Having discovered space as a tangible medium, English performance artist Peter Dockley developed a multimedia theatre piece in 1969. Gymnasts, kendo fighters and dancers create a dynamic energy zone full of colours, light and excitement. The soundtrack, recorded by Canterbury rock band Soft Machine, was inspired by techniques of musique concrète, laying the foundation for experimental industrial ambient music.
With 10k+ archived releases, Sounds Central's proprietor, Paul Paulun, tells a personal history of music and sound art
After enrolling at the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music and Art in 1954 at the age of 14, Californian wonder boy Terry Jennings met La Monte Young. Both composers shared the idea of music that prolongs time and ultimately dissolves it. Six years later, Jennings presented his works to the New York avantgarde scene – in Yoko Ono's loft.
Randall McClellan had been exploring the ancient tradition of using sound in a spiritual context for over 15 years when he created a series of concerts featuring constantly evolving, multi-layered melodies in the early 1980s. During the performances, the audience relaxed on the floor in dimly lit rooms to bring their bodies and minds into harmony.
A mix of ethnological recordings, found sounds and pirated material formed the basis for the performances of the radical theatre group Magazzini Criminali from Florence. In 1980, they used ambient music by Jon Hassell without permission. The composer was impressed – and collaborated with the group on an adaptation of Jack Kerouac's iconic beat novel ‘On the Road.‘
‘I want to put as many aspects of myself into music as I can, as much as possible of being alive, intensely conscious on all levels.‘ With this attitude, American composer Laurie Spiegel developed her concept of Slow Change Music in the mid-1970s at Bell Labs in New Jersey, using the prototype of a computer system to control synthesizers.
Equally at home in the art world and the artists’ pub, Ata Tak‘s proprietors run their label from a nice office in Düsseldorf. In the adjoining music studio, they pursue the idea of a global rebellion through sound – as Der Plan. 32 minutes with Holger Hiller, Minus Delta T, Picky Picnic, Wirtschaftswunder and others.
“The ecological catastrophe begins rehearsing in the Sixties,“ writes Allen Ginsberg in 1970; and for more than half a century, political systems have been unwilling to counteract this development. 45 minutes with sounds of protest – uttered by Appleblim, Diane Di Prima, Leslie Winer, Piero Umiliani and others.
In the late 1960s, women composers began mixing different types of sound material. Their concept of intermedia art often had a connection to human life. 88 minutes with Christina Kubisch, Eliane Radigue, Frankie Mann, Ruth Anderson and others.
Known for his innovative studio techniques, unique production style and weird tunes, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry combined influences from soul, funk, reggae and dub in the early and mid-1970s. 46-minute mix with 14 tracks from the Perry orbit.
Most artists involved in what critics would call no wave in 1978 shared a nihilistic mindset as they explored areas ranging from abrasive noise to mutant disco in New York City. 44-minute mix featuring tracks by Boris Policeband, Bush Tetras, Jill Kroesen, Konk and others.
For some, the piano is the instrument of instruments. Here are ten good reasons why. 40 minutes with works by Charlemagne Palestine, Graeme Revell, Henry Cowell, Johanna Magdalena Beyer and others.
