Skip to main content

John Luther Adams - Become Ocean

    The composition “Become Ocean” by John Luther Adams was published in 2014. The composition shows a strong resemblance to the ocean itself on an aural and visual level. The listener could interpret the certain sounds and movements of the orchestra as waves and their intensity. 
    The composition starts with sounds that cause a rather dystopian ambience due to the use of low, bass-heavy sounds which could resemble uncalm waves. Using rather high-pitch sounds, the image of an ocean in the process of calming down comes in mind for the listener. A constant switch between phases of peace and chaos is noticeable, caused by the use of certain sounds. This has a calming, yet dramatic effect for me in the position as a listener since the composition contains a steady switch between the phases, but also has subtle differences after each period of ocean phases. 
    A dramatic entry of cymbal-like sounds can evoke the image of a major change that is happening in the ocean, such as an increase in sea level as a consequence of climate change. Even though the composition returns to its’ normal phases, the image of a steady flow of waves changes due to the increase of speed by the harp player. After the dramatic entry, the listener is also able to see the waves through the arm movements by the orchestra. Another effect of the dramatic entry seems to be an increase of intensity of the ocean phases. The listener can interpret the higher intensity of sea phases through a longer play-time of each phase.
    The composition takes a rather dark turn through a heavier use of lower bass instruments and sounds. Due to the knowledge about the composition being a message about the environment and a call for action against the rise of sea levels, I as a listener got reminded of the message through a dystopian future filled with death because of climate change and a heavy rise in sea levels. 

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Listening Report on John Oswald: Plexure

 Sarah Kumar Dr. Bernd Herzogenrath The Future of (American) Music 06 Mar. 2023 Listening Report on John Oswald: Plexure According to John Oswald, “[a] plunderphone is a recognizable sonic quote, using the actual sound of something familiar which has already been recorded” (Lecture Slides 18). However, only if the source stays recognizable can it be called plunderphonics. In his album Plexure , several songs are played back and mixed together, thus creating a new sound. This is interesting because while the excerpts of songs that are used are recognizable or at least sound familiar to some degree, played backwards and mashed up as they are in Plexure , they create a new sound. Like on the cover of the album, on which a collage making up a man can be seen, the mixing of different songs played backwards gives a new feeling to something known. The way the songs are mixed makes them unintelligible. The meaning of the words of the original recordings are not able to be compr...
Post a Comment
Read more

William Basinski – The Disintegration Loops III

  The Disintegration Loops is a quartet of albums published in 2002 and 2003 by American avant-garde composer William Basinski. The pieces are made up of tape loop recordings that were played over time, with noise and crackles rising as the tape deteriorated. Basinski noticed this effect when attempting to convert his older recordings to digital format. The completion of the recordings coincided with the September 11, 2001 events, which Basinski witnessed and adds a deeper meaning to the composition. The composition is fascinating in many ways and makes the listener lose track of time. The tape loop recording had a very calming effect on me and put me in a trance-like state when I listened to it in its entirety. The tape loop is really soothing, so much so that I didn't even notice the loss of quality when I first listened to it. It makes you forget about time and allows you to really get into the piece capturing the calmness it exudes. You forget or don't really notice how i...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pierre Schaeffer - Étude pathétique

  Pierre Schaefer begins the piece with sounds produced by drums and similar percussion instruments. One hears the sound of an object spinning and then coming to a stop. I assume it is a circular object, like a cymbal or hi-hat of a drum kit, that spins until it comes to a stop. Sounds of a locomotive follow, continuing with a mixture of drums and spinning objects as well as voices. There are slight parallels here with another piece by Schaeffer, "etude aux chemins de fer," in which he has the musical piece consist of sounds of trains and locomotives. I also recognize an accordion and a violin playing rapidly, accompanied by human sounds that are not really decipherable. By combining all these background sounds and using human voices, Schaeffer creates an exciting atmosphere while listening to the piece, and the listener's auditory senses are constantly challenged to decipher all the details of the sounds. At times one could be reminded of a scene from a scary movie, at l...
Post a Comment
Read more