IT: The way that you personify these people in the film, giving background into their lives and their motivations, I was able to truly appreciate the inherent art and value of the performances. What has the response been from other people in terms of how the movie has affected them?
TP: I have been really shocked by the response and it's been wonderful. What you just described is what I would have hoped to have happened, but frankly I didn't expect it. . . .
My intention all along was to do something that went beyond the audience of the music. That's a difficult job in a way. Most music documentaries rely on the fact that the audience is going to like the music. But I knew that wasn't the case here -- that what was interesting about these people was independent of the particulars of their art form.
IT: I think this DVD gives you permission to explore your art, irrespective of the outcome. Within the commercial context where most of us live, it's difficult to see it that way sometimes.
TP: I'm happy to hear you say that because I was really surprised. This landscape architect/urban designer came to the premiere. He bought ten copies of the film and gave them to all of his employees in the firm. He talked about that idea of creativity, just encouraging people to be more free.
IT: It gets back to your filmmaker's essay, where you talk about being outside of the commercial realm. I think a lot of people are hungry for that type of freedom of expression on some level. I think your film does speak to that.
TP: I love what Dan Plonsey says [in the film]. That he thinks it's more important as a musician to enable other people to create than it is to create things for them to listen to. That's a really extreme view. But I think, in general, it captures something about what real culture is. That’s what real culture does. It passes from person to person. And it inspires.
IT: I imagine some of your greatest response is from musicians because they can appreciate the nuance of it.
TP: I think there's a way in which this music really is a musician's music. . . . A lot of people come to it just as players -- they come to it after they feel like they've exhausted the three-chord potential or something. But the people who are into this music are people who love music, and who generally seem to be extremely open-minded and love all kinds of music.
IT: Is there any hierarchy among musicians in this area — maybe people who are just dabbling at it in a less professional way, versus your serious improvisational performers?
TP: I would say it's more of an inclusive scene, much less dedicated to maintaining that distinction between levels of musicianship and the audience.
Gino Robair has this wonderful thing he does, one of his practices, he does this potluck percussion. The audience is told to bring things, and all he does is play things that people bring. People try to make it hard for him. They'll bring a cup of yogurt or a blender.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get any footage of that -- just a little bit of this Fluxusy stuff that he does. There’s one shot of him playing a drum with rolled up newspapers until they completely disintegrate into nothing.
