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'''Ambient music''' is a [[musical genre]] in which sound is more important than notes.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Hyperreal.org|title=Ambient Music, Beginnings and Implications, by Chris Melchior|url=http://music.hyperreal.org/epsilon/info/melchior.html}}</ref> It is generally identifiable as being broadly atmospheric<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Deepintense.com|title=Ambient Music Definition|url=http://www.deepintense.com/definition.php?id=2}}</ref> and environmental<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Ambient Music Guide|title=History of Ambient|url=http://www.ambientmusicguide.com/pages/history.php}}</ref> in nature. |
'''Ambient (Pronunciation - "Ahm-bee-ent") music''' is a [[musical genre]] in which sound is more important than notes.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Hyperreal.org|title=Ambient Music, Beginnings and Implications, by Chris Melchior|url=http://music.hyperreal.org/epsilon/info/melchior.html}}</ref> It is generally identifiable as being broadly atmospheric<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Deepintense.com|title=Ambient Music Definition|url=http://www.deepintense.com/definition.php?id=2}}</ref> and environmental<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Ambient Music Guide|title=History of Ambient|url=http://www.ambientmusicguide.com/pages/history.php}}</ref> in nature. |
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Ambient music evolved from early 20th century forms of semi-audible music, from the [[impressionism (music)|impressionism]] of [[Erik Satie]], through [[musique concrete]] and the [[minimalism]] of [[Terry Riley]] and [[Philip Glass]], and [[Brian Eno]]'s deliberate sub-audible approach. |
Ambient music evolved from early 20th century forms of semi-audible music, from the [[impressionism (music)|impressionism]] of [[Erik Satie]], through [[musique concrete]] and the [[minimalism]] of [[Terry Riley]] and [[Philip Glass]], and [[Brian Eno]]'s deliberate sub-audible approach. |
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Revision as of 20:33, 29 May 2008
| Ambient music | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | 20th century classical music, Electronic Music, Minimalist music, Kosmische Musik, Musique concrète, Space rock |
| Cultural origins | 1970s, UK |
| Typical instruments | Electronic musical instruments, Electroacoustic music instruments, and any other instruments or sounds (including World instruments) with electronic processing |
| Derivative forms | Ambient house - Ambient techno - New Age - Chillout - Downtempo |
| Subgenres | |
| Dark ambient - Drone music - Lowercase - Black ambient (complete list) | |
| Fusion genres | |
| Ambient dub - Illbient - Psybient - Ambient industrial -Ambient house - Space music | |
| Other topics | |
| Ambient music artists - List of electronic music genres - Furniture music | |
Ambient (Pronunciation - "Ahm-bee-ent") music is a musical genre in which sound is more important than notes.[1] It is generally identifiable as being broadly atmospheric[2] and environmental[3] in nature.
Ambient music evolved from early 20th century forms of semi-audible music, from the impressionism of Erik Satie, through musique concrete and the minimalism of Terry Riley and Philip Glass, and Brian Eno's deliberate sub-audible approach.
Later developments found the dreamy non-linear elements of ambient music applied to some forms of rhythmic music presented in chill-out rooms at raves and other dance events, but always with the primary feature that the music is intended to drift in and out of the listener's awareness while creating its effect on the listener's consciousness.[4]
History
Turn of the century French composer Erik Satie created an early form of ambient music that he referred to as "furniture music" (Musique d'ameublement), in reference to something that could be played during a dinner whose sound would simply create an atmosphere for that activity rather than be the specific focus of attention.[5]
Early electronic soundscape music and theories come from the work of Pierre Schaeffer, considered as the inventor of "Musique Concrete", who followed the futurists in classifying music into categories such as man made, natural, short and long. He made some of the first electronic music using record players and natural sounds, and cutting up tape, making the first experimental music use of recording and magnetic tape. Even his work can be seen as preempted by Schopenhauer's ideas of 'soundworlds', literally worlds made up entirely of sounds. Karlheinz Stockhausen created pioneering electronic musical experiments later in 1955, and these two (amongst others) lay the groundwork for ambient music to appear decades later when music technology had developed.
