The Reef Revisited - interview with Mick Sowry

Stu Nettle picture
Stu Nettle (stunet)
Surfpolitik

In May 2012, Mick Sowry embarked on a unique mission to Gnaraloo, with esteemed violinist, composer and conductor - and surfer - Richard Tognetti, plus lensman Jon Frank and finless pioneer Derek Hynd along with a crew of surfers, musicians and film makers.

Two weeks were spent surfing, making music and filming, the result of which was The Reef - a live performance where projections of Frank's images were synchronised against a soundscape provided by the Australian Chamber Orchestra, under Tognetti's direction.

Three years later, and the finishing touches are now being applied to its sequel The Reef Revisited. Swellnet spoke with Mick about the new production. 

Swellnet: Your last production was called The Reef, what's the title of the latest production?

Mick Sowry: For the performance we're doing in Sydney, its going to be The Reef Revisited, but in America it's going to be The Reef. It's completely new to them.

How does this production differ from the first?

It's vastly different. Last time we went up and filmed for three weeks, edited for three weeks, rehearsed for about ten days, and then launched it. It was an incredibly compressed schedule.

This time we went up for another three weeks but we had a much more extended post-production period and a lot more effort put into editing, ordering, and composing the pieces. The opportunity to go back and do it justice was like a gift.

Was it easier the second time around?

No, it was harder. Much harder.

Because you had higher expectations?

Absolutely. It was intense. I started editing the day we got back, the 20th of August, and we, that is Jon Frank and I, are still doing it. Because we had so much more time we ended up putting so much more effort into it and being much more forensic in the editing.

The structure of The Reef is that each of the pieces of music is telling you a different story about life, but with this new opportunity we're trying to structure it more chronologically so you begin with some sort of birth and you move through getting older, and older.

What surfers are featured?

Our characters are Derek Hynd, Ryan Burch, Dane and Tully Beevor, and Taylor Miller. We've featured a couple of other surfers. Dino Adrian, and Jay Davies have made a little appearance.

Was that planned or impromptu?

Relatively impromptu, they were up there and we shot them. There came an opportunity to shoot them in a good swell at Red Bluff and we had to find out whether it was going to fit or not. As it happens Richard [Tognetti] had recently composed a piece of music and he sent it to me and off the back of that this piece with Dino and Jay evolved. It's called Hypnosis and it's a staggeringly beautiful piece, especially when set to surfing.

The surfing those guys do is off the charts, they ride incredible barrels, but it's not like your normal surf clip. I'd say it's the best surf of the whole film in terms of surf quality...but the music is just otherworldly.

You're a visual artist, Mick, you've dabbled – for want of a better term – in film production, and now you're working with music - classical music no less. Is it intimidating to be working on something held in such high regard?

Well I did Musica Surfica a few years ago, and I've always loved classical music though it's been from the point of view of someone who enjoys listening rather than some one who can play. It's been a steep learning curve but I've come to know it very well from the association with Richard and the ACO [Australian Chamber Orchestra]. There are pieces of music within The Reef that are held in very high regard in the classical musical canon. For those I've had to rely on Richard to understand their significance.

The last piece in the film is Beethoven's Cavatina and that piece is revered. We've had to be incredibly careful with how we treat it. The story goes that when Beethoven composed it he started to cry and the manuscript he was composing on has his tear stains on it. So Richard is understandably very precious about Cavatina and we did multiple cuts of it.

You speak very highly of classical music, so what then is surfing when used in this context?

Surfing, in this sense, helps you get an essence of the music and express that essence visually. It is the dance. In my mind surfing, in The Reef, is a representation of being the best you can be as a human.

So can we call it an art?

It can be. It's the dance and it's a personal thing. If you looked at my surfing you wouldn't say it was art [laughs] but if you look at someone like Ryan Burch it starts to push itself into that space. I've never seen a more photogenic surfer in my life. What happens with his stuff, particularly when you pair it with classical music it starts to take on this beautiful, rare quality.

