On a tranquil rooftop garden in the middle of Tokyo's bustling Ginza area, there's a place where you can relax and enjoy an "orchestra without a composer."
A nighttime event titled "Roof Top Orchestra" is being held at the Ginza Six shopping complex, featuring an interactive light and sound installation. NF -- an interdisciplinary project initiated by Ichiro Yamaguchi, the frontman of Japanese rock group Sakanaction -- has transformed the garden into an open-air concert venue in which sound and light are combined with technology.
Six cubic objects, each of which generates six different sounds, are placed in the about 4,000-square-meter garden, located about 56 meters above street level. By hitting the objects as if they were percussion instruments, visitors can create random music, while light pillars placed around the objects respond to the sounds.
This setting allows multiple visitors to "perform together," filling the greenery garden with combinations of 36 possible sounds and LED lights, against the background of nighttime views of Ginza.
"I feel there's a certain etiquette, or protocol, that should be followed in Ginza Six's rooftop garden," Yamaguchi said during a press preview in August. "So we created a space where visitors can relax while music is played naturally without a composer, rather than dazzling people with bright lights or forcing people to listen to our sounds."
A "tuning" sound is played every 30 minutes. This 30-second session is akin to an orchestra tuning up before a performance. According to Setsuya Kurotaki, a sound designer involved in the NF project, all the sounds are mixed gradually and come into harmony during this session. They were created by sampling various sounds, such those as from a glass harp, flowing water and wooden musical instruments, he said.
NF's mission is to propose new lifestyles by providing content that mixes music with various genres like fashion, art and architecture, in search of new possibilities for music.
"Musicians can express themselves only by performing live and creating sound recordings. We live in a world of fast-paced change, but the number of places where musicians express themselves hasn't increased," Yamaguchi said. "Music can't be seen with the eye nor touched with the hand, but people can feel it in their heart. I believe this is where musicians still have room to express ourselves."
NF is scheduled to hold a one-day event at the garden on Oct. 12 in collaboration with Gen Gen An, which proposes new styles of tea drinking. In the "Tea Garden" event, visitors can enjoy music while drinking tea.
NF's approach is in tune with that of Ginza Six, which pursues "new luxury" in lifestyles and seeks opportunities to provide customers with extraordinary experiences.
"NF's activity is intended to connect music lovers to other genres. People who like music and come to this event might become interested in fashion at Ginza Six," said Michito Sato, an official of Ginza Six Retail Management Co.'s sales promotion and service planning department. "Ginza Six is a commercial facility, but we also give importance to experiences other than shopping to help enrich people's lives."
The "Roof Top Orchestra," which is open to all for free, is held from sunset to 11 p.m. and will last through Oct. 31.
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