Brian Eno is generally credited with coining the term "ambient music" in the mid-1970s to refer to music that, as he stated, can be either "actively listened to with attention or as easily ignored, depending on the choice of the listener", and that exists on the "cusp between melody and texture."[5] Eno, who describes himself as a "non-musician", termed his experiments in sound as "treatments" rather than as traditional performances. Eno used the word "ambient" to describe music that creates an atmosphere that puts the listener into a different state of mind; having chosen the word based on the Latin term "ambire", "to surround".[6]
The liner notes of Eno's 1978 release Ambient 1: Music for Airports includes a manifesto describing his philosophy of ambient music:
"Ambient Music must be able to accommodate many levels of listening attention without enforcing one in particular; it must be as ignorable as it is interesting."Brian Eno, Music for Airports liner notes, September 1978
Eno has acknowledged the influence of Erik Satie and John Cage, in particular Cage's use of chance such as throwing the I Ching to direct a musical composition; and minimalist music in general. This influence was manifested in Oblique Strategies, a set of cards devised by Eno and Peter Schmidt and intended to direct the musician or artist when a dilemma occurred in a working situation. Eno used the term "ambient music" to distance his work from elevator music and Muzak. Eno also acknowledged influences of the mood music of Miles Davis and Teo Macero, especially their 1974 epic piece, "He Loved Him Madly", about which Eno wrote, "that piece seemed to have the 'spacious' quality that I was after...it became a touchstone to which I returned frequently."[6]
Early albums by Pink Floyd (such as Ummagumma and Meddle) and by the "kosmische Musik"-oriented krautrock artists, like Tangerine Dream, Popol Vuh, and Cluster have greatly influenced the genre. Among the first electronic ambient albums were Affenstunde (1970) and In Den Garten Pharaos (1971) by Popol Vuh. Another important album was Sonic Seasonings (1972) by Wendy Carlos. Other early artists such as Klaus Schulze (a former member of Tangerine Dream and Ash Ra Tempel), Jean Michel Jarre, and Kraftwerk in the 1970s and 1980s were influential. In the 1970s, some ambient, krautrock, and other musicians who were influenced by new age spirituality created the eclectic genre known as New Age music, selling millions independent from the mainstream music industry by direct order or new age shops.
Influences on other genres
Beginning in the 1970s, Ambient music influenced some pop bands including New Order, Depeche Mode, Simple Minds and U2[citation needed]. Later, electronic dance music and synth pop merged in many artists' works with the dreamy, meandering sound of Eno-style ambient music. Under the guise of various styles, this new genre sometimes referred to as ambient house, ambient techno, ambient dub, IDM, ambience, or simply "ambient" in common use, saw the birth of a new wave of artists like The Orb, Aphex Twin, the Irresistible Force, Geir Jenssen's Biosphere, and the Higher Intelligence Agency.
Early Warp records artists, (as well as later ones such as Aphex Twin), FSOL Future Sound of London (Lifeforms, ISDN) Autechre, (Incunabula, Amber), Boards of Canada, Massive Attack, Portishead, and The KLF all took a part in popularising and diversifying ambient music.
Chillout is generally linked to club culture and is sometimes used as a term which includes ambient music as a subset of itself, though usually chillout music has a beat and is not completely ambient with no rhythm at all. UK techno developed in particular at Warp Records in Sheffield, where previous electronic pioneers such as Cabaret Voltaire and Autechre laid the groundwork for ambient techno to develop, and for Aphex Twin and Boards of Canada to develop later. From this scene developed ambient dub and ambient techno. Intelligent Dance Music is another term synonymous with this scene. Electroacoustic and acousmatic music are 'classical' art music forms that use electronic sound creation instead of or alongside acoustic instruments. Glitch music is a subset of this work. Some club groups have created live ambient music, mixing dub techniques with ambient textures and dance grooves.
