One person's trash is another's orchestra. That might be the motto for a percussion sextet that repurposes salvaged and recycled junk into wildly imaginative musical instruments.
Performing in Anchorage over the next week, Canada-based Scrap Arts Music plays energetic sets on drums, gongs, cymbals, chimes and something called the annoyophone. These unique instruments are made from discarded metal barrels, springs, sewer pipes, artillery shell casings, submarine parts, sawmill machinery, parts of net winches from fishing boats and other things one doesn't usually find in a concert setting.
Scrap Arts artistic director Greg Kozak has said part of the enjoyment he gets from his job is turning throw-away items into useful tools for expression and entertainment. Knowing that the instruments had a previous purpose before they made it to the stage adds an extra dimension.
Kozak has said he wants his instruments to be as compelling visually as they are sonically. Things like the Scorpion Drums, which call to mind big mammoth tusks, and the Ziggurat Drum, a kind of tympani shaped like the ancient Babylonian pyramids, are as peculiar to look at as they are to hear. The scene is sort of like what you might expect if Dr. Seuss had signed on as the set designer for Megadeath.
Musicians who work with these instruments are asked to forget everything they've been taught and investigate them, handle them, hit them, jump on them, swing them around before they actually try to make music with them.
Something like 140 such instruments are making the trip to Anchorage for the upcoming shows. The gymnastics built into performing on them is as intriguing as the instruments themselves. The group's highly physical, tightly choreographed and precisely timed shows are compared to those of Stomp and the Blue Man Group.
Sponsored by Alaska Junior Theater, Scrap Arts Music will present several programs for Anchorage school kids next week. But their full schedule will begin at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, April 30, when they give a live performance at AJT's annual fundraising banquet at the Anchorage Marriott Downtown. Tickets for this gala champagne/dinner/dancing event are $80 and available by calling 272-7546.
The public is invited to a community potluck dinner with the Scrap Arts crew at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, May 2, at Central Middle School, 1405 E St. This event is free, but bring a dish to share.
Scrap Arts musicians will present a percussion workshop at 6:30 p.m. on May 4 in Atwood Concert Hall. Classes are $20 and can be reserved by calling 272-7546.
And a full public concert, suitable for ages from five on up, will take place at 7:30 p.m. on May 6, also in Atwood Concert Hall. Tickets are available at centertix.net.