+15 Soundscape: Peter Moller’s 1958 is a journey through time and memory
When Peter Moller was a young child, he went to The Grand theatre to watch his very first movie along with his parents and his brother. The Danish family of four was sitting in the iconic Calgary landmark, feeling comfortable on those famous green leather seats - the same ones where audiences had witnessed performances by The Marx Brothers, speeches by Nelly McClung, and even rallies for both the Liberal and Conservative parties. People were smoking around him – as it was usual at the time - and the sinuous smoke would dance and float away from the cigarettes, to be immediately caught by the light coming from the projection booth. It formed a striking apparition in the form of a funnel of light, an image that would instantly be imprinted in Peter’s head. This memorable moment in time catalyzed his love affair with the historic building, and subsequently with the arts in all forms – it happened suddenly like polaroid of a memory that he has kept close to his heart all these years.
On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, I had the pleasure of meeting that same child, who since then has turned into a renowned visual artist, theatre sound designer, graphic designer, and musician based in Calgary. Peter, who is a proud citizen of the community of Ramsay, is going about life and creating all kinds of art within a stone’s throw of the magical place where the Bow River meets the Elbow, in the city that has become his unlikely home since he immigrated to Canada from Denmark with his family at age 3. Peter graciously agreed to spend an hour in his basement talking to me via Zoom about his project 1958 – currently being exhibited in the Arts Commons +15 Soundscape gallery - and talking about the Calgary of yesterday, today and tomorrow – big spoiler alert: it inspired me to no end.
Peter Moller creates and communicates in different art languages that go from punk music nostalgia to world-building harmonics, from underground band poster patois to performance art allegory. His career spanning four decades has always favoured an irreverent “D.I.Y. spirit” as he calls it, one that is intrinsic to his generation filled with cultural instigators such as Michael Green, Richard McDowell, Sheri-D. Wilson, and many others who have taken part in building Calgary’s artistic landscape as we know it today. Some of whom he has established lifelong friendships and embarked on inspiring collaborations that have endured his entire career.
As an artist, Peter’s currency is one of tokens of intimate knowledge of Calgary’s alternative history, mixed with the aura of his friends who have left this world too soon, and a myriad of projects that have been pouring out of his hands since the moment he took over his dad’s offset press and decided he was leaving ACAD to pursue a creative life. His work and dedication to Calgary has gained him an impressive career that now culminates with a beautiful piece of introspection and self-discovery - 1958.
1958 is an hour-long sound exploration into the intimate memory of his journey to Canada by boat and train, as well as a self-designated “tone poem” (an orchestral piece which illustrates a theme - as he explains) and a love letter to both his mother and his father - who passed away three years ago.
1958 evokes the moment many of us who have immigrated to Canada remember as the process of changing your physical and mental space and adopting a new locality to wake up, drink coffee, live our lives, and go to sleep every day for the foreseeable future; along with the sounds that make up the fabric of that life changing transition.
This project is a way for the artist to process a somewhat unexplained journey to a new country as a kid, yet also a tribute to the place that has seen him become an originator, experimenter and daring collaborator. In the piece, audiences will find themselves getting lost with the carefully crafted experience, one that is rich and enveloping and makes use of the calmness of ocean sounds, stark horns, layers of actual recordings of Peter’s parents speaking in Danish, and the mysterious vibe of a cello played by Morag Northey to portray the adventurous expedition to a brand-new land. As an experienced theatre sound designer, Moller chooses to tell a story in sound form like a play that has been written as merely exposition but has been packed with memory and deep personal connection.
My conversation with Peter quickly evolved into a fascinating tale of a Calgary that I’m not familiar with, one that I can piece together with many of the existing initiatives that hold up the arts as I know them now. Involved either as an avid supporter or an active contributor in organizations such as the 10 Foot Henry’s Club, the One Yellow Rabbit Performance Theatre, as well as the beginning of several artist run centres, Peter has had a definite role in shaping Calgary’s cultural environment - an environment that is now more than ever in need of invoking the D.I.Y. spirit he fancies. I asked him to give me his take on the recovery of a post-pandemic arts scene and he states:
“Things sometimes burn down in the arts world, but there's always a phoenix that rises from it. It seems to me, people regroup and come back because the goals are always the same. You are always aiming to do creation and interesting work and that reflects the times that you're in. I hope we all learn something so that you know the new normal is not normal at all, and that we might have actually learned something from this lockdown.”
Peter also strongly believes diversity is essential to what we do and wants to see Calgary continue to evolve in order to include more voices in the scene. He reflects on the Calgary of the 1960s and 70s and he recognizes the arts are better and stronger when we all participate and have a space to thrive; and what keeps us doing what we do, is that collective interest and knowledge that maybe sometimes it’s the smallest things – such as a vivid experience in a theatre at a young age - that can help us find our passion.
1958 can be experienced from May 1 - September 5, you can visit the virtual gallery soundscape at Arts Commons by clicking here and you can read more about 1958 on Peter Moller’s website here.
