Frequency in Motion

July 2025

Hong Kong performance of Frequency in Motion, 2024

Filmmaker and sound artist Chris H. Lynn is based in the Washington, DC area. His digital images and Super 8 films explore the subtle rhythms of movement, light, and sound in urban and rural landscapes that vary from the Eastern shores of Maryland, U.S. to Nanjing, China. In recent years Hiroko Komiya and Chris H. Lynn along with a group of international artists have developed a multimedia event for sound, visuals, and movement, that they’ve presented in Europe and Asia. The piece, whose components are partly improvised and partly fixed, combines experimental film, live music, and Butoh dance for an evening of atmospheric art. Since their first show in Vienna, they have performed in Barcelona, Hong Kong, Poland, Mexico, Athens, and most recently Japan, always with different dancers and collaborators.

ARTEIDOLIA: Could you tell us about the performance you were part of, Frequency in Motion?

CHRIS: Frequency in Motion is a collaborative, audiovisual Butoh performance that incorporates dance, live improvised sound (piano, various instruments and objects) along with film and video. Butoh is a Japanese dance/theater art form that emerged after WWII. Hiroko Komiya, my collaborator, is a sound artist. She came up with the idea to do a show with Butoh dancers a few years ago for a festival in Vienna. The original title of the piece was Edge of Presence.

ARTEIDOLIA: Frequency in Motion was recently presented in Japan. What was that like?

CHRIS: Yes, in April, Frequency in Motion was performed in Japan. It was a dream show for me in many ways. The atmosphere and the setting created an extra layer of mystery and wonder. The location was stunning. For this show, our collaborators were sound artist Awaya (JP) and dancers Atsushi Takenouchi (JP), Ioku Ero Nikaido (Hong Kong), Himeko Narumi (JP), Arisa Hiura (JP).

Frequency in Motion’s past performances were all in major cities with a limited time schedule. Tanami, Kushimoto is a fairly remote part of Japan surrounded by the sea and mountains. I also had more than a week to take in the beauty. In addition, the Tanami theater is an old cinema house from the fifties that was renovated and converted into a performance space which still screens films and hosts workshops and other cultural activities. The interior was decorated with old Japanese film posters and local relics from the area. Beautiful wooden floors and a coffee shop to boot. Mr and Mrs Hayashi, the owners, both artists, have created a spot for travelers to seek out and locals to call their own.

We had a number of rehearsals before the show. Each set is slightly different. The theater had a piano and an old organ. I played the piano and Awaya accompanied me on organ. Hiroko would join us after a few minutes. Letting the mood set in. Eventually, the composition moved into incorporating field recordings, voices, and live instrumentation. We also collected some shells and rocks from the beaches in Kushimoto and blended their sounds into the performance. Everything is constantly in motion. The only fixed point is the film/video, which is a compilation of digital and Super 8 film images. The Butoh performance is also improvised, but with some instruction or encouragement from Atsushi Takenouchi and Hiroko Komiya. As a duo, they have been performing together for decades in many different settings.

Each Frequency in Motion show is unique. At times, dense and abstract or lyrical and minimal, drifting into silence as the dancers move slowly, delicately. This show tended to be quieter and more meditative. Being so close to nature in such a remarkable setting may have contributed to the overall tone. I suspect so. There was also a comfort in playing with Japanese performers in Japan. I felt very privileged to be part of this world.

As the sun set, the crowd began to enter the theater. I was told to not expect a large crowd due to the remote area, but we were all surprised by the turnout. A fantastic showing and event.

ARTEIDOLIA: You did a Q &A with the public afterwards. How did that go?

CHRIS: After the performance, we had a very illuminating Q and A session. The questions varied from the nature of improvisation, Butoh culture, the structure of the film, pacing, and the overall goal of frequency. Each member addressed a question and the audience seemed eager for more. I took on the question concerning the film and why it was the only fixed point in the performance. The duration of the film corresponds to the time of the show. There are a number of visual indicators that may or may not help a dancer with spacing or timing. Mainly, the images touch on memory and place reconstructed fragments in a new light while the dancers move in and out the space, sometimes blending into the frame.

Due to the train schedules, the event had to end at a specific time, which was a pity because the conversations were stimulating. Fortunately, we have a number of recordings of the rehearsals in addition to video and photographs of the event. Many of these will be released in the future.

ARTEIDOLIA: Exactly what was your role in this performance?

CHRIS: I contributed to a musical composition with Hiroko and Awaya. I played piano, incorporated field recordings, and used objects (from the shore). All of this was live improvisation while the dancers performed.

ARTEIDOLIA: You also did some film screenings. Can you tell us more about that?

CHRIS: The Curators of the  Tanami Theater scheduled a screening a few days before the performance. I shared a double bill with Awaya. My program had two silent super 8 films and one longer digital video piece. The program had a strong ecological theme with films honoring Rachel Carson’s ideas and the Chesapeake Bay; olive trees in the south of France; and islands on the eastern shore of Maryland.  When one of my silent super 8 films was screened, you could hear the local train rumble off in the night. Really magical.