MOT the Music

MOT the Music is a new initiative organised by the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT) where professional musicians are invited to perform in front of particular works of art in their permanent collections galleries. With the appointment of Yuko Hasegawa (formerly of Kanazawa C21st Museum) to cheif curator at MOT a couple of months back as well as the appointment of younger curators like Fumihiko Sumitomo (also AIT founding member, formerly of ICC), there is some expectation now in Tokyo about the future of MOT. MOT the Music is a great idea - a way to broaden their audience, particularly to their permanent collections (which is usually very quiet), and bring in something fresh. I have not been, but from things I hear, it seems that this kind of event brings in new audiences. Listening to music near art has a long history of course - one thinks of salons in royal palaces and of course church musics. More recently, venues like Palais de Tokyo have initiated club nights, though admittedly slightly demarcated from art works. I think there are groups in the US who make independent podcasts to go to MOMA with....adding music and narration. While one hears about the need for slowing down and silence in museums today, it is also interesting to think about the ways in which music and sound can generate rich experiences of art works. I must admit to being a long time walkman listener, strolling around the city almost always listening to music.  It adds another dimension to one's encounters with places - memories inter-weave with new sights and smells, and occasionally there is a moment of intense sublime magic, when sound and physical experience meet. I have archived in my mind certain places in Tokyo which go particularly well with certain songs - also depending on whether it is a sunny day or raining etc.