This is getting towards the end of my Japan Field Trip Posts – will post a few more sounds next week, but no trip to Japan would be complete without enjoying some shopping!
The first thing I bought in Japan was actually for use in the soundtrack of the film – I had on my list to record some Fūrin, small wind chime bells that are often found “under the corners of roofs of temples, palaces and homes” and on my first day in Kyoto, as we walked up the hill to Sanzen-in temple, my ear was caught by these:
Furin from tim prebble on Vimeo.
On the way back from the temple I went in and was so appreciative of the shopkeepers patience as I wanted three different sizes with sympathetic tones, and I auditioned maybe half a dozen to find the right combination….
The following day we got a rental car and from Kyoto drove to the town of Uji looking for a Haikyo location up in the hills that Florian had given me. But he also tipped me off that Uji is famous for very high quality organic green tea and as we were running late we literally raced to get to the tea store before it closed: “Tsuen tea has been served since 1160 and is still sold in what is the oldest tea shop in Japan, and possibly the world — the Tsuen tea shop”
The next day I had a lunchtime meeting in Osaka, so I went into the city a little early and visited Tower Records and within ten minutes I realised I had forgotten what its like to visit a record store that actually has contemporary non-mainstream releases i.e. somewhere you can actually discover new music! My inbox is regularly full of news of music releases but it just isn’t the same as walking into a record store, wandering over to the genre section that most interests you, putting on headphones & discovering new music! So I picked up three beautiful CDs:
Seiji Takahashi – N41
Seiji Takahashi | N41° Album Trailer by Seiji Takahashi
Ametsub – All Is Silence
ametsub – all is silence (album preview) by experimedia
Akira Kosemura – Manon (original score for a dance/theatre performance)
MANON O.S.T – trailer (ACT 2) by Akira Kosemura
On the way back to the train I stopped by a book store and found a gorgeous book on Japanese Architecture, but unlike a number of other such books that I own, this book (An Awesome Atlas of House Building Solutions by Satoshi Kurosaki) is very practical and is really intended as a resource guide for anyone planning to build a house… And the day I can afford to build a house/studio you can be sure it will be a Japanese architect who designs it!
Next bit of retail therapy/inspiration came via a visit to the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography in Ebisu, to see a new exhibition by one of my favourite photographers Rinko Kawauchi
I learned long ago that along with the inspiring art, most big galleries and museums also have a shop which often have books & DVDs that are impossible to find anywhere else! So after enjoying the exhibition we ducked into the Museum shop & parted with some more yen for a copy of the book associated with Kawauchi exhibition:
Plus I also found a copy of a DVD by my other favourite Japanese photographer, Sugimoto Hiroshi whos work I first experienced on Naoshima….
Last stop? Yodobashi camera in Akihabara! I hadn’t actually seen Korg Monotrons in person before – they are so fun and have since become my little ‘zone out’ tool when waiting for my ProTools to do something (restart, export etc)
Lastly, Satoko bought me & my nieces/nephews this fun toy
Those are little galvanic contact points on each of its appendages!
So what are all these? Modern atefacts? Tourist indulgences?
Nope.
They are inspiration, to sustain me until my next trip!
Awesome little Korgs 8))