When executive producer Jin-Theng Craven came to the intricate task of creating the music and soundscape for the film’Being and becoming Chua Ek Kay ‘, his thoughts were: “A poignant and commanding string solo that evokes the sounds of a traditional Chinese stringed instrument, the er-hu, with a Western element.” Her musical summary was to materialize in a perfect vibe for the story behind the film, an emotional journey of an artist with an extraordinary eclectic mix of traditional and modern values, and Chinese and Western influences.
Jin-Theng set out to portray artist Chua Ek Kay’s exceptional life story and unique struggles as accurately as possible, both in an editorial and musical sense. To better expose the visual journey and emotional conflicts in this sensitively documented human narrative, it was vital to examine what aural perceptions this would evoke and select a musical backdrop to reflect the fine details of the story. Achieving such a flawless musical combination can only be achieved by being able to enter the story and live and breathe the characters.
The purpose of a film’s soundscape is not just a space in which the characters live, but rather it highlights and emphasizes the setting and events. It’s kind of like a more three-dimensional representation of the feelings and depth of the characters, and it’s vital that it fits together accurately. The idea behind the filming was to make a subtle documentary to reflect the character of the artist, but with a strong emotional texture underlying the film, as the character of Chua Ek Kay presented a calm and conservative personality to most of the world, but his inner world was extremely abundant. and vibrant. For a film to work on all levels, it is imperative to “musically portray” the visual images as sympathetically as possible, so that the viewer can fully experience a rich smorgasbord of sounds and sights.
Joe Giddey, music composer, and Finn Curry, soundscape creator of ‘Being and becoming Chua Ek Kay’, were commissioned to create the background for the film. Both members of the duo come from western classical music backgrounds and have known each other for over fifteen years, having played together in classical quartets as well as modern electronic style bands. “Working together on something we knew less about (Chinese music) was fascinating as it allowed us to explore new musical territory.”
During the documentary, Dr. Ian Woo, artist and scholar at LaSalle College of Arts, talks about a particular painting by Ek Kay; when she was first introduced, she represented a sea change in chinese ink painting. Ian remembers being “blown away” on seeing ‘Song of Cicada’ for the first time, which he felt had more to do with poetry and essence than the physical world, the concentration of white space in this work matching the tranquility of the Ek Kay himself. , and yet, in a parallel, there is a ‘crazy and disconcerting intensity’ to this painting. To emphasize this ‘Cicada Song’, from the beginning, Jin-Theng was interested in incorporating nature sounds such as rain and rustling leaves. During the same scene, the camera cuts to stylized shots of contemporary dancers on campus, the movements of their limbs in the space around them symbolizing the brushstrokes and pattern of nature on the blank page. For this particular scene, Joe and Finn composed a piece inspired by listening to a variety of different music. “Traditional Chinese, solo string pieces from various classical and contemporary musics, helped us create a musical moodboard. With this in mind, we did some improvisations, alluding to traditional Chinese music, such as the er-hu, but using the cello and Violin to represent this”. The aim was to reflect Chua Ek Kay’s creative freedom and cross-cultural influences, while also hinting at his love for Western classical music.
The er-hu, which was a big part of Jin-Theng’s initial outline, became a key element in ensuring that the soundscape and music helped the audience feel and experience the harmony and tone of the story. This historical instrument is sometimes known as a Chinese violin and consists of two strings. He is incredibly versatile in both traditional and contemporary musical arrangements, and even in today’s musical world, he has made mainstream appearances in recognizable forms such as by Coldplay‘Watches’ and cirque du soleil in his program ‘O’. As early as the Tang dynasty (618 – 907), the er-hu was making appearances in a groundbreaking era in which the development of woodblock printing would serve to spread and improve knowledge of literature, art, and music. throughout the Northern Song dynasty. (906 – 1279), where social life was vibrant, and music and art were a very important part of life. Following in the footsteps of ancient tradition and artistic practices carried out over the centuries, Ek Kay trained under master inker Fan Chang Tien, who instructed him in traditional techniques, including classical poetry, painting, seal carving and, in the center of it all, calligraphy. In one of the scenes, the opening is with Ms. Chua at work interspersed with shots of beautiful brush strokes of calligraphy, in the background, the er-hu in the film’s soundtrack represents the fond but sad memories of the artist. . Like the general feeling of ‘Being and becoming Chua Ek Kay’ is one of reflection and melancholy, the er-hu, with its haunting and prominent sound, was a perfect way to best reflect this. Joe and Finn chose a minor key to produce an er-hu-like sound, but “we tried not to make it too sad, as there is hope in the film as well.”
Ek Kay’s Singapore was a feast for the senses, and his goal was to capture the world, not in a representative way, but by embodying his own idea of it in his works. In the film there is a scene set in the local street vendor center, where Kwok Kian Chow, a close friend of the artist, recalls how he shared meals and moments like this with Ek Kay, and how in Singapore, this kind of environment brings a sense of community and facility. There is a unique pulse and rhythm of life that Joe and Finn have conveyed in the loop-based nature of the musical montage for the scene set in the hawker center, a style that Joe and Finn love to write in. “The continuous music loops can very much represent the continuous cycle of life and the continuous movement of humanity in today’s world, a kind of endless feeling similar to Steve Reich (a pioneering composer of minimal music).” Joe and Finn chose different instruments for the street vendor stall scene that could be added to build the flavors of the scene, in the same way that one is looking at the people, the buildings, the food, “Our goal is to end up with a nice hustle and bustle feeling.
Chua Ek Kay was known for having classical music playing in the background while painting, and with this in mind, Joe and Finn were inspired to record Joe playing some Bach solo cello suites; the common cello theme was a great way to maintain a style throughout the entire film. For Ek Kay, music and nature were such important components of his life and work that he was at times deeply affected by the peace and tranquility that both elements brought to his art.
Chua Ek Kay’s training in classical Chinese philosophy and calligraphy opened up a world for him where Chinese cultural influences and music were a very important part of his everyday life and art. With all these influences, Ek Kay’s artistic direction should have been conventional, but he dared to challenge aesthetic and cultural patterns by being open to change and following his own artistic instinct. With its cross-cultural influences, the musical soundscape of ‘Being and Becoming Chua Ek Kay’ reflects the artist’s life and struggles, and his dreams of inspiring other artists and musicians in Singapore to be more free in their own artistic expressions. .
