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Meredith Monk – Songs of Ascension Listening Report

 

Song of Ascension is a collection of musical pieces recorded in the Ann Hamilton Tower in Geyserville CA. The final installation is supposed to have 24 track recordings in 4 different zones of the tower. It starts with layered humming and the video shows around 30 people standing alongside the railing going up the tower. It is clear that this is a collaboration of many people with the help of singing and playing different instruments. The humming gets replaced by sounds that could have been produced by an accordion. In addition, different singers create short tones with their voices. Sounds like “HE”; HO; HA”. We see Meredith Monk is one of the singers. While singing, they use rhythmic walking, going a few steps up the stairs and then back. The second part consists of people playing string instruments. The dancing gets more distinctly. The third part is introduced with a woman singing harmonically, one violin adds to the minimal scene. She is going up the stairs. The forthcoming parts are a combination of different instruments and singing. Noticeably, we see Meredith Monk singing in an indistinct language, possibly no language at all. It would be very hard for me personally to make any sense of the whole performance except noticing that it is, in our western sense of music, harmonic and in tune. The short documentary, which can be found in the online files, makes it easier to understand that Monk’s intention is to emphasize the singing voice. She recognized early in her life that she can use her voice like an instrument, changing tones and pitches to make sounds. Lyrics or the contents are not important. For me, there is a mental paradox in the center of it that allows us to understand her approach. It’s like imaging we could produce lyrics with the help of a harp or a piano. Instruments are just there to produce sounds, so why not just use the voice to produce them as well?

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