Soundtracks
Ambient music has been used in many television shows and motion pictures and is notable for contributing to their atmosphere, or soundscapes. David Lynch's 1984 film Dune, for example, forgoes the epic sci-fi adventure style theme music popularized by Star Wars in favor of a more atmospheric music score by Toto and Brian Eno. Electronic musician Paddy Kingsland is noted for the music style he brought to several serials of the television series Doctor Who which had until then relied mostly on stock music cues or minimal music for much of its history.
Related and derivative genres
Ambient dub
Ambient Dub was a phrase first coined by the now defunct Beyond record label in early 1990s in Birmingham, England. Their defining series of albums "Ambient Dub 1, 2, through to 4 inspired many, including sound engineer and producer Bill Laswell, who used the same phrase in his music project Divination, where he collaborates with different musicians on each album (though sometimes the same ones are on more than one of the albums such as Tetsu Inoue and others). Laswell also presented Ambient dub and Ambient house music on albums by his collaboration project Axiom Dub, featuring recording artists the Orb, Jah Wobble, Jaki Liebezeit and DJ Spooky.
Ambient dub involves the genre melding of dub styles made famous by King Tubby and other Jamaican sound artists with DJ inspired ambient electronica, complete with all the inherent drop-outs, echo, equalization and psychedelic electronic effects. As writer and performer David Toop explains in an early Beyond Records newsletter, "Dub music is like a long echo delay, looping through time...turning the rational order of musical sequences into an ocean of sensation."
Organic ambient music
Organic ambient music is characterised by integration of electronic, electric, and acoustic musical instruments. Aside from the usual electronic music influences, organic ambient tends to incorporate influences from world music, especially drone instruments and hand percussion. Organic ambient is intended to be more harmonious with nature than with the disco. Some of the artists in this sub-genre include Robert Rich, Steve Roach, Vidna Obmana, O Yuki Conjugate, Ma Ja Le, Vir Unis, James Johnson, Loren Nerell, and Tuu.
Some works by ambient pioneers such as Brian Eno, Laraaji or Popul Vuh who use a combination of traditional instruments (such as piano or hammered dulcimer or hand percussion, though usually processed through tape loops or other devices) and electronic instruments, would be considered organic ambient music in this sense. In the 70s and 80s Klaus Schulze often recorded string ensembles and performances by solo cellists to go along with his extended Moog synthesizer workouts.
Nature inspired ambient music
The music is composed from samples and recordings of naturally occurring sounds. Sometimes these samples can be treated to make them more instrument-like. The samples may be arranged in repetitive ways to form a conventional musical structure or may be random and unfocused. Sometimes the sound is mixed with urban or "found" sounds. Examples include much of Biosphere's Substrata, Mira Calix's insect music and Chris Watson's Weather Report. Some overlap occurs between organic ambient and nature inspired ambient. One of the first albums in the genre, Wendy Carlos' Sonic Seasonings, combines sampled and synthesized nature sounds with ambient melodies and drones for a particularly relaxing effect. The album Second Nature by Bill Laswell, Tetsu Inoue, and Atom Heart is an ambient album that uses processed nature sounds, with reverb and echo to create a hypnotic environment.
Dark ambient
Dark ambient is a general term for any kind of ambient music with a "dark" or dissonant feel, but often involves extensive use of digital reverb to create vast sonic spaces for frightening, bottom-heavy sounds such as deep drones, gloomy male chorus, echoing thunder, and distant artillery. It has an eerie feel. The Robert Rich/Lustmord collaboration album Stalker epitomizes this sub-genre. Related styles include ambient industrial and isolationist ambient. (See also List of dark ambient artists)
There are also a few black metal bands, such as Burzum and Beherit, who produce ambient music, be it not always with such a dark atmosphere. Illbient is another kind of dark ambient music that has more of a beat but still creates the spooky disturbing feelings.
