RANGELY I The Tank Center for Sonic Arts had a few events in hopes of bringing more talent and film potential to The Tank and to Rangely during the weekend of April 27-30.
Artistic filmmaker Bill Morrison and Grammy Award-winning guitarist/composer Bill Frisell visited Rangely to explore possibilities for film and music at The Tank. The weekend was part of what is being called The Karbank Residency. Morrison and Frisell have collaborated on a previous film, “The Great Flood.”
They spent four days playing with the Tank and learning a lot about it. They conducted many interviews to learn all about the stories of The Tank from the people of Rangely. The hope is this residency will begin a project which will use archival film footage to explore geology, dinosaurs, petroleum and the West. One of the hopes is this film will become a permanent installation at The Tank.
Bill Frisell spoke of memories from childhood as he drove closer to Rangely and the mountains. “Getting out of the city, coming up was so powerful. It has to play a part in what goes on here,” he said in regards to the residency and upcoming film.
Bill Morrison was brought in by Bruce Odland. Odland recognized the sound quality in the Tank and has been a part of spreading the news and love of the Tank all over the world. Morrison experienced the Tank Friday night and was “blown away” by the sound and resonance.
Morrison and Frisell spoke highly of Rangely and The Tank and are excited to dig deeper into this residency.
Friday Paul Sangster, a projection mapping specialist, conducted an experiment on the surfaces in, on and around the Tank. This will go hand and hand with a landscaping project that is in the works to create more seating around the Tank so more people will be able to enjoy the sounds and music.
Saturday consisted of a screening of “The Great Flood” at Elaine Urie’s newly remodeled space. They also had a light and sound exhibition under the stars at the Tank.
James Paul, executive director of the Tank, works to bring people in from all over to experience the Tank.
The Tank is a unique arts organization in Rangely. It is dedicated to an empty water tank that possesses an extraordinary resonance, a reverberation longer and richer than the Taj Mahal’s. The Tank itself was constructed around 1940 as a railroad water-treatment facility. It was moved by a utility company to Rangely in the mid-1960s as part of a fire-suppression system. Because the shale under the tank could not support it filled with water, the plan was not enacted. It is because of that gravel the tank floor bowed giving it its amazing acoustical resonance.
By BRITTNY CAMPOS | Special to the Herald Times
