IN THE GARDEN OF SOUNDS

IN THE GARDEN OF SOUNDS
SWITZERLAND 2010
DIRECTOR: NICOLA BELLUCCI
Tucked into a small Swiss hamlet, Wolfgang Fasser’s studio is filled with cymbals, drums, and other noisemakers, including a therapeutic table built on a bed of musical strings. A former physical therapist who went blind at age 22 from the genetic disease retinitis pigmentosa, Fasser now works with developmentally disabled children, using music and natural sounds to reach through each child’s particular physical and mental barrier. Whether capturing birdsong in the early dawn, calming a restless patient, or attending to the townspeople’s various complaints at the local market, Fasser moves through the world fluidly and purposefully, overcoming his own sensory limitations while helping others transcend theirs. In the end, his profound appreciation for the subtleties of sound draws attention to the paucity of perception for which most of us settle.
(85 mins.)