TASTING NOTES

A pioneering composer who traverses the realms of popular and high culture, a keen collector of sounds, and a prolific collaborator, Ryuichi Sakamoto pushes into new frontiers with a composition that pairs sound, flavour, light and texture  

- DAVID GRAVER

Dressed in a warm, effervescent glow, the two-storey Beaux-Arts Court of New York City's Brooklyn Museum played host to the world premiere of 'Seeing Sound, Hearing Krug', a sensory collaboration between acclaimed Japanese composer, musician and actor Ryuichi Sakamoto and the historic champagne house. A hundred guests sat in two triangular formations, flanked by a live orchestra of 36 musicians on one side, and a pianist and the concertmaster before a shifting digital backdrop on the other. A perimeter of slender light columns encapsulated the entire synesthetic playground.

Set to a cascade of crotales (a series of radiant antique cymbals), guests were served their first pour of Krug, and Sakamoto's three-movement symphony, Suite for Krug in 2008, commenced. Each ten-minute segment was paired with the Krug champagne that inspired it, as well as precise 3D sound design and responsive lighting. The effect was one of sensorial immersion - Sakamoto's melody enhanced the champagne's flavour and texture, sound and taste harmonising to emotive effect.

'I like the concept of making the impalpable tangible,' says the composer. 'It is well said that we are touched by music. I deeply believe in the sensory power of music, which provokes emotions in us.

Sakamoto is the latest in a prestigious line of partners for the Krug Echoes series, wherein the champagne house tasks musicians, composers and sound artists with interpreting the sensations of its champagne. 'Seeing Sound, Hearing Krug' was the culmination of Sakamoto's immersion in the brand, which began in 2019. For inspiration, the visionary composer looked to the 2008 harvest, which followed a particularly lush growing season. A self-proclaimed collector of sounds, Sakamoto sent members of his team to Reims to record soundscapes from Krug's vineyards and cellars. He himself worked closely with Krug's cellar master, Julie Cavil.