Syzygys

Syzygys (pronounced she-jee-jeez) were a female duo comprised of Nara-born Hitomi Shimizu on the microtonal organ and Tokyo-born Hiromi Nishida on the violin. Between 1985 and 1995 they created some of the most offbeat music ever to fall under the banner of pop. The phrase ‘quirky lunacy’ always seems to appear in their maddeningly short biography and, as much as I hate to recycle perceived wisdom, I see no reason not to agree.

A typical Syzygys composition is deliriously askew, barrelling through various time signatures almost to the point of breaking up before gliding back into the slipstream of a warm contagious melody. The Syzygys sound is driven by the mysterious cadences of Harry Partch’s 43 note-to-the-octave microtonal organ, pictured above, a conventional Yamaha reed organ reassembled and relabelled to indicate special ‘Syzygy chords’. You too can try your hand at playing most of Harry Partch’s musical inventions online at this genius website.

While the original Syzygys releases have remained locked away in obscurity, the duo’s entire recorded catalogue was compiled on one CD by Tzadik Records for their New Japan series in 2003 and now lies within tantalising reach of your mouse pointer. That may have served to release the fluttering butterfly that is Syzygys’ music from its jar, but it didn’t shed much light on who the original protagonists were.

Until now, that is! Hitomi Shimizu has recently relaunched the Syzygys website which, as well as allowing you to ‘play’ (in my experience, ‘press the keys of’ always feels like a more apt description) the microtonal organ itself, includes more biographical details and updates on both members’ current activities.

Since they ceased making music together, the pair have pursued very different musical careers. Shimizu is an award-winning film composer who works with Yamamura Animation Studios, lending her quirky atmospheric style most recently to a film version of Franz Kafka’s A Country Doctor in 2007. For these projects she still uses the Syzygys name. Nishida, whose Arabic-flavoured violin lunges were just as integral a part of the duo’s sound, went on to study the instrument further in Cairo in the late ’90s and has toured Tunisia, Egypt and France. Here’s what made them special in the first place:

Syzygys – Fauna Grotesque