Jack Prest

Echo Mapping is a multi-art duet by electronic musician/composer Jack Prest and street dancer/choreographer Azzam Mohamed. Raw creativity and unpretentious process are the backbone of Echo Mapping. The work is stripped back to the simplest elements, no sets, no costumes and minimal production. The sole focus is on the sound and movement.

Echo Mapping embodies an interplay of music and dance. Jack performs the music, moving from transcendent textures to thundering beats, live on stage. Azzam performs with both voice and body. Singing traditional Sundanese melodies while maintaining a commanding stillness.  He builds with sporadic vocalisations and fluid yet intense choreography. His vocalisations are recorded and manipulated by Prest becoming a part of sonic atmosphere. Echo Mapping is about knowing when to listen, when to respond, when to lead, when to follow, when to claim space, when to yield it and most importantly when to share it.

This process draws inspiration from club culture, in which the music serves as catalyst for the dancers. In turn, the DJ adapts the music, responding to the energy on the dancefloor. Echo Mapping goes deeper with these dynamic exchanges, substituting the DJ for composer and party dance for choreography. 

This performance seamlessly intertwines music and dance seeking to create a deep dialogue and communication between composer and choreographer. Sydney dance luminary Vick Van Hout said of a developmental showing of the work “..I felt Mohamed’s relationship with Prest was more symbiotic, occurring as an interdisciplinary duet rather than a series of to and fro communiqués.” (Form Dance Newsletter 09/23).

The work was initially developed as part of the Monumental (Working Title) program at the Art Gallery of NSW in 2022 and showcased at the Sydney Festival in 2023. This early iteration took the form of an open artist lab, presenting process as performance. It saw the two artists enter the gallery space with no pre-prepared material and over the course of a weekend they improvised and experimented leading to several impromptu performances throughout the festival. The audience was invited to witness the evolution of this dynamic partnership as it unfolded in real-time.

This spirit of raw creativity and unpretentious process has become the backbone of Echo Mapping. The work is stripped back to the simplest elements of collaboration, no sets, no costumes and minimal production. The focus is on the movement and the music, nothing else. Jack performs the score, which draws from ambient music, hip-hop and house, live on stage providing a clear focus for the audience on the immersive nature of the music. The rest of the stage belongs to Azzam who builds and responds with both voice and body constantly weaving throughout the sonic atmosphere created by Jack’s music.

Azzam and Jack built on the material generated during Monumental and crafted it into a short work for Dirty Feet’s Out Of The Studio program in September 2023. This 20 minute duet titled T.H.E.L.A.B. (Transcending Horizons: Exploring Limitless Artistic Boundaries) distilled elements of the open labs including musical ideas, Azzam’s vocalisations and live looping to create unique atmospheres. This piece was so successful as an expression of their collaboration Azzam and Jack were keen to use it as the starting point for development of a full length duo work. 

Echo Mapping is set for final development and presentation in 2024. Firstly through the creation of another short work due for presentation in April 2024 at SoundBody and new program presented by Intimate Spectacle. Azzam and Jack intend for this work to be part 2 of the existing 20 minutes created for Out Of The Studio. All these elements will be brought together into a full length duo work that will premiere at the prestigious Art Gallery of NSW in the second half of 2024, followed by presentation at New Annual Festival.

The room is set in a black box, with a simple stage setup, the atmosphere is warm and inviting, bathed in amber tones of light. The sound in the room is unique and difficult to describe. It vibrates and reverberates, creating a continuous tone that can be felt in the feet and chest. It has a pulsating quality, but there is no discernible beat.

A casually dressed man enters the stage and walks towards a table filled with electronic devices and a sound machine. He moves with ease and purpose. His presence is calm and composed. As he approaches the table, he starts to interact with the sound machine, adding different elements to the sound. The vibrations continue and the unique sounds captivate my attention and spark my curiosity, drawing me into the performance.

A tall man enters the space and takes center stage. He exudes a soft energy, and his movements are deliberate and controlled. He begins to cover one eye with his hand, creating a visual gesture that aligns with the sound. The sound shifts, introducing a soft whirling repetition. With each hand and change of movement, he covers a different part of his face, evoking a sense of mystery and intrigue.

My attention is drawn to the new sound, a vibration that is coming from the dancer himself. He begins to hum, moan, and chant, and the man at the sound machine brings a microphone to capture and loop the chanting live. The dancer is fully present and deeply focused, in a state of mindfulness that is both captivating and delicate.

As the dancer's hands continue to move and tell a story, the movement starts to travel down his body, incorporating his feet, knees, and hips. His body begins to stutter, adding a layer of complexity to the movement.

Suddenly, his voice joins the soundscape, disrupting it with a deep exploration of scatting. He explores the scale, responding to the dynamics with his head movements and body. He breaks away from the center of the stage, pounding the floor with his feet like a marching force of nature. The rhythm he creates echoes the recorded chanting, enveloping the space.

The volume increases and fluctuates, moving forward and backward. The dancer moves diagonally, reaching and lunging in each direction. His arms extend dynamically, adding a new dimension to the performance.

For the first time, the dancer turns away from the audience, mapping and marking the sounds around and across the stage. He ventures to the corners with a hoeing sound, connecting deeply with the earth. He stomps and directs himself throughout the space, fully immersed in the choreographic landscape.

Gradually, he calms down and settles into a corner, while the chanting continues. He finds an active stillness, gently swaying to the softening dynamics. In response, the musician plays soft, low trumpet notes, and the dancer moves with newfound fluidity. His delicate hands create beautiful figures, tracing and flowing through the air. He ventures down low to the ground to a deep held position and then gracefully rises again, his movements contrasting strength and grace perfectly.

A new sound is introduced, it's digital and electronic, like the brushing of wires. It creates a sense of being squeezed through something, adding an extra layer of intensity to the performance. There is a rawness and vulnerability in the interaction between the dances and the musician, a language that only they understand, but that we, as the audience, can experience and appreciate.

A burst of energy shifts the dynamic. The dancer traverses the space with swinging arms and legs, incorporating the Charleston into his movements. The movement is then completely juxtaposed with a fluid, curving, flowing style as he seamlessly converts between the two. creating a captivating and unusual movement score. His energy intensifies, as he works hard to continue to mark and explore the space.

He moves swiftly around the stage, rolling from one leg to the next, displaying the agility and skill of a street dancer preparing for battle. There is a sense of hecticness within the calm, the ephemeral sound and energy creating a joyful atmosphere that washes over him as he moves impulsively and with sensory awareness.

As he reaches the upstage area, strong lights surround him, creating a soft spotlight and glow. A new beat and staccato sound are introduced, and he responds with a popping and loose-locking improvisation. The lights fade, the music fades, and finally, a blackout envelops the stage, leaving me in a state of anticipation and awe.

 Writer Sarah-Vyne Vassallo - A live written response to the LAB at Out Of The Studio production presented by DirtyFeet at Neilson Studio Theatre, Sydney Dance COmpany 2023