WESTERN FRONT – 14 Songs and 1 Riddle

Description:

Robert Filliou presented his text 14 Songs and 1 Riddle in the Grand Luxe Hall as a polyphonic, translingual performance with accompaniment by Allan Kaprow, Steve McCaffery, and Vincent Trasov.

Written in French by Filliou in 1963, 14 Songs and 1 Riddle was translated into English in 1966 by George Brecht, and then into German by Dieter Roth in 1968. For this performance, Filliou read his original French text, while Kaprow read the English translation of Brecht, Trasov read the German translation of Roth, and McCaffery read an English re-translation of the Brecht developed with bpNichol and Dick Higgins. The performers read separately and simultaneously, allowing echoes and slippages to emerge from the layers of language.

The evening was introduced by Michael Morris, and also featured a screening of Kaprow’s film Routine (1973).

Video documentation is available upon request.

Steve McCafferry clutches a rolled stack of paper in his hands while reading in the Grand Luxe Hall. He wears a Western-style collared shirt and glasses. Vincent Trasov stands behind him.

Allan Kaprow stands in the Grand Luxe Hall with his fingers clasped in front of his torso. He wears a v-neck sweater over top of a collared shirt.

While reading in the Grand Luxe Hall, Steve McCaffery holds a piece of paper in his left hand and points upwards with his right hand. Vincent Trasov stands to his right.

Vincent Trasov and Steve McCaffery stand side-by-side while reading into microphones in the Grand Luxe Hall.

Robert Filliou reads from a piece of paper in his left hand in the Grand Luxe Hall. He wears a white sweater over top of a collared shirt.

Related People

Captions:

Steve McCafferry performing 14 Songs and 1 Riddle (1963), photo documentation, Nov 3, 1977.
Allan Kaprow performing 14 Songs and 1 Riddle (1963), photo documentation, Nov 3, 1977.
Vincent Trasov and Steve McCaffery performing 14 Songs and 1 Riddle (1963), photo documentation, Nov 3, 1977.
Vincent Trasov and Steve McCaffery performing 14 Songs and 1 Riddle (1963), photo documentation, Nov 3, 1977.
Robert Filliou performing 14 Songs and 1 Riddle (1963), photo documentation, Nov 3, 1977.

Western Front is a non-profit artist-run centre in Vancouver.

We acknowledge the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations as traditional owners of the land upon which Western Front stands.