NAT EVANS - SAY THOSE WORDS FOR ME (CASSETTE)
$10.00
Say Those Words For Me is a work by Nat Evans dedicated to Ryuzen Robby Pellett, Evans’ long time teacher in Zen Buddhism who passed away unexpectedly in August of 2019 at the age of 63. Pellett was a towering influence on Evans’ life for over 15 years. From aesthetic aspects of his practice as an artist, to how he conducted himself in the world, to what he does for a living - the river that flowed forth from his teaching and mentorship made an indelible mark on Evans’ life.
This new work, Say Those Words For Me, is presented in two parts. Eponymously named side A is a mandala of sound that slowly unfolds for the listener over time. Evans inherited a number of temple bells from his teacher, and composed long improvisation with these bells dominates the soundscape. At times, other sounds representative of Zen pass through - ritualistic performances of moving his teacher’s prayer beads over bones and sampled low frequencies drift in and dominate briefly like a ghost. The sounds between words spoken by Evans’ teacher were sampled from cassette tapes and assembled as moments of counterpoint to the bells and other field recordings. In one of the talks, Pellett described performing a memorial service as a priest, and expressed comfort in knowing that when the time came for his own passing, someone would, “say those words for me.” The work ends with nine bells - symbolic of nine bows one makes to show respect for someone who has passed away.
Side B, entitled Hanamatsuri, is an unedited field recording made on Hanamatsuri, a holiday celebrating the Buddha’s birth. Evans’ teacher would often have tea under a blooming cherry tree to celebrate this holy day. In his absence, Evans had tea under a blooming cherry tree and made this recording. Birds move through from time to time, bamboo rustles in the background competing with the sounds of traffic. The world slowly wakes up as the blossoms on the tree blow away like pink snow in a gust of wind.
This new work, Say Those Words For Me, is presented in two parts. Eponymously named side A is a mandala of sound that slowly unfolds for the listener over time. Evans inherited a number of temple bells from his teacher, and composed long improvisation with these bells dominates the soundscape. At times, other sounds representative of Zen pass through - ritualistic performances of moving his teacher’s prayer beads over bones and sampled low frequencies drift in and dominate briefly like a ghost. The sounds between words spoken by Evans’ teacher were sampled from cassette tapes and assembled as moments of counterpoint to the bells and other field recordings. In one of the talks, Pellett described performing a memorial service as a priest, and expressed comfort in knowing that when the time came for his own passing, someone would, “say those words for me.” The work ends with nine bells - symbolic of nine bows one makes to show respect for someone who has passed away.
Side B, entitled Hanamatsuri, is an unedited field recording made on Hanamatsuri, a holiday celebrating the Buddha’s birth. Evans’ teacher would often have tea under a blooming cherry tree to celebrate this holy day. In his absence, Evans had tea under a blooming cherry tree and made this recording. Birds move through from time to time, bamboo rustles in the background competing with the sounds of traffic. The world slowly wakes up as the blossoms on the tree blow away like pink snow in a gust of wind.
released August 14, 2020
Written by Nat Evans
Mastered by Derek Morton
Executive Production by Jared Silvia
Written by Nat Evans
Mastered by Derek Morton
Executive Production by Jared Silvia
CIRCUIT CHURCH is an independent electronic music label who publish music they love with chapbooks, video, and other art alongside it.