Following critically acclaimed runs at The Shed in New York and at this year’s Manchester International Festival, Kagami – composer and artist Ryuichi Sakamoto’s ground-breaking collaboration with Mixed Reality pioneer Tin Drum, is set to play a four week run at London’s Roundhouse this Christmas.
Prior to his death earlier this year, Sakamoto worked with Todd Eckert and the global Tin Drum team in the production of this groundbreaking performance, which is experienced with the aid of optically transparent Mixed Reality glasses. The virtual Sakamoto performs alongside dimensional art which is aligned with the music.
The whole Kagami experience is presented in surround sound, creating a world which is both collective and individual, inviting observers to connect to the work – and each other – throughout. Audiences are free to watch the concert seated or to wander and explore the space.
The show is a glimpse into a future world in which the connection of performance between artist and audience is perpetuated beyond the limitations of life and time; and promises to give audiences an extraordinary alternative immersive experience full of emotional wonder and incredible creative vision..
Sakamoto’s body of work spans electronic to classical composition, large scale art installations and performances, and nearly 45 original film/TV scores, including original scores for Oscar-winning films such as The Last Emperor and The Revenant. His evocative and and elegiac music garnered a legion of fans over several decades.
Tin Drum is an international collective of artists and technologists working exclusively in Wearable Augmented or Mixed Reality.
The show follows Medusa, which explored generative architecture with Sou Fujimoto, and was first presented with the London Design Festival at the V&A’s Raphael Court in 2021, then travelling to Pioneer Works in Brooklyn in 2023, and expanded to include a live performance element over 4 weekends.
In 2019 Tin Drum made history by presenting the Life with Marina Abramović at the Serpentine Galleries in London, which was the first large-scale Mixed Reality exhibition anywhere.
Reflecting on the collaboration, Sakamoto had previously written:
There is, in reality, a virtual me.
This virtual me will not age, and will continue to play the piano for years, decades, centuries.
Will there be humans then?
Will the squids that will conquer the earth after humanity listen to me?
What will pianos be to them?
What about music?
Will there be empathy there?
Marcus Davey, CEO and Artistic Director of the Roundhouse, said in statement: “I was transfixed by this stunning work when I saw it in Manchester so I am delighted that we’re working with Tin Drum to bring this pioneering and beautiful show to the Roundhouse. The marrying of Sakamoto’s deeply moving music and art with new technology in this incredible mixed reality event will give audiences an experience they’ve never seen before at the venue.”
Todd Eckert, Founder and President of Tin Drum, said: “There’s an elemental energy in the relationship between Ryuichi and the piano. He spent his whole life studying, exploring, expanding, and elevating what sound can mean, but it really all starts with those 88 keys. In Kagami I wanted to present that relationship – an event both intimate and urgent – happening in real-time, forever. And I will always remain grateful that he said yes. The Roundhouse is one of my favourite rooms in the world – I’m utterly overwhelmed that we’re playing there.”
One-off event Kagami will run from 29 December 2023 to 21 January 2024 at the Roundhouse in Camden.
More about tickets to Kagami at the Roundhouse, London
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