindi a suonare il mixer collegando l’output nell’input del
mixer adoperando infine le sue levette per regolare le risultanti onde di
feedback. Repeat, un duo con il percussionista americano Jason Kahn, esordiva
con la sofisticata miscela di acid-rock, musica concreta, glitch music, free jazz
e musica industriale di Repeat (dicembre 1997 – Cut, 1998) a cui fecero seguito
Temporary Contemporary (ottobre 1998 – For Four Ears, 1999), forse il loro
album migliore, Select Dialect (Cut, 2000), il loro album più etnico e tribale
e Pool (luglio 2001 – Cut, 2002).
John Butcher’s Cavern With Nightlife contiene i diciannove
minuti di Practical Luxury (novembre 2002), un duetto con Toshimaru Nakamura
basato sul “mixer senza input”.
Convertitosi alla costruzione di paesaggi sonori
elettronici, Nakamura pubblicò due collaborazioni con il campionatore/cantante
Sachiko M, ovvero Un (Meme, 1999) e Do (agosto 2000 – Erstwhile, 2001), che
definirono, sotto molti punti di vista, l’estetica del movimento “onkio”: studi
astratti e minimali delle tessiture elettroniche che scimmiottano sia a livello
acustico che psicologico.
Un’altra importante collaborazione, quella con Tetuzi
Akiyama, fruttò The Improvisation Meeting At Bar Aoyama (luglio 1999 – Reset,
1999), Meeting At Off Site Vol. 1 (reset, 2002), Meeting At Off Site Vol. 2
(Maggio 2002 – IMJ, 2003), Meeting at Off Site Vol. 3 (ottobre 2002 – IMJ,
2003) e International Domestic (agosto 2002 – Corus Hermeticum, 2003), una
collaborazione con Akiyama, Taku Sugimoto e Mark Wastell.
Il primo album solista di Nakamura, No-Input Mixing Board
(Zero Gravity, 2000), fu la prima parte di una trilogia a cui fecero seguito
No-Input Mixing Board 2 (gennaio 2001 – A Bruit Secret, 2001), Vehicle (maggio
2002 – Cubic Music, 2002) e No-Input Mixing Board 3 (marzo 2002 – Alcohol,
2003). Questi album generavano paesaggi sonori senza usare alcuna fonte esterna
poiché missavano il feedback del mixer stesso.
Altre collaborazioni includevano Siphono (novembre 2000 –
SMI, 2001) con Bruno Meiller, Weather Sky (giugno 2001 – Erstwhile, 2001) con
Keith Rowe, Aton (giugno 2000 – Rossbin, 2001) con Andrea Neumann, Unplugboy e
Toshimaru Nakamura e Fodings (giugno 2001 – Aelectroecoustic, 2002) con Daniel
Weaver, ecc…
Side Guitar (giugno 2003), un album per sola chitarra,
seguiva la scia degli improvvisatori creativi.
Between (luglio 2005 – Erstwhile Records) era una
collaborazione tra Keith Rowe alla chitarra e all’elettronica e Toshimaru
Nakamura al "mixer senza input".
4G è il supergruppo di Keith Rowe, Oren Ambarchi, Christian
Fennesz e Toshimaru Nakamura, ovvero quattro chitarristi che mutano in
compositori digitali. Debuttarono con il doppio Cloud (Erstwhile, 2005), un
album per chitarre, elettronica e laptop.
Tetuzi Akiyama e Toshimaru Nakamura pubblicarono anche le
tre jam improvvisate di Semi-Impressionism (Spekk, 2009).
Egrets (registrato tra il 2004 e il 2009) vede Tetuzi
Akiyama cimentarsi alla chitarra acustica e il trombettista Arve Henricksen.
Crepuscolar Rays (novembre 2008) documenta un duetto tra il chitarrista Havard
Volden e Toshimaru Nakamura (al mixer senza input).
Il doppio Good Morning Good Night (2011) è una
collaborazione tra Sachiko M (al campionatore a onde sinusoidali), Toshimaru
Nakamura (al mixer senza input), e Otomo Yoshihide (al campionatore). Nakamura
e Sachiko M hanno anche collaborato su Do (Erstwhile, 2011).
Il triplo Rowe M Nakamura Yoshihide (registrato nel maggio
2004) documenta un’esibizione dal vivo tra Keith Rowe, Sachiko M (alle onde
sinusoidali e al microfono a contatto), Toshimaru Nakamura (al mixer senza
input), e Otomo Yoshihide (alla chitarra elettrica e ai giradischi).
The Solo Maruto (Erstwhile, 2011) contiene
un’improvvisazione di quarantasei minuti per solo mixer senza input.
Dusted Machinery (marzo 2009) era un’altra collaborazione
tra John Butcher e Toshimaru Nakamura.
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