Ambient techno
A rarified, more specific re-orientation of ambient house, ambient techno is usually applied to artists such as B12, early Aphex Twin, the Black Dog, Higher Intelligence Agency, and Biosphere. It distinguished artists who combined the melodic and rhythmic approaches of techno and electro -- use of 808 and 909 drum machines; well-produced, thin-sounding electronics; minor-key melodies and alien-sounding samples and sounds -- with the soaring, layered, aquatic atmospheres of beatless and experimental ambient. Most often associated with labels such as Apollo, GPR, Warp, and Beyond, the terminology morphed into "intelligent techno" after Warp released its Artificial Intelligence series, although the music's stylistic references remained largely unchanged.
Ambient house
Ambient house is a musical category founded in the late 1980s that is used to describe acid house featuring ambient music elements and atmospheres. Tracks in the ambient house genre typically feature four-on-the-floor beats, synth pads, and vocal samples integrated in an atmospheric style.[7] Ambient house tracks generally lack a diatonic center and feature much atonality along with synthesized chords.
Ambient industrial
Ambient industrial is a hybrid genre of ambient and industrial music; the term industrial being used in the original experimental sense, rather than in the sense of industrial metal or EBM. A "typical" ambient industrial work (if there is a such thing) might consist of evolving dissonant harmonies of metallic drones and resonances, extreme low frequency rumbles and machine noises, perhaps supplemented by gongs, percussive rhythms, bullroarers, distorted voices and/or anything else the artist might care to sample (often processed to the point where the original sample is no longer recognizable). Entire works may be based on radio telescope recordings, the babbling of newborn babies, or sounds recorded through contact microphones on telegraph wires.
Among the many artists who work in this area are Coil, CTI, Lustmord, Susumu Yokota, Hafler Trio, Nocturnal Emissions, Zoviet France, PGR, Thomas Köner, Controlled Bleeding, and Deutsch Nepal. It is important to note, however, that many of these artists are very eclectic in their output, with much of it falling outside of ambient industrial per se.
Space music
Space music, also spelled spacemusic, includes music from the Ambient genre as well as a broad range of other genres with certain characteristics in common to create the experience of contemplative spaciousness.[8][9][10] Space music ranges from simple to complex sonic textures sometimes lacking conventional melodic, rhythmic, or vocal components,[11][12] generally evoking a sense of "continuum of spatial imagery and emotion",[13] beneficial introspection, deep listening[14] and sensations of floating, cruising or flying.[15][16]
Space music is used by individuals for both background enhancement and foreground listening, often with headphones, to stimulate relaxation, contemplation, inspiration and generally peaceful expansive moods[17] and soundscapes. Space music is also a component of many film soundtracks, commonly used in planetariums, and used as a relaxation aid and for meditation.[18]
Hearts of Space is a well-known radio show and affiliated record label, specializing in Space Music since 1984, having released over 150 albums devoted to the music style. Notable artists who have brought elements of Ambient music to Space music include Michael Hedges, Michael Stearns, Constance Demby, Jean Michel Jarre, Robert Rich, Steve Roach, Numina, Dweller at the Threshold, Klaus Schulze and Tangerine Dream (as well as the group's founder Edgar Froese).
Isolationist ambient music
Isolationist ambient music is also known as "isolationism", differentiated from other forms of ambient music in its use of repetition, dissonance, microtonality, and unresolved harmonies to create a sense of unresolved unease and desolation.[19] The term was popularized in the mid-1990s by the British magazine The Wire and the Ambient 4: Isolationism compilation from Virgin, this began as more or less a synonym for ambient industrial, but also inclusive of certain post-techno streams of ambient, such as Autechre and Aphex Twin.[1] The Sombient label is now the primary purveyor of isolationist ambient, in particular with the "drones" compilation series. Some of the artists known for this style of ambient music include Robert Fripp and Chuck Hammer Guitarchitecture.
