“Kaminoyama Soundmark” is a permanent site-specific installation commissioned by the Donaueschinger Musiktage and the City of Donaueschingen.
In 1924, the Japanese poet Saitō Mokichi travelled to Donaueschingen to visit the source of the Danube. 100 years later, in 2024, Robin Minard travelled in turn to Kaminoyama, Saitō’s hometown, to record its bells and local soundscapes. The sounds collected became part of Minard’s installation in Donaueschingen.
The installation is situated in the Karlsgarten, a small park directly across from the Donaueschingen train station. Sounds are projected from a large steel plate lying in a grassy area of the park in the shade of a Japanese cherry tree. The work renders Kaminoyama audibly present in Donaueschingen despite the geographical distance.
The installation sounds three times daily: in the morning at 10:20 AM, in the afternoon at 4:20 PM (the time Saitō’s train left Donaueschingen) and in the evening at 8:20 PM. The work builds an acoustic bridge between Donaueschingen and Kaminoyama and communicates both cultural diversity and cultural integration.
Thanks to
Lydia Rilling, Director of the Donaueschinger Musiktage
Erik Pauly, Mayor of the City of Donaueschingen
Mina Hara, President of the German-Japanese Society, Donaueschingen
Heike Föhrenbach, City of Donaueschingen
Takeo Hashima, President of the German-Japanese Society, Kaminoyama
Keiichi Aita, Executive Director at the Saito Mokichi Memorial Museum
Yoshitaka Igarashi, Curator at the Saito Mokichi Memorial Museum
Chihiro Kagami, City of Kaminoyama
Ludger Hennig, Artistic Assistant
Susan Minard, Photography
Presentations
2024 (inauguration): Donaueschinger Musiktage, Donaueschingen 17.10.2024
