Tag: modern classical

ambient music, other-music

Max Richter – (From) Sleep

“Somehow, in Europe, over the last century, as complexity and inaccessibility became equated with intelligence and the avant-garde, we lost something along the way. Modernism gave us so many stunning works, but we also lost our lullabies.”

Long-form compositions are a challenge to a composer, because he (she) has to deal with the audience’s relatively short attention span: not many people will be able to focus and keep their concentration for 4 hours or even more. For this reason, it is no surprise that long-form experiments are often found in the realm of ambient music. Ánd that they are often dealing with ‘sleep’ – which instantly solves the attention span problem too.

ambient music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Kenneth Kirschner – Compressions & Rarefactions

It was Brian Eno who once described ambient music as ‘music that is as ignorable as it is interesting’ – but it may very well be Kenneth Kirschner taking this concept to the extreme.

“Time, space, repetition, pattern, the very very big and the very very small. There’s an effort to be a part of the continuum and to recognize it, to try to remove the self if possible in a recognition of the bigger things. Also, neither of us is afraid of the dark.”

ambient music, other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Mike Cooper; J Butler; Tambour; Lunae Lumen

Mike Cooper’s Fratello Mare is a journey you’d better not begin unprepared: it’s exploring the beauty of the Pacific yet somehow also resembles Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas…!?

Furthermore: some music to calm down to: guitar pedal soundscapes by J. Butler, and two short neo-classical EP’s by Tambour and Lunae Lumen

other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Jean-Paul Dessy + Musiques Nouvelles – O’Clock

Jean-Paul Dessy (1963) is a Belgian composer with an impressive track record.
One that is clearly not afraid to cross borders into unknown territories: he has a distinct personal style of composing, which is quite different from other contemporary modern classical composers that often choose the romantic ‘cinematographic’ style. His work is dramatic, extremely dynamic – a roller coaster ride of conflicting emotions.

This is neither classical music as-we-know-it, nor is it rock music disguised as a symphony.
It’s not simply following the current ‘hip and happening’ post-classical style, but completely unique and personal.

ambient music, other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Monty Adkins – Borderlands

‘Borderlands’ is an extended meditation for multitracked cellos recorded by cellist William Mace. The composition ‘comprises of six interludes and six extended panels, each comprising twenty-eight short melodic fragments. Each panel uses the same fragments to form new melodies and harmonies.” – but for the listener it feels – and can be enjoyed – as one single uninterrupted piece.
A piece in which every single detail has its place, a piece that conveys that everything is as it should be. A very, very comforting piece.

other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Anna Thorvaldsdottir – Aerial

Right from the opening track it’s obvious that “Aerial” is something else, almost beyond comparision!
It took me some time to grow accustomed to this album. It requires some dedicated listening, on the right moment.
But ultimately, the raw beauty of the distictive textural palette grabbed me, and didn’t let go.
Only to leave me wondering why I had not heard of Anna Thorvaldsdottir before.

ambient music, other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

John Luther Adams – Become Ocean

“Become Ocean” was inspired by the oceans of Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, and the references to the endless oceanic movement are clear from the very beginning. Like there are different ways to look at the ocean’s movement, there are also are different ways to listen to this piece: you can just ‘follow the larger structure’, but you can also focus on the multitude of details underneath it..

“It may be the loveliest apocalypse in musical history” – Alex Ross, The New Yorker