Notable musicians and works in chronological order
| Artist name | Influential works |
|---|---|
| Erik Satie | 1917 - Furniture music (1) 1920 - Furniture music (2) 1923 - Furniture music (3) |
| Edgard Varèse | 1934 - Ecuatorial |
| Pierre Schaeffer | 1948 - Etude aux Chemins de Fer |
| Terry Riley | 1964 - In C 1968 - A Rainbow in Curved Air |
| Miles Davis | 1969 - In A Silent Way 1974 - Big Fun for "Orange Lady" 1974 - Get Up With It for "He Loved Him Madly" |
| Popol Vuh | 1970 - Affenstunde 1971 - In den Gärten Pharaos |
| Cluster | 1971 - Cluster 1972 - Cluster II 1974 - Zuckerzeit 1976 - Soweisoso 1977 - Cluster & Eno (with Brian Eno) 1978 - After The Heat (with Brian Eno) 1979 - Grosses Wasser 1980 - Live In Vienna (with Joshi Farnbauer) 1981 - Curiosum 1991 - Apropos Cluster 1995 - One Hour 1997 - Japan 1996 Live 1997 - First Encounter Tour 1996 |
| Pink Floyd | 1971 - Meddle |
| Tangerine Dream | 1971 - Alpha Centauri 1972 - Zeit 1974 - Phaedra 1975 - Rubycon 1975 - Ricochet 1976 - Stratosfear — 2000 - The Seven Letters from Tibet |
| Wendy Carlos | 1972 - Sonic Seasonings |
| Klaus Schulze | 1972 - Irrlicht 1973 - Cyborg 1974 - Blackdance 1975 - Timewind 1976 - Moondawn 1977 - Mirage 1977 - Body Love Vol. 2 1978 - X 1979 - Dune 1995 - In Blue — With Pete Namlook: 1994 - Dark Side of the Moog I - Wish you were there 1994 - Dark Side of the Moog II - A saucerful of ambience 2002 - Dark Side of the Moog IX - Set the controls for the heart of the mother 2005 - Dark Side of the Moog X - Astro know me domina |
| Can | 1973 - Future Days 1974 - Soon Over Babaluma |
| Gong | 1973 - Flying Teapot for "The Octave Doctors and the Crystal Machine" 1974 - You for "A Sprinkling of Clouds" |
| Fripp & Brian Eno | 1973 - No Pussyfooting 1975 - Evening Star 2005 - The Equatorial Stars |
| Kraftwerk | 1975 - Radio-Activity |
| Harmonia | 1974 - Musik Von Harmonia 1997 - Tracks and Traces |
| Neu! | 1975 - Neu! '75 |
| Brian Eno | 1975 - Another Green World 1975 - Discreet Music 1978 - Ambient 1 / Music For Airports 1980 - Fourth World 1 / Possible Musics (with Jon Hassell) 1982 - Ambient 4 / On Land 1983 - Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks 1985 - Thursday Afternoon 1992 - The Shutov Assembly |
| Steve Reich | 1976-1978 - Music for 18 Musicians |
| Jean Michel Jarre | 1976 - Oxygène 1978 - Equinoxe 1990 - Waiting for Cousteau |
| Chuck Hammer | 1977 - Guitarchitecture |
| Michael Stearns | 1978 - Ancient Leaves 1979 - Morning Jewel 1981 - Planetary Unfolding 1984 - M'ocean 1988 - Encounter 2000 - Within |
| Earthstar | 1978 - Salterbarty Tales 1981 - Atomkraft? Nein, Danke! 1982 - Humans Only |
| Robert Fripp | 1981 - Let The Power Fall 1998 - Gates Of Paradise |
| Robert Rich | 1982 Sunyata 1983 Trances 1983 Drones 1987 Numena 1992 Soma (with Steve Roach) 1997 Fissures 2001 Somnium |
| Steve Roach | 1984 - Structures from Silence 1988 - Quiet Music 1988 - Dreamtime Return 1993 - Origins 1994 - Artifacts 1996 - The Magnificent Void 2000 - Early Man 2003 - Mystic Chords & Sacred Spaces |
| Coil | 1984 - How to Destroy Angels 1998 - Time Machines |
| Hirokazu Tanaka | 1986 - Metroid |
| The KLF | 1990 - Chill Out |
| Enigma | 1990 - MCMXC A.D. |
| The Orb | 1991 - The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld 1992 - U.F.Orb |
