kinetophone

PROJECTS
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Live soundtrack to 'Häxan' (1922)
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Our most diverse and intriguing soundtrack to date for an amazing Swedish classic silent (105')
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René Duursma (synths, guitar, samples, vocals) / Thomas van den Berg (keys, guitar, vocals) / Sebastiaan Wiering (cello, keys, bass, vocals) / feb 2017 / ~~~AVAILABLE FOR SHOWS~~~

Live soundtrack to "Un Chien Andalou"
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An honest attempt to re-imagine one of the best known silent classics. While working on this film, the emphasis naturally drifted towards the film's dream-like overtones. So, instead of the usual noise, this rendition will be filled with thick, harmonious accompaniment.
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René Duursma (synths, guitar, samples) / Thomas van den Berg (guitar, vocals) / Sebastiaan Wiering (cello, keys) / feb 2016 / ~~~AVAILABLE FOR SHOWS~~~

"De Laatste Boer van Euvelgunne" (Tom Tieman)
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All farms surrounding the city of Groningen have been turned over into industrial plots – except for one. Director Tom Tieman scoped him out to tell us his story.

"Bezness as Usual" (Alex Pitstra)
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Dutch-Tunesian filmmaker Alex Pitstra is working on his second film. His feature debut, documentary/fiction-hybrid "Die Welt" (2013), was critically hailed internationally. We're providing additional music to the soundtrack & sounddesign by Renger Koning.

"Despootpooëzie" (Joost Oomen&Marleen Nagtegaal)
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For an interactive performance piece, including four speeches set to Charlie Chaplin's 'Great Dictator', we provided haunting tunes & soundscapes.


Aleksandr Dovzhenko's "Arsenal" (1929) [86min]
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Bleak and surreal film concerning the aftermath of WO I, and subsequent hardships of the Ukranian people. Accompanying KINETOPHONE-soundtrack employs both hard-hitting grit as well as melodic commentary, and has 'quotes' from John Lennon's "Working Class Hero", St. Vincent's "Black Rainbow" and Bob Dylan's "Master's Of War" worked into the harmonic fabric.
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René Duursma (coordination, composition, synths, guitar, vocals, percussion) / Thomas van den Berg (coordination, composition, guitar, vocals, percussion) / Sebastiaan Wiering (composition, cello, vocals) / Wes (sound design) / oct 2013 / ~~~AVAILABLE FOR SHOWS~~~


Germaine Dulac "L'invitation au voyage" (1927) [40min]
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See movie description below. Music recomposed and re-arranged for trio. Soundtrack now builds more in expansion and variations on our opening theme 'Invitation' as well as Rogers & Hart's show tune "Where or When".
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René Duursma (synths, guitar) / Thomas van den Berg (guitar, sampling, vocals) / Sebastiaan Wiering (cello, melodica) / recomposed, rearranged for 2014 performances

"The Making of Infoversum" (2014) [ca25min]
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Lex Vesseur documented the conception and construction of the Infoversum, Groningen, for over a year. The result is a short but potent documentary, for which we supplied music and sound-design.

"Seacrets I & II" (2014) [27min]
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Experimental, 'ambient' documentary by Regina Broersma ('Reggie'), made with mostly archival footage from the Groninger Audiovisual Archives (GAVA). The film touches upon the flux that arises when (parts of) a population abandons the countryside in favor of the city. Live musical accompaniment includes a.o. variations on the closing theme of "City Lights", an (art-)pop song written to match the film's content both lyrically as well as topping it off musically.
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René Duursma (coordination, composition, synths, guitar, vocals, glockenspiel) / Thomas van den Berg (coordination, composition, guitar, lead vocals) / Sebastiaan Wiering (cello, vocals) / Wimer van der Veen (cello) / Rachael Yates (viola) / Wes (sound design) / january 2014 / ~~~AVAILABLE FOR SHOWS~~~
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Germaine Dulac's "L'invitation au Voyage" (1927) [36min] & "La Coquille et le Clergyman" (1928) [28min]
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"Linvitation au Voyage"(1927) boasts an experiment in silent narrative cinema, telling a story without intertitles, already using complex technique such as flashbacks and 'fantastic' cutaways. Accompanying music leaned towards romanticism, topped off with a minimal rendition of Rodgers & Hart's "Where or When". "La Coquille et le Clergyman"(1928) is a hectic, subversive and provocative work of cinema. It is important to note that this is, in fact, one of the first true avant-garde films, predating even the better known "Un Chien Andalou" (1929) by Dalí/Buñuel. The film's unstable feel was paralleled by music featuring hypnotic drones and ventures into a-tonal territory.
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René Duursma (coordination & principal composition, synths, guitar) / Thomas van den Berg (coordination & principal composition, arrangements, guitar, vocals) / Matthijs Herder (keys, melodica, percussion) / Wimer van der Veen (cello) / written and performed 2012

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Abel Gance's "J'Accuse" (1919) [166min]
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Pacifist-epic, employing documentary footage from WO I. The complex and gritty story was accompanied by music combining and contrasting industrial textures and melodic interludes. Quotes, references and alternative renditions included Tool's "H.", Pedro the Lion's "Options", Velour 100's "Bittersweet", and Tori Amos' "Dark Side of the Sun".
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René Duursma (coordination & principal composition, synths, guitar, programming) / Thomas van den Berg (principal composition, guitar, vocals) / Sebastiaan Wiering (cello) / Wes (sound design) / Kris Vesseur (piano, vocals) / Joost Kraaijenbrink (guitar) / Frank Schaap (samplers, folly, synths) / written and performed 2010