A Hawk and A Hacksaw will be performing a live re-scoring of Sergei Parajanov’s Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors at the Filmhouse, Edinburgh, Sun 4 Mar only @ 8:30pm.

Soviet cinema remains one of the more interesting areas of world cinema today. In the West, we tend to focus on Stalinist regimes echoed in film and leave blank spots when discussing the progression of the industry. Sergei Parajanov’s 1965 classic reminds us to honour the modes of culture which have given us subject matter and material to make films on, and calls for us to appreciate the hidden customs which govern many societies today.

It primarily tells the story of Ivan and Marichka (Ivan Mykolajchuk and Larisa Kadochnikova), members of the Hutsul group in Ukraine, who fall in love despite the murder of Ivan’s father after a dispute with Marichka’s. Parajanov uses this storyline to unravel the traditions surrounding marriage and the social mores which exist in Hutsul society, from music and ceremony to duty and faith.

In many ways, the film is a tribute to history. Its title remembers the ethno-cultural traditions of the Soviet era which live on in an increasingly technological world and the film is more a documentation of the civil rarities which produce universals in film – that of revenge, love and sacrifice. Magic realism is a central narrative device in Shadows, as Parajanov experiments with the forms of dream and illusion which seep into everyday life during times of extreme grief and hardship. This, coupled with an investigation into the spiritual world of Hutsul religion including sorcery and enchantment, completes a film which acts as an essay on explicit Hutsul life.

But the real beauty at the heart of Parajanov’s film lies in its diverse exploration; heaving with folkloric poetry, Hutsul horn and pipe music, and religious symbolism, it paints a total picture of everyday ritual. The form supports the background to this film which celebrates Ukrainian clan culture, exposes the bitter rivalries which exist between families and depicts the harsh environment of the Carpathian Mountains. Looking a bit dated today, its aesthetic, a rich experimentation of mismatched colours and coarse cinematography landed Parajnov in trouble with the government as it veered from the traditional brand of socialist realism in cinema which promoted the ambitions of socialism during the rule of the USSR. As a result, he was blacklisted from Soviet cinema.

Music is therefore a fundamental and crucial element to the success of Shadows. It acts as a voice for expression, as an embodiment of tradition and as a reflection of the artistry which lies embedded within Hutsul life. New Mexico’s duo A Hawk and A Hacksaw are coming to the Filmhouse to offer a fresh, live scoring of Parajanov’s film. The pair’s music resembles Central/Eastern European gypsy music, which conjure up images from Emir Kusturica’s Black Cat, White Cat (if you’ve ever attended Studio 24’s Balkanarama event, you’ll know the genre well).

So A Hawk and A Hacksaw have a difficult task; their job is not to popularise or commercialise the music in Shadows, which would ultimately cheapen its meaning, but to work with, develop and produce a musical language which communicates with the film. This is what will be most exciting to see in the live performance: whether their folk tunes will compliment the original Ukrainian music in the film and whether their style will match the lyrical and free-flowing nature of the songs.

With this event also comes a question on how we view and value historical films. Does A Hawk and A Hacksaw’s decision to perform live celebrate the emotions we experience when watching films, or does it devalue the sovereignty of music in film? In a way, they are attempting something quite different to the days of silent film. Then, music would act as a voice to the film where nuanced emotions and moments of comedy could be expressed in note form. With Shadows however, its identity is already plain and clear, and it’s possible that a re-scoring may ruin it. They must find a way of unifying their own modern take on Eastern European music with the craft of the film; if they succeed, it will mark a triumph for contemporary society and its relationship with history. How we communicate with films that were produced during tumultuous periods in the past is a question many are afraid to ask; with this new project comes a rare opportunity to experience pioneering activities and merging traditions. At the least, we should rejoice in the conversation created.

You can listen to some of A Hawk and A Hacksaw’s tracks on their Myspace page here.

The full schedule for A Hawk and A Hacksaw’s tour can be found here.