SORCERESS OF THE NEW PIANO (2004) (90 minutes)
Sorceress of The New Piano includes excerpts from the following pieces (in alphabetical order):
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN:
Sonata in C major Op.2, No.3
with Play It Again, Charlie Brown (1971) by Charles M. Schulz
Sonata in C-sharp minor ("Moonlight")
John CAGE:
The Wonderful Widow of Eighteen Springs (1942)
with Joan La Barbara
Daughters of the Lonesome Isle (1945)
Music for Marcel Duchamp (1945) with Anemic Cinema (1926)
by Marcel Duchamp
Works of Calder with film by Herbert Matter (1949-50)
The Perilous Night (1944) with the Perilous Night by Jasper Johns
Four Walls (1944) with film
featuring choreography and performance by Merce Cunningham
4'33" and Water Music (1952)
In a Landscape (1948)
Music for Piano No. 2 (1953)
Suite for Toy Piano (1948)
One2 (1989)
Henry COWELL:
The Tides of Manaunaun (1912)
The Banshee (1925)
George CRUMB:
Makrokosmos I: The Phantom Gondolier (1972)
Makrokosmos II: Morning Music; Cosmic Wind (1973)
Jed DISTLER:
Three Landscapes for Peter Wyer (1994)
GE Gan-ru:
Gu Yue (Ancient Music) (1986)
Philip GLASS:
Modern Love Waltz (1977)
Guy KLUCEVSEK:
Sweet Chinoiserie (1996)
Stephen MONTAGUE:
Mirabella (1995)
Erik SATIE:
Gymnopédie No. 3 (1888)
Somei SATOH:
Litania (1973)
TAN Dun:
C-A-G-E (1993)
Toby TWINING:
Satie Blues (1995) with Great Small Works' A Mammals Notebook: The Erik Satie Cabaret
Nightmare Rag (1995)
Lois V VIERK:
To Stare Astonished at the Sea (1994)
Strumming the strings of a grand piano like a harp and performing Beethoven on toy piano are among the surprising scenes in Evans Chan's documentary, Sorceress of the New Piano (2004). The film celebrates the trans-cultural career of Singapore-born, New York-based pianist Margaret Leng Tan, hailed by The New Yorker as "the diva of avant-garde pianism".
Featured performers and critics include Joan La Barbara, Edward Rothstein (The New York Times), Mark Swed (Los Angeles Times), and Joshua Kosman (San Francisco Chronicle) sharing their thoughts on Tan's artistry and musical lineage.
With additional featured appearances by composers John Cage, George Crumb, Raphael Mostel, Toby Twining, Lois V Vierk, Somei Satoh and Ge Gan-ru.
Incorporates vintage footage of Merce Cunningham's dance, Jasper Johns' art, and a Marcel Duchamp film; Sorceress also highlights Tan's latest transformation as the world's premiere toy piano virtuoso.
