Filmmaker: William Shum

Ursonate (excerpt) by Kurt Schwitters

Poet: | Nationality: | Filmmaker:

http://vimeo.com/66612735

William Shum says about his film,

A short excerpt from Kurt Schwitters sound poem, “Ursonate”. The typeface was created from scratch and inspired by the “Merz” art Schwitters created, hence the name, “Merzy”.

This may be the first example of a typeface invented for a videopoem.

The Wikipedia article on Kurt Schwitters includes a paragraph on Ursonate:

Schwitters composed and performed an early example of sound poetry, Ursonate (1922–32; a translation of the title is Original Sonata or Primeval Sonata). The poem was influenced by Raoul Hausmann’s poem “fmsbw” which Schwitters heard recited by Hausmann in Prague, 1921. Schwitters first performed the piece on 14 February 1925 at the home of Irmgard Kiepenheuer in Potsdam. He subsequently performed it regularly, both developing and extending it. He published his notations for the recital in the last Merz periodical in 1932, although he would continue to develop the piece for at least the next ten years.