by Mallory Moad
If you were given a pencil and asked to draw a planet, any planet, my guess is your picture would consist of a circle bisected horizontally by curved lines. In other words, Saturn. With it’s rings and multiple moons, Saturn is iconic. A classic.
That’s one of the reasons Fresno composer/musician, Tony Imperatrice chose to devote his first film, Cassini, to the exploration of this celestial superstar. The stars and planets have intrigued Tony since his childhood, thanks to the influence of his father. An amateur astronomer and former president of the Central Valley Astronomers, he would frequently take Tony along to the club’s star parties where, as Tony recalls, “we would stay up late looking at wonderful things” in the night sky. One of those was Saturn, which he describes as “the most beautiful thing you can actually see in our solar system.”
For those who are familiar with his various performances in the Rogue Festival, it may come as a surprise to learn that Tony is somewhat of a science nerd. He and his wife, artist Aileen Rodriguez Imperatrice, enjoy watching the PBS program, NOVA, “especially if it’s physics, dinosaurs or space stuff,” Tony says. It was an episode about the Cassini project, a 20-year mission by NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency to study the rings and moons of Saturn, that made the creative wheels in his brain begin to turn. “I was inspired to create a music/film piece where Cassini would be represented as a character.” Asking Aileen if his idea was crazy, she said, “Yes, but you should do it anyway.”
Portraying an object as a living character is an ancient form of storytelling and although the device has been used frequently in contemporary movies, most of them have been animated features that are aimed at kids (Wall-E, The Brave Little Toaster, Cars). Tony’s Cassini is referred to as she/her, but what we see are images of the actual spacecraft. There are no sad eyes, cute blips and beeps or heavily accented dialogue, just the real deal. “I wanted the music to take the lead in the storytelling and the images would serve to highlight and enhance the audience’s experience,” Tony explains. “I have always been fascinated by wordless storytelling and Cassini gave me the opportunity to write music for a film, make the film and tell a compelling story without words.” The only words used in Cassini are title cards that introduce each scene.
The 25-minute film combines Tony’s original compositions for augmented piano and pipe organ and wordless vocals, with video footage of Cassini from NASA’s website. The result is a tale that is engaging and intriguing with an end that packs an unexpected emotional wallop.
Typically driven by his creativity and ambition, Tony originally saw Cassini as a one-man project. “As with most of my art projects, there was only the plan of getting it done any way I can. This usually means working on my own, asking for favors and learning new skills.” But Cassini was turning out to be an effort of great proportions and Tony soon realized he would need to seek out professional assistance in order to meet his own expectations. Financing the project was a major concern. Under the guidance of Lilia Gonzales Chaves, Executive Director of the Fresno Arts Council, Tony applied for and received a grant from the City of Fresno’s Measure P. With funding available and in place, he was able to hire the staff he required, rather than merely ask nicely for help.
As Tony was composing the music for the film, it became clear that he would require a skilled opera singer in order to convey the drama of Cassini’s mission, as well as a choir to provide the voices of the spirit guides who lead Cassini on her way. He contacted Dr. Anna Hamre, director of the Fresno Community Chorus, who was able to provide a ten-member choir comprised of six female and four male voices. Dr. Hamre also recommended professional soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian for the voice of Cassini. Originally from Fresno, Isabel is known for her singing on the Lord of The Rings soundtrack and for her work in preserving traditional Armenian music.
Fresno Community Chorus
NASA’s videos and photos of the Cassini project are in the public domain so there is no charge for their use. But when Tony discovered how much material existed, he knew he was in need of an editor, someone to listen to the music, sort through all that imagery, and select the images that would illustrate the story of Cassini’s journey. Through CMAC (Community Media Access Collaborative), Tony connected with Claudio Laso. With years of experience in musical theatre performance and film editing, Claudio clearly understood the concept of Cassini. “As we went through the process of matching NASA video and images to the music, he had insights into connections that I hadn’t seen.” Their collaboration wasn’t just successful – it was enjoyable as well and Tony is looking forward to working with Claudio again in the future.
Cassini is an all-Fresno production. It was conceived by a Fresno artist, the music written by a Fresno composer, recorded by Fresno musicians at a Fresno studio and edited by a Fresno film maker at CMAC, a Fresno institution. Because the making of Cassini was funded by the taxpayers of Fresno, it is (and always will be) available to watch free of charge online.
Isabel Bayrakdarian, Tony Imperatrice and Dr. Anna Hambre
The film Cassini may have been completed but that’s just one part of a bigger project. “From the beginning, I constructed Cassini so that the music could be performed live in synchronization with the film,” Tony says. “I have applied for a second Measure P grant for this purpose.” But whether or not that grant is awarded, Tony is passionate about performing Cassini live. “After all, that has always been my mode of operation, get it done any way you can.”
Cassini is streaming on YouTube and you can watch it here: youtu.be/SUbVscZlu98?si=obsQ2Dvzrb5RYITh Note: I strongly suggest watching Cassini on the biggest screen possible. While it can be enjoyed on a phone, the visual and emotional impact of the film is better conveyed in a larger format.
You can follow Tony Imperatrice on Facebook or visit his website at tonyimperatrice.com.
Photos are by Aileen Imperatrice.
My name is Mallory Moad and I believe wonderful things in the night sky can inspire wonderful things on earth.
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