Cipher, Sinfonia ViVA

A live musical cinematic experience

Combining cutting edge technology with nostalgia, Past Lives features revealing unseen amateur footage of Midlands family life from the 1930s to the 1970s set to an atmospheric soundtrack performed live by ambient soundscape pioneers Cipher with guest musicians from Sinfonia ViVA. The result is an engaging, thought provoking and moving reminder of a recent past that brings these remarkable images to life with its evocative soundscore.

Capturing moving images is now commonplace with mobile phones and pocket cameras, but before the digital age it wasn't so easy. Small format movie cameras were the liberating technology of the mid-20th Century, giving ordinary people the chance to record everyday events on their 8mm and 16mm cameras.

Cipher have collaborated with visual artist Anthony Hatton to produce a thought-provoking and engaging visual and live musical experience using little seen footage from the Media Archive for Central England, including local images of the areas they will visit.