Christopher Tree (1967)

This film, photographed and edited by Les Blank, (produced and directed by Pieter Van Deusen) documents a spontaneously improvised concert by musician Christopher Tree. With his one-man orchestra, including 40 Tibetan temple gongs, flutes, tympani and wind chimes, Christopher Tree whirls and weaves his sound tapestry within a pristine forest. Over his long career, Christopher Tree presented hundreds “Spontaneous Sound” concerts in the United States and Europe. Tree used many non-traditional venues as concert halls, including prisons (Sing Sing and San Quentin), juvenile detention centers, mental hospitals, schools for the disabled, cultural centers, as well as old age, and convalescent hospitals.

Produced & Directed by Pieter Van Deusen
Photographed & Edited by Les Blank
10 Minutes
1967