 A native of California
and resident of San Francisco, Steve
Mobia (b. 1953) expressed an early interest in music
but chose instead to write stories and make films for most of his life.
Having a strong interest in dreams, he also led dream exploration groups
which met in unusual locations in order to re-enact dreams. His writing
and film work also arise out of his interest in dreams - often working
with metaphor and non-literal situations. In an effort to write better
music for his movie soundtracks, Steve began to study music formally in
l995. At the same time, he became fascinated with the accordion as both
a solo and ensemble instrument.
Mobia's music, like his other work, has symbolic "programmatic"
associations. For instance, an early piece like 5 Root Hairs (1969)
for
piano, flute and 24 ping pong balls was inspired by the biology of
plants, the ping pong balls imitating the randomness of pollen distribution.
The Three Bronchioles were
the first in a series of pieces for the accordion. As made clear by the
"Prelude",
the accordion is seen to be an extension of the lungs. The titles "Diaphragm",
"Alveoli"
and
"Exhaltation" represent different aspects of breathing.
Because Mobia was a chronic asthmatic early in life, breathing was never
taken for granted.
Other compositions by Steve Mobia include: Halloween
Nocturnes (1996) for piano and Bamboozle (1997-98) for
accordion and string quartet. Mobia's films are distributed through
Canyon Cinema in San Francisco. |
