AVVA (Nakamura, Toshimaru / Roisz, Billy)

Gdansk Queen [DVD]

Label: erstwhile Country: USA

"AVVA is the duo of Toshimaru Nakamura and Billy Roisz, based in Tokyo and Vienna respectively. AVVA stands for "Audio Video/Video Audio", referring to the working method of the duo. Nakamura produces the music using the internal feedback from his no-input mixing board, Roisz uses that as the basis for her optical moving patterns, and Nakamura has a TV monitor showing Roisz' output, so the whole process is circular and created in real time.

Since 1998, Nakamura has been exploring the possibilities of his no-input mixing board in contexts ranging from solo to collaborations with Keith Rowe, Günter Müller, Sachiko M, Andrea Neumann, John Butcher and Sean Meehan. Nakamura was a prominent presence throughout the AMPLIFY 2002 box set, appearing on five of the seven CDs, and an integral part of the Good Morning Good Night, ErstLive 005 and 4g releases. He has released two superb duo projects in 2006, aluk (w/ Klaus Filip) and the stunning double CD between (w/Rowe).

Roisz has been manipulating live video in various combinations since 2000, with such musicians as Dieb13, Christof Kurzmann, and Efzeg. She specializes in feedback video and video/sound interaction, exploring the links and gaps between seeing and hearing, images and sounds. Roisz has released around fifteen individual music videos, including one on the Sonic Fiction compilation on Index and on the Efzeg CD Boogie (Grob). gdansk queen is her first full-length DVD.

Nakamura and Roisz first worked together as part of the Feedback: Order From Noise tour in the UK in the summer of 2004. They felt such an affinity for each other's working methods that they formed the AVVA duo, and have toured in both Europe and Japan. gdansk queen consists mostly of edited live recordings, as well as two pieces which were mail collaborations (the audio done by Nakamura in Tokyo, with the video later composed in real time by Roisz in Vienna). Nakamura and Roisz are ideal partners, their audio and video feedback combining to become far more than the sum of their parts, resulting in a mind-melting experience in which boundaries are constantly created and then destroyed. The design combines a cover photo from Dieter Kovacic with stills from the DVD in an elegant oversized jewel box."-Erstwhile