Tristan Allen - Osni the Flare

In Osni the Flare, the second chapter of Tristan Allen’s mythic trilogy, finds the composer, producer, and puppeteer following a mortal’s transformation into deity through the discovery of fire. Recorded over four years using wordless vocals, organs, ocarinas, an arsenal of toy instruments, and intricate sound design, Osni the Flare unfolds the origins of flame and temporality across four sonically and visually compelling acts. Weaving a creation myth that shifts between beauty, shadow, and wistful embers, Allen provides a portal to meticulously crafted, emotionally potent sound and story that echo through a fantastical realm.

Born in Saratoga Springs, New York, with early childhood memories from his family’s tenure in Japan, Allen’s path wound through formative encounters including teacher Andy Iorio, who encouraged improvisational techniques in the young musician’s burgeoning interest and prowess at the piano, and Amanda Palmer, who discovered them at 16 during a Berklee summer program and crowdfunded their first release. After studying piano at Berklee, co-founding the live-electronics collective Nue, touring China with metal band Dent, and releasing two solo-piano EPs, Allen fled Boston for Brooklyn in 2018.

A Craigslist ad led to puppetry training under Mike Leach, who spent six months teaching them to properly walk a marionette, leading to a position as a performer at the vaunted Puppetworks Theater. This rigorous work, combined with exposure to their father’s Bread and Puppet Theater artifacts and Balinese shadow puppetry, led Allen to their creative practice: composing for acoustic instruments, arranging electronically, and performing through puppetry.