| Biosphere | 1992 - Microgravity 1994 - Patashnik 1995 - Novelty Waves (album)|Novelty Waves 1996 - Polar Sequences (album)|Polar Sequences 1997 - Insomnia 1997 - Substrata 1998 - Nordheim Transformed (album)|Nordheim Transformed 2000 - Birmingham Frequencies 2000 - Cirque 2002 - Shenzou (album)|Shenzou 2004 - Autour de la lune 2006 - Dropsonde |
| Aphex Twin | 1992 - Selected Ambient Works 85-92 1994 - Selected Ambient Works Volume II |
| Pete Namlook | 1992 - Silence I 1993 - Air I 1994 - Air II 1996 - Outland 2 (with Bill Laswell) 1996 - The Fires of Ork (with Geir Jensen of Biosphere) |
| Moby aka Voodoo Child | 1993 - Ambient 1996 - The End of Everything (as Voodoo Child) 2005 - Hotel:Ambient (Disc Two) (limited edition only) |
| Neptune Towers (Gylve Nagell aka Fenriz) | 1994 - Caravans to Empire Algol 1995 - Transmissions from Empire Algol |
| Kenji Yamamoto | 1994 - Super Metroid |
| Robert Leiner | 1994 - Visions of the past |
| Global Communication | 1994 - 76:14 |
| Alpha Wave Movement | 1995 - Transcendence 2000 - Drifted Into Deeper Lands |
| Burzum (Varg Vikernes) | 1996 - Filosofem (tracks 4 to 6) 1997- Daudi Baldrs 1999 - Hlidskjalf |
| Future Sound of London | 1994 - Lifeforms |
| Richard Bone | 1998 - The Spectral Ships 1999 - Ether Dome |
| Stars of the Lid | 1996 - Gravitational Pull vs the Desire for an Aquatic Life 1997 - The Ballasted Orchestra 1998 - Per Aspera Ad Astra 1999 - Avec Laudenum 2001 - The Tired Sounds of Stars of the Lid 2007 - Stars of the Lid and Their Refinement of the Decline |
| Marvin Ayres | 1999 - Cellosphere 2002 - Neptune |
| Ishq | 2001 - Ishq 2001 - Orchid |
| William Basinski | 2002 - The River 2002-2003 - Disintegration Loops I, II, III and IV |
Notable films incorporating ambient music or sound design
| Film | Director | Composer or Sound Designer | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 - Forbidden Planet | Fred Wilcox | Louis and Bebe Barron (electronic tonalities) | This soundtrack definitely was ahead of its time with its spacey ambient sounds | |
| 1968 - 2001: A Space Odyssey | Stanley Kubrick | György Ligeti (composer "Monolith" and "Beyond Saturn" themes) Winston Ryder (sound editor) |
"A cutting edge ambient, multimedia accomplishment...the ambient revolution, now and for the past couple of decades, owes much of its impetus to the achievement of 2001." — D.B. Spalding [2] | |
| 1971 - THX 1138 | George Lucas | Lalo Schifrin (composer) Walter Murch (sound design) |
Murch's "Theater of Noise" offered as alternate soundtrack on Director's Cut DVD | |
| 1972 - Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes | Werner Herzog | Popol Vuh (composer) | ||
| 1976 - Sebastiane | Derek Jarman | Brian Eno (composer) | ||
| 1977 - Eraserhead | David Lynch | Alan Splet (sound design) | Features innovative ambient noise sound design in place of musical score. | |
| 1977 - Sorcerer | William Friedkin | Tangerine Dream (Composer) | ||
| 1980 - The Elephant Man | David Lynch | Alan Splet (sound design) | ||
| 1981 - Halloween II | Rick Rosenthal | John Carpenter & Alan Howarth (composers) | ||
| 1982 - Halloween III: Season of the Witch | Tommy Lee Wallace | John Carpenter & Alan Howarth (composers) | ||
| 1984 - Starman | John Carpenter | Jack Nitzsche (composer) | ||
| 1986 - The Hitcher | Robert Harmon | Mark Isham (composer) | ||
