Test ToneTest Tone

Test Tone vol. 61

Intersecting Streams of Consciousness

Featuring: Hugues Vincent (cello) + Mori-shige (cello), Zn'shñ (electronics) + a qui avec gabriel (accordion) + Cal Lyall (hydrophone), Joel Grip (contrabass) + Seiko Fukushima (harp), onnacodomo (visuals) and DJ Evil Penguin



Test Tone Homepage

Cal Lyall and Yasufumi Suzuki Special Interview!! (JP only)

Artist info:

Hugues Vincent (cello) + Morishige (cello)

Presenting a rare and exotic treat for string lovers in general (and cello lovers in particular), two extraordinary players of the instrument are set to meld minds in a tuneful voodoo, ultimately proving to us that the magic in their music is not all hearsay.
With a chameleon-like adaptability, French cellist Hugues Vincent has established himself in a number of classical and contemporary contexts. As an improvisor, he has found himself in the company of everyone from David S. Ware to Otomo Yoshihide.
Mori-shige, when taking a break from his stark photographic work (as Morishige Yasumune), is without a doubt one of the most original voices on the cello in Japan. With his monthly concert series for string improvisors, 'Between the Lines', he demonstrates that the vocabulary of the improvising musician is a work in progress, and he continues to place himself into a range of challenging contexts.
Hugues Vincent: myspace
Morishige hp / myspace

Zn'shñ (electronics) + À qui avec Gabriel (accordion) + Cal Lyall (hydrophone)

Specializing in analog electronics, French artist Zn'shñ (aka multi-instrumentalist/composer Franck Smith) creates expansive soundscapes of the highest order. Under the Odiolorgnette imprint, Zn'shñ has produced albums and soundtracks steeped in minimalist sensibility, influenced by artists such as Ryoji Ikeda and butoh legend Kazuo Ohno.
Zn'shñ's sound artistry will meet with the sublime accordion playing of À qui avec Gabriel, a Tzadik recording artist with a string of successful collaborations under her belt. They will be further joined by improvising artist Cal Lyall, who will create a watery ambiance using effected hydrophones (underwater microphones) submerged in strange and hypnotic water sources.
Zn'shñ: odiolorgnette / myspace
a qui avec gabriel hp / myspace
Cal Lyall: myspace

Joel Grip (contrabass) + Seiko Fukushima (harp)

With his boundless energy, Swedish bassist Joel Grip is someone who makes things happen wherever he travels. Whether as a bandleader, concert organizer, record label head or a director of charity projects, he has earned enormous respect not only for his musicianship, but for his inexhaustible dedication to the European improvising community.
On this evening, Joel will team up with Japanese harpist Seiko Fukushima, who through her mastery of her instrument, has received accolades and commissions from around the world. She has studied and performed in France, Poland, Senegal, Gabon, Finland and Sweden. This will be a rare opportunity to see this great talent on her home soil.
Joel Grip hp / myspace
Seiko Fukushima: myspace

onnacodomo (Visuals)

Taking their inspiration from moments and objects from everyday life, visual unit onnacodomo make the ordinary decidedly extraordinary. Eschewing computer-generated graphics or recorded material, the three members (DJ Codomo, Yasuko Seki and Ruka Noguchi) perform in real time using a video camera to capture their spontaneous creations.
Shimmering projections are created using water, mirrors and an array of lights, while a world of fantastic images is constructed with found photos, kitchen utensils, toys, stationary and improvised artwork. Kaleidoscopic, absurd and unreal, onnacodomo takes you into a slightly-unhinged world that is absolutely original in its conception.
onnacodomo hp

Evil Penguin

Master of disguises, Mexican top-hats, ambient rockabilly to minimal Hawaiian Kumulipo chants, the Evil Penguin poses the primordial question of evanescence against a backdrop of New Wave folk. Celebratory, subliminal, moment-to-moment. A Tasmanian treasure with a penchant for open spaces.

About Test Tone

A monthly experiment offering irregular art, music and performance in Tokyo.
The Test Tone series aims to offer a venue for diverse and challenging artists to bring their ideas to a larger community. As a free event open to the public, we hope to bypass the old economies in order to create new ones, while encouraging collaboration in all forms. A collage of media, sound and art in a space available to anyone off the street, the event is a bazaar of potential collisions, where passersby are treated to the unexpected.
For all of this, we found our home base at Super Deluxe, a unique space in Tokyo's midtown, providing a relaxed atmosphere within its modular interior. The event continues to be a celebration of off-kilter creativity in the city: from installation pieces to performance art and visual collaborations; from noise, electronica, ambient sounds and free rock to disorderly jazz and manipulated field recordings. To date, close to 500 artists have been a part of the event, together creating opportunities for unexpected improvisation, collaboration, and festival spirit.