Oculus, Basement 2 ArtScience Museum 17 January 2019 (Th) 7:00 PM Admission is free on a first-come-first-served basis, subject to availability.
ArtScience Late: FEN
FEN is an improvised music project group comprising Otomo Yoshihide (Japan), Yuen Chee Wai (Singapore), Yan Jun (China) and Ryu Hankil (Korea) – four key figures in the experimental music scene in Asia today.
Headlining the performance season of Minimalism at ArtScience Late in January, FEN will be sculpting an immersive sound piece that probes sound, space, and silence.
FEN is presented at the ArtScience Late monthly performance series as part of the programming for Minimalism: Space. Light. Object. The exhibition marks a first-time collaboration between ArtScience Museum and National Gallery Singapore. Over 150 works of art – many being shown in Singapore for the first time – are set across the two sites exploring the history and legacy of this groundbreaking art movement. Throughout the duration of the exhibition, both venues will host music, film and dance events, showcasing the impact Minimalism has had on many other art forms.
About FEN
FEN (Far East Network) is an improvised music quartet. Comprising Otomo Yoshihide (Japan), Yuen Chee Wai (Singapore), Yan Jun (China) and Ryu Hankil (Korea), FEN was formed in 2008 in Marseille.
The initial intent of forming FEN was not based on a particular pursuit of any specific form of musical aesthetic, but rather to develop and deepen the improvised music networks of Asia. This desire was furthered by these 4 individuals, each with their individual endeavours to organise music-related activities and bridge communication, using a kind of improvisational music vernacular to connect one another. Within the quartet, and beyond, FEN strives for a collaboration that is direct and non-dominant based, while achieving a musical flow that is fluid and symbiotic.
Concurrently, the 4 members are active contributors in the fields of experimental, improvised, computer and electronic music, visual art, performance, literary, curatorial and publication fields. Their creative work is strongly reinforced within the idea of networks and genealogy.
The music of FEN has been described as a combination of noise, random occurrences, rock, jazz and the likes, in an improvisational rigour without any prior communicated agreement. Each member is free to change and choose their musical instrument and methodology of performance.
FEN has toured Japan, China and Europe, and has played festivals in North America, UK, Korea and Singapore. In 2018, FEN collaborated with Singaporean artist Ho Tzu Nyen for a new work in the Gwangju Biennale. FEN have also been commissioned for a new work with Ensemble neoN for Borealis Festival 2020.
Photo credit: Peter Gannushkin
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