
George Stoll
Orchestra Leader
A group of musicians is determined to appear on a radio program.

Orchestra Leader

Royal C. Cummings (uncredited)

Virginia Paxton (uncredited)

Radio Announcer (uncredited)

The story of Jack Willits (portrayed by Jamie Leopold), former bass player for Dan Hicks and Hot Licks, a 69-year-old musician on a never-ending tour, desperate to recapture the fame of his youth. When he meets a mysterious woman, Jack believes her beautiful voice is the key to his success and doesn't see that she might be too good to be true.

In this vivid transposition of contemporary music for television, Cahen "responds" to the complex musical transitions of Répons, a work by French composer Pierre Boulez. Performed by the Ensemble InterContemporain and conducted by Boulez, the intricate Répons was designed for an ensemble of twenty-four musicians, six soloists and a "real-time" digital processor. In Cahen's re-composed interpretation, he responds with visual and temporal transformations, "opening" the images in space and time and applying electronic techniques to engulf the instrumentalists in ocean, sky, and trees. Mirage-like superimpositions, temporal shifts, mirroring effects and de-synchronization result in a rhythmic confluence of the illusory and the real. Immersing the viewer in image and sound, Cahen mirrors the transformative process of Boulez's music.

Ryuichi Sakamoto sadly passed away at the age of 71 on March 28, 2023. His music never stops and continues to leave a lasting impression on people living in the present. Playing the Orchestra 2013" was the first time in 16 years that Ryuichi Sakamoto performed with a full orchestra in Japan and created a sensation. This film is an updated version of the 2014 Tokyo performance, which he conducted himself. In this film, Sakamoto conducts all the pieces while playing the piano, The film features Sakamoto playing the piano and conducting all the pieces, and a variety of music from YMO's masterpieces such as "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" and "The Last Emperor" to his own film music, all performed by the magnificent Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.