| 1989 - For All Mankind | Al Reinert | Brian Eno (composer) | Score released as Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks | |
| 1989 - Sex, Lies, and Videotape | Steven Soderbergh | Cliff Martinez (composer) | Soderbergh's instructions to Martinez were to channel Brian Eno. Soundtrack on Virgin/EMI Records | |
| 1997 - Insomnia | Erik Skjoldbjærg | Biosphere (composer) | ||
| 2001 - Donnie Darko | Richard Kelly | Michael Andrews (composer) | ||
| 2001 - Traffic | Steven Soderbergh | Cliff Martinez (composer) Brian Eno (composer- end title theme) |
End title them is "An Ending (Ascent)" from Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks | |
| 2002 - Solaris | Steven Soderbergh | Cliff Martinez (composer) | ||
| 2005 - Me and You and Everyone We Know | Miranda July | Michael Andrews (composer) | ||
| 2006 - The Prestige (film) | Christopher Nolan | David Julyan (composer) | ||
| 2007 - 30 Days of Night (film) | David Slade | Brian Reitzell (composer) |
Notable ambient music shows on radio and via satellite
- Echoes, is a daily two-hour music radio program hosted by John Diliberto featuring a soundscape of ambient, spacemusic, electronica, new acoustic and new music directions - founded in 1989 and syndicated on 130 radio stations in the USA.
- Hearts of Space, a program hosted by Stephen Hill and broadcast on NPR in the US since 1973.[20][21]
- Musical Starstreams, a US-based commercial radio station and internet program produced, programmed and hosted by Forest since 1981.
- Star's End a radio show on 88.5 WXPN, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1976, it is the second longest-running ambient music radio show in the world.[22]
- Ultima Thule Ambient Music, a weekly 90-minute show broadcast on community radio in Sydney, Adelaide and Canberra since 1989.
See also
- Background music
- Incidental music
- List of ambient artists
- List of dark ambient artists
- List of electronic music genres
- Black ambient
- Drone music
- Intelligent dance music (IDM)
- Glitch
External links
- Ambient Techno in Sound on Sound
- Ambient Music Guide Comprehensive ambient music resource site.
References
- ^ "Ambient Music, Beginnings and Implications, by Chris Melchior". Hyperreal.org.
- ^ "Ambient Music Definition". Deepintense.com.
- ^ "History of Ambient". Ambient Music Guide.
- ^ Cook, Nicholas (2004). The Cambridge History of Twentieth-Century Music. Cambridge University Press. pp. p502. ISBN 0521662567.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help); Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ a b Jarrett, Michael (1998). Sound Tracks: A Musical ABC, Volumes 1-3. Temple University Press. pp. p1973. ISBN 1566396417.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ a b Tingen, Paul (2001). Miles Beyond: The Electric Explorations of Miles Davis, 1967-1991. Watson-Guptill. pp. p54. ISBN 0823083462.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ "Ambient House", All Music Guide (Retrieved October 4, 2006).
- ^ "... Originally a 1970s reference to the conjunction of ambient electronics and our expanding visions of cosmic space ... In fact, almost any music with a slow pace and space-creating sound images could be called spacemusic." Stephen Hill, co-founder, Hearts of Space, What is spacemusic?