Likewise, at the other end of the spectrum, is Derek's surfing. He has his low crouch and if you put him in a good righthander it's astonishing what he does, but it was harder for him on the lefts at Tombies. Yet what Derek brought to his surfing up there was courage. If I was to say anything it'd be courage because to take on Tombstones with no fins on your backhand required lots of it. Also, what he brings to our story is also about what is possible. He shouldn’t be able to do what he does at 58. But he does. And it is incredibly inspiring.

How big a part did finless play in this film schedule?

This time around no-one went finless but we carried over a reasonable amount of the footage from last time. It's recut. But the thing about finless – or I should say free friction because that's what DH insists we call it – is that it brings something that's timeless to the film, and because of that it's really, really important. So the opening scene is free friction with Ryan on his little block of styrene that he rode last time. That's some of the most amazing footage you'll ever see. So the opening two pieces from this Reef are from the last lot of filming.

After that there's a section where we don't have any surfing but then it's pretty much wall-to-wall surfing, say from half an hour in right to the finish. There's probably more surfing in this Reef but it's very different. We've got Ryan mostly on mostly fish, Dane and Tully doing their very different things, Jay Davies and Dino in Red Bluff barrels, and then Derek, and then a little more Ryan. But it's not really about the surfing, it's about life, grace, resignation and contentment.

I'd say this Reef is 100% better than the last one in every way. It's much more intense, it's much more cogent, and it's much more beautiful. We've had much more time to edit it, and grade it, and make it as magnificent as it can be.

Where can people see it Mick?

On the 12th February were doing a preview at Angel Place, Sydney. There’ll also be a support piece from Tim Bonython featuring some of his monsters with the ACO providing the score. I know it’s been a dream of Tim’s to do this and I’m stoked he’ll be there. 

After that it's in America and then it may come back to Australia in the near(ish) future. And I now need to get a real job.

You can purchase tickets to the Angel Place showing of The Reef Revisited here.
Read Steve Shearer's 2009 review of
Musica Surfica here.

Comments

Narcissitic Surfer's picture
Narcissitic Surfer's picture
Narcissitic Surfer Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 4:50pm

The constant reinvention of surfing , surprises no one.
Surfing today has not evolved, as some seem to think, it has become a full blown commodity that spares no one, in our ''economy'' of innovative entrepreneurs.
Individualism as epitomised by this latest take, is taken to greater extremes, so as to glorify and ''look at me know'' syndrome.
Many are swept up in all the hype, and self indulgence that pervades the surfing culture in what has become a boring, repetitive culture.
No doubt many want to see it differently, as a defence to the new narcissitic religion it has become.

OHV500's picture
OHV500's picture
OHV500 Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 5:37pm

Nice one Mick - be great to see.

thermalben's picture
thermalben's picture
thermalben Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 5:40pm

NS, many surfers I know have no greater musical interest other than replaying Pennywise albums over and over to relive the soundtracks of their youth.

Other surfers evolve their taste as time goes on.

Either/or, whatever floats your boat.

For me, I'll see y'all at Angel Place, just to check out something new and fresh.

wellymon's picture
wellymon's picture
wellymon Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 6:42pm

"Other surfers evolve their taste as time goes on.

Either/or, whatever floats your boat."

Spot on Ben.

zenagain's picture
zenagain's picture
zenagain Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 5:54pm

As a classical music lover in part thanks to my dads love of the classics and now my wife, I think an orchestra really lends itself to surfing in that the music can create mood, emotion and atmosphere. I wish I could put it into words.

I think it's wonderful that somebody would attempt this in this day and I age. I only wish I could see it because I know instantly that I would love it.

freeride76's picture
freeride76's picture
freeride76 Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 8:10pm

After being up there for the first filming of the Reef I think this: "In my mind surfing, in The Reef, is a representation of being the best you can be as a human"....is a fair call.
Although to be equally fair I probably wasn't the best human after necking a dozen bush chooks every night.

Ontheroad's picture
Ontheroad's picture
Ontheroad Monday, 21 Dec 2015 at 11:38pm

Awesome and original idea with what must be some wild surfing too... cant wait to check it out..