“In a traditional concert, sounds move and the audience remains seated”
In “Symphony for 20 rooms”,
The sounds move, the audience also moves.
In my “Omnibus music No.1 (1961),
sounds sit down, the audience visits them.
In “Exposition of Music,
sounds sit, the audience plays with or attacks them.
In “Moving theatre’ in the street,
sounds move in the street and the audience encounters them “unexpectedly” in the street.
– From Nam June Paik’s “New ontology of music” –

Over Music is an experimental music festival exploring a notion of the “ontology of music” that breaks the boundaries between sound performances and the audience. The program is an extension of the exploration of avant-garde music practiced by Nam June Paik and shared with John Cage and Karl-Heinz Stockhausen, as well as a reinterpretation of Nam June Paik as a composer who mixed performance and music.

Nam June Paik’s performances and happenings blurred the boundaries between musician, composer and audience thus transcending traditional art and sound practices to offer a ‘surprise’ experience. Over Music focuses on Nam June Paik’s new approach to arts and sound as well as role in Fluxus music. The program is not simply a celebration of Nam June Paik’s pioneering interest in experimental sound art. In addition it will aim to further develop accompanying theoretical events along with performances based on thorough research of Nam June Paik, music history and theory.

With free improvised performance by ‘Bulgasari'(1) under the theme of ‘moving sounds’ on 25th April Center starts to presents various performance programs on every last Saturday of month in 2009.

The program ‘Over Music : Experimental Festival at NJP ArtCenter'(2) aims to explore Nam June Paik who began his career as composer in relation to music and to relocate him in the history of modern music.

In addition to the historical research on Nam June Paik in music. we will organize a live performance of sound art and experimental music. a workshop on diverse artistic experiments. and a related seminar on every last Saturday of month. You can see two works included in ‘The First Stop on the Super Highway’, Robert Breer’s ‘Fist Fight’ and Fluxus’ ,’Flux Films’ in the original 16mm film, especially on 25th April.

(1) Bulgasari, since the first performance of Sato Yukie, SangMan Kim, Hanjoo Lee, Minsuk Kang and Sunbae Choi is a Voluntary live concert toward free improvisation and inter-genre combination among music, Butoh, performance art, mime, dance, video performance. live paintiong installation, and other visual art. Since February 2003, Bulgasari has been performing in various concerts (including regular and special cases) with diverse musicians.

(2) ‘Over Music : Experimental Festival at NJP ArtCenter’ is a regular program of performance to research and introduce Nam June Paik as musicion, contemporary sound experimental music in their relation to each other.

･ Itta & Marqido･ Sato Yukie･ Angela ROBERTS & Scott GOFF･ Lee Hanjoo & Michael OAKLEY･ Jo Young Min･ Kim Young Jin･ Lee Bonggyo & All Musician & Audien

･ Robert Breer [Fist Fight], 1964 , 16mm film, 9min [69 69], 1969, 16mm film, 5min [70 70], 1970, 16mm film, 5min
･ Fluxus [Fluxfilms], 1964-70, 16mm film