- ^ "Any music with a generally slow, relaxing pace and space-creating imagery or atmospherics may be considered Space Music, without conventional rhythmic elements, while drawing from any number of traditional, ethnic, or modern styles." Lloyde Barde, July/August 2004, Making Sense of the Last 20 Years in New Music
- ^ "When you listen to space and ambient music you are connecting with a tradition of contemplative sound experience whose roots are ancient and diverse. The genre spans historical, ethnic, and contemporary styles. In fact, almost any music with a slow pace and space-creating sound images could be called spacemusic." Stephen Hill, co-founder, Hearts of Space, What is spacemusic?
- ^ "A timeless experience...as ancient as the echoes of a simple bamboo flute or as contemporary as the latest ambient electronica. Any music with a generally slow pace and space-creating sound image can be called spacemusic. Generally quiet, consonant, ethereal, often without conventional rhythmic and dynamic contrasts, spacemusic is found within many historical, ethnic, and contemporary genres."Stephen Hill, co-founder, Hearts of Space, sidebar "What is Spacemusic?" in essay Contemplative Music, Broadly Defined
- ^ "The early innovators in electronic "space music" were mostly located around Berlin. The term has come to refer to music in the style of the early and mid 1970s works of Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream, Ash Ra Tempel, Popol Vuh and others in that scene. The music is characterized by long compositions, looping sequencer patterns, and improvised lead melody lines." - John Dilaberto, Berlin School, Echoes Radio on-line music glossary
- ^ "This music is experienced primarily as a continuum of spatial imagery and emotion, rather than as thematic musical relationships, compositional ideas, or performance values." Essay by Stephen Hill, co-founder, Hearts of Space, New Age Music Made Simple
- ^ "Innerspace, Meditative, and Transcendental... This music promotes a psychological movement inward." Stephen Hill, co-founder, Hearts of Space, essay titled New Age Music Made Simple
- ^ "...Spacemusic ... conjures up either outer "space" or "inner space" " - Lloyd Barde, founder of Backroads Music Notes on Ambient Music, Hyperreal Music Archive
- ^ "Space And Travel Music: Celestial, Cosmic, & Terrestrial... This New Age sub-category has the effect of outward psychological expansion. Celestial or cosmic music removes listeners from their ordinary acoustical surroundings by creating stereo sound images of vast, virtually dimensionless spatial environments. In a word — spacey. Rhythmic or tonal movements animate the experience of flying, floating, cruising, gliding, or hovering within the auditory space."Stephen Hill, co-founder, Hearts of Space, in an essay titled New Age Music Made Simple
- ^ " Restorative powers are often claimed for it, and at its best it can create an effective environment to balance some of the stress, noise, and complexity of everyday life." -- Stephen Hill, Founder, Music from the Hearts of Space What is Spacemusic?
- ^ "This was the soundtrack for countless planetarium shows, on massage tables, and as soundtracks to many videos and movies."- Lloyd Barde Notes on Ambient Music, Hyperreal Music Archive
- ^ Reynolds, Simon; Chill: the new ambient, ArtForum, Jan, 1995
- ^ "The program has defined its own niche — a mix of ambient, electronic, world, new age, classical and experimental music....Slow-paced, space-creating music from many cultures — ancient bell meditations, classical adagios, creative space jazz, and the latest electronic and acoustic ambient music are woven into a seamless sequence unified by sound, emotion, and spatial imagery." Stephen Hill, co-founder, Hearts of Space, essay titled Contemplative Music, Broadly Defined
- ^ "Hill's Hearts of Space Web site provides streaming access to an archive of hundreds of hours of spacemusic artfully blended into one-hour programs combining ambient, electronic, world, New Age and classical music." Steve Sande, The Sky's the Limit with Ambient Music, SF Chronicle, Sunday, January 11, 2004
- ^ "STAR'S END is (with the exception of "Music from the Hearts of Space") the longest running radio program of ambient music in the world. Since 1976, STAR'S END has been providing the Philadelphia broadcast area with music to sleep and dream to." Star's End website background information page