A Century in Sound | Doc’n Roll NYC FF

Doc’n Roll NYC FF Presents:

A CENTURY IN SOUND is a six part documentary that tells a 100-year history of Tokyo through music and memory, done so through the “unique-to-Japan” cultural phenomenon of music focused establishments known collectively as “ONGAKU KISSA” (lit. “music cafes”). Places where local residents have gathered for decades to give reverence to the music they love.

From the “meikyoku kissa” (classical music cafes) that first sprung up in Tokyo in the early years of the Showa era (1920s / 1930s), to the “jazz kissa” that spread across the capital and beyond after Japan was defeated in World War II, to the “rock kissa” of the 1970s right through to the more contemporary iterations of more modern times, these have traditionally been spaces that are built with the sole purpose of serving the community with music.

Not just showcasing this incredible culture to an audience outside of Japan for the very first time, the series explores the universal themes of what role music plays in our lives, be it holding the key to some of our most cherished memories, how it brings us together, how it shapes our identity and, for some of us, is our entire reason for living. The series also invites us to question our own relationship with music as listening habits have changed over the past two decades as the world marched towards a digital future where streaming and the AI revolutions have most certainly transformed the role that music plays in modern society.

NY Premiere.