The Homepage for Barry Seroff

Of all the instruments I’ve played, the shakuhachi was always the most daunting to compose for. It wasn’t so much the technical aspects as much as the history and reverence for the instrument that exist in the shakuhachi community. I never felt that I had a true understanding of Zen, therefore I never felt ready to tackle a piece for the instrument that so fully embodies that mode of belief.

That being said, it doesn’t mean I never imagined what such a piece would sound like. Or look like, for that matter, for in my head the visual was very important. So picture this: The stage is empty save for one lone shakuhachi player in full fuke garb including a woven basket on their head (the basket is also traditional, it is symbolic of the loss of ego that monks must achieve). The player sits perfectly still and plays a Zen piece; on the last note the sound engulfs the room from all sides as the lights dim. From there, I imagined the piece as a journey through the mind of the monk has he seeks enlightenment, but aurally I could never make it out past the opening. The moment for this piece was not present, so I left it as it was.

One day I was speaking to Stephan Moore, and he mentioned that he had designed the 15 channel system for Issue Project Room in Brooklyn known as the Hemisphere. I immediately thought of the shakuhachi piece and mentioned the concept. He invited me to perform the piece at the Floating Points festival at Issue Project Room, and I accepted. I immediately dove into writing the piece, which turned into a theme and variations on the ancient Zen piece ‘Banji’.

The piece opens as I originally conceived it, and the search for enlightenment is still present, but the chief development of the work is now more of a movement from Western thought to Eastern. I found, in studying music of both cultures, a fundamental difference in the impetus of both musics. While Western music is more about the journey and creating a sense of movement, Zen music is more about creating a sense of stillness. This is of course a gross oversimplification, however it stood as a means to develop the piece; the variations start using Western techniques such as chorale settings and harmonic motion, but gradually moving to create a deep stillness, culminating in what I think is the ultimate expression in 21st century Zen, noise (don’t believe me? Go ahead and read Merzbow’s official bio to see what I mean). I am quite happy with the result, and I very much hope you all will join me. Here’s the info:

Thursday July 22nd,
8 PM
ISSUE PROJECT ROOM
232 3rd St, Brooklyn, NY
$10 day of, $9 in advance
Buy tickets here

Also appearing will be wonderful flautist Barbara Held. Also, much help on the electronic end of things is being provided by Dr. Pat Muchmore.  Hope to see you all there!