Radio Asia Academy
About the event
Music and audiovisual workshops connected to Radio Asia concerts. A massive dose of theory and practice served in an accessible, engaging form. There will take place at Laboratorium, Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art in Warsaw.
Lectures
A short guide to Japanese music extremes
December 17, 4 PM
An audiovisual review of borderline music phenomena from Japan; from extreme metal played by teenage girls through avant-garde craziness, mutated rock, deconstructionist covers of Anglo-Saxon classics, to bastard jazz and sawing through viola done by the master of music performance (who was the guest of Radio Asia). We will also check if the extremes presented have anything to say about the Japanese culture and society, or whether they are completely separate events, happening not only in Japan.
Lecturers:
- Mariusz Herma – writes for “Polityka” weekly, founder of Beehype, a site associating about 100 music journalists from all over the world. Writes and talks about Japanese culture.
- Arturo Szarecki – scholar of modern culture working for the University of Warsaw; for several years, he has been writing about music in various digital media. An enthusiast of Japanese culture.
Free entrance.
Indonesian mixtape
December 17, 5:30 PM
Over 17,000 islands, a quarter million inhabitants, about 300 ethnic groups and hundreds of different languages – this is the numerical summary of Indonesia. But how does this ethnic and cultural diversity translate into music? We’ll listen to various takes on gamelan, dangdut, and Indonesian rock and roll of the 1960s, a band which took Chopin to Bali, and a few surprising fusions (like the wayang kulit shadow theater transposed into hip hop). There will be plenty of music from the western island of Sumatra, from Papua, surrounded by the Coral Sea, and from everything in-between. Together it will form a diverse, surprising Indonesian mixtape.
Lecturer:
- Krzysztof Dziuba – Editor of “Dwójka” Polish Radio channel, host of “Nokturn” and “Wieczór płytowy.” Apart from classical music, he also presents new phenomena from Asia and unique discoveries straight from Asian tapes and vinyls. Any journey from which he does not bring home a stack of records is a waste of time. He studied musicology (in Warsaw) and ethnomusicology (in Indonesia). A member of the Warsaw Gamelan Group.
Free entrance.
Workshops
Korean pansori opera
MOUTH & HAND STUDIO (SOUTH KOREA)
December 18, 4:30 PM - 7 PM
Pansori is a traditional Korean opera performed only by the singer and the accompanying drummer. The singer plays all the roles in the opera, adjusting the voice to the role played at the moment, not shying away from vehement shouts, onomatopoeic sounds, and expressive gestures. The drummer follows the singer’s lead, building up the drama of the spectacle through the changing tempo, rhythm, and motivational cries. Pansori gives the artists a space for improvisation, both on the level of text and music. A traditional Korean opera can last for up to eight hours. No two performances are ever the same.
The participants of the workshop will learn about the basic music schemes used in Pansori, the key music scales, and the basics of BALIM (the art of making gestures with a fan – the only prop used in pansori). The program also includes studying Minyo, Korean folk songs.
The workshop is led by:
- Hyangha Lee – drummer,
- Seunghee Lee – pansori singer,
- Hongshik Kim – drummer,
- Seungtae Shin – drummer, Minyo singer
Free entrance.
Please enroll here: warsztaty@radioazja.pl
Improvisation and expression in a choir
SENYAWA (INDONESIA)
December 19, 1 pm - 6:30 pm
How to find the courage to sing or play solo with a choir or an orchestra? How to leave fear behind and get carried away by emotions on stage? How to follow the music and singing, get over one’s own inhibitions, and express oneself? How to open yourself up to your own sound and find harmony with others?
Senyawa, an avant-garde duo from Yogyakarta, leads a workshop for everyone who wants to find a primal force in their singing, and open themselves up to new challenges and musical experiments. During the five-hour meeting, the participants will learn about the unconventional vocal and improvisation techniques used by Rully Shabara, and discover the energy hidden in group singing and crating compositions. The workshop will result in creating a unique choir, which will perform a piece based on traditional Indonesian music with the elements of improvisation.
The workshop is open to both professionals and amateurs, we also welcome participants with music instruments.
The workshop is led by:
- Rully Shabara – singer
- Wukir Suryadi – instrumentalist, music instruments constructor
Free entrance.
Please enroll here: warsztaty@radioazja.pl
EXHIBITION GOTONG ROYONG. THINGS WE DO TOGETHER - CURATOR TOUR WITH MARIANNA DOBKOWSKA
19 DEC, 5:30 PM, UJAZDOWSKI CASTLE CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART
The exhibition’s title, Gotong royong, means “common task” in Indonesian. It is a method of work practiced in Indonesia, which can be described as ‘things we do together as we learn about them by acting together.’ This title pays homage to the practices of informal arts education and social self-organization that are specific to Indonesian culture, but also common under various names in many other places in the world. It is both the subject and the work method used in the exhibition-meeting at the Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art. During the curator tour aspects of the exhibition related to musical activities will be exposed.
Free entrance, password: Radio Asia
