Harry Partch

Documentary about pre-Columbian art whose aesthetic and utilitarian values are intimately related to its myths and history.

Partch takes the viewer on a tour of his Chicago home, and plays his microtonal instruments. Includes his demonstration of how the soundtrack for Windsong was made. "Music Studio" is about Partch and the many instruments he invented for the performance of his music. This is, without a doubt, the best way to begin the process of getting to know Partch, his theory of dividing the octave into 43 parts, the sounds of the instruments (and the pitches of his tuning system), and all the physical issues intimately connected with performing on those instruments. (Stephen Smoliar, The Rehearsal Studio)

The Dreamer That Remains is a documentary produced by Betty Freeman and directed by Stephen Pouliot in 1972. Here is the director’s original cut along with his commentary. If you’ve never seen Partch or his instruments before, this is the place to start.

Harry Partch and his ensemble perform a dramatized account of riding the rails during the Depression on a transcontinental hobo trip from California to Chicago.

If you ever wondered how a simple recipe for rose petal jam could turn into a hobo dance and a diatribe about music critics, you are in for a treat.

Conjoined fables are told, one Japanese, the other African, a ghost story colliding with farcical folklore.