Movement Screening- Touch the Sound.

EVELYN GLENNIE- TOUCH THE SOUND

MOVEMENT SCREENING

 

Image- http://www.kino.de/kinofilm/touch-the-sound-a-sound-journey-with-evelyn-glennie/67625

'There is sound everywhere. we have to listen, that's it really.'

The screening Touch the Sound follows Evelyn Glennie on her exploration of sound.
 Evelyn Glennie is a percussionist who is nearly deaf and experiences sound as a kind of touching or vibration. She is successful in opening our eyes to the world around us, a world filled with so many sounds and sensations and you see her through everyday life embracing and feeling these sounds. We are taken on a journey through the streets  of New York, experiencing the sounds ourselves in a way that we may not normally do through everyday life. After watching this screening I found myself beginning to notice even the smallest sound around me on my way home and it was as though I was hearing the world for the first time. It made me feel as though my life was being played out to a soundtrack, although I may not be aware of it. Such sounds may impact you and change the way you are feeling even if you don't notice it.
Glennie experiments with sound within what looks like a large disused warehouse, using instruments and the objects around her to create sound. She even uses one her own companies backs to create sound. Due to the large open space within the warehouse the sound echoes and vibrates all around them, allowing her to feel and embrace it. She talks about getting underneath the surface to find the sound, rather than just striking the surface. I like the fact that throughout the film they can be seen experimenting with sound, nothing we hear is planned and the sound that is created is a surprise even to those involved. Both viewer and participant are discovering as the film progresses.
Within this section Glennie can be seen making sound alongside a guy and you can feel the connection between them as they often make eye contact and take inspiration from the sound the other is making. This worked to unite the sound within the space creating something truly sensational to listen to.
After watching the screening I did further research into Evelyn Glennie and this piece of work and one source stated that Glennie 'introduces the viewer to an amazing sonic realm that we all know but rarely appreciate-a world of tapping sputtering clanging rustling rhythms.' I really agree with this as the twanging sounds she makes throughout feel almost otherworldly and generate atmosphere. I felt them affecting my body when just watching the video. As Glennie states I was able to 'feel the sound', and I consider her to be right when she says 'You feel it through your body and sometimes it almost hits your face.' This film allows you to not view Glennie's hearing as a handicap and she has really opened my eyes the mechanisms and power beneath sound: 'hearing is a form of touch'. 
When she was younger she had been told that she wouldn't be able to play music and would have to go to a school for the deaf. But she continued to do what she wanted to do whether she could hear or not. She began playing percussion and found that she was able to feel the sound within the instruments. For example when playing the drum she noticed the experience of the body hitting against the drum, feeling the sound. She actually discovered that if she took her hearing aids off she could hear less with the ears but more with the body.
Overall I found Evelyn Glennie to be an inspiration woman, who has open my eyes to the power of sound and the way in which it can be felt not just heard. She taught me that you can hear sound through feeling it and you can actually hear it for longer as the vibrations last longer than the physical sound. You can feel the sound, feel the process of creating the sound and therefore here the sound. I feel that I will be more aware of the sounds around me through everyday life, how I feel them and how I sense them

'I want to be open to absolutely everything that comes my way'