Tuesday 4 November 2014

CARDIFF CONTEMPORARY FESTIVAL 3 - THE BAROQUE CELLO PROJECT

'The Baroque Cello Project is a sound and video installation  centred on a newly finished hand-crafted Baroque cello celebrating the discarded  the underheard  the nevernoticed.'
      Leona Jones (artist), Sion Dafydd Dawson (musician), Adam Winskill (luthier) and Jeff Chapman(video) collaborated in this project. The performance at the Arcade in St David's Centre was intriguing and moving. Sion had commissioned Adam to make him a cello, of maple and spruce. Leona collected all the sounds that would normally go unnoticed in the making of the cello; the marine roar of the wind in the woods, waterfalls, the planing of wood in the workshop, the flutter of wood shavings, tapping and banging of tools, running water. She re-enacted some of these sounds and movements in a kind of dance echoed by the beautiful sounds produced by Sion, creating  a kind of baroque improvisation, although I'm sure it was all carefully scripted.
        At the end of the performance we were introduced to the young luthier (I'd never heard that word before), Adam. It was the first cello he's made since leaving college. It is a wonderful piece of  art, most beautifully crafted with a personality of its own.  The whole project is awesome.
There's still a chance to see the performance on Friday 7 November 1-1.30pm.
 See baroquecelloproject.com.    arcadecardiff.co.uk


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