hearts of space | news

PGM 810 "DESERT DREAMFIELDS" : Week of July 27th...

In the desert, extremes of sun, wind, temperature and terrain challenge all living things to evolve a strategy for survival. So desert travelers take it slow and steady.

But for those who venture into its vast spaces, the promise of discovery awaits: a mythic environment of isolation and introspection, concealed by panoramic expanses. In the words of EDWARD ABBEY, the desert is a "window onto eternity."

We take a deep desert journey with music by STEVE ROACH, DWIGHT LOOP, TOM HEASLEY and A PRODUCE, on program called DESERT DREAMFIELDS.

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Russel Walder's "RISE" added to Albums archive

We're very pleased to add this superb new album by veteran oboist RUSSEL WALDER. Rise is the premier release on his own label, after many years on Windham Hill, Narada and other fine labels.

This album easily meets our test of being able to listen to the entire recording from end to end — it's a fascinating mix of ambient atmospherics and influences from classical, jazz and world music. Find it by clicking ALBUMS on the main menu bar, then see the list of "Featured Albums" on the top of the page. Or just click here.

PGM 809 "AFRICAN GENESIS" : Week of July 20th...

The lilting songs of the Baka pygmies of Cameroon have achieved international fame through the efforts of sympathetic Western musicians.

Just as DNA research has shown that Africa is the origin point of the human species, in the last 200 years, the infectious rhythms and harmonies of African music have bred new styles of western music — originally laying the foundation for blues, jazz and other forms of popular music, and more recently, spawning a host of brilliant variations of what we now call World Music.

While the majority of African music is for dance and celebration, there's also a more contemplative sound. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we journey through the rhythms into the quiet heart of African music.

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Radio Channel update

New playlist today:

1      807     GOSSAMER   subtle textural-melodic spacemusic
2      806     INDIAN SUMMER SOLSTICE   a warm weather raga
3      768     PAISLEY MUSIC   an AL GROMER KHAN retrospective
4      767     DESERT CROSSING   an Arabic-North African journey
5      740     NIGHTSCAPES   environmental electronics for a summer night
6      727     ANCILLARY DREAMS   a HAROLD BUDD ambient retrospective
7      707     SLOW TIME   exploring the mystery of relative motion
8      533     BAMBOO AND BRONZE   the magical soundworlds of Indonesian spacemusic
9      705     SUMMERTONES   floating transitions for the warm night
10    704     AEGEAN RHAPSODIES   the contemplative sounds of Greece
11    595     CHILLED EUPHORIA    a look at the 'Chill' culture of ambient music
12    703     MIDSUMMER NIGHT 2    ambient atmospheres for a summer night
13    701     LATIN MOON 2   the languid, romantic sounds of Latin spacemusic
14    668     SUMMERTRONICA   warm-blooded ambient for hot summer nights
15    630     GARDEN OF PARADISE   a summer journey to the Garden of Paradise
16    592     SLIDER    slidin' and glidin' — ambient pedal steel guitar
17    574     GOA TRANCE    India meets techno-ambient dreamscapes
18    559     SOUTHERN EXPOSURE    the languid, nostalgic music of the southern latitudes
19    571     MEDITERRANEAN ECHOES    soundscapes from the cradle of Western civilization
20    562     GAMELAN    Indonesian spacemusic: ambient electronics meets the music of Bali and Java
21    021     DESERT NIGHT WINDS    ethereal travel music from the Middle East to East Asia

PGM 808 "ATLAS DEI" : Week of July 13th...

Ambient composer ROBERT RICH is one of the cardinal artists of Hearts of Space. We started working with him in the 1970s when we were still a local radio program and he had yet to release his first cassette recording. (You do remember cassettes, don't you?) From his early experiments with home-made analog synthesizers and extended improvisations to his mature masterpieces, Robert Rich and Hearts of Space have grown and developed together for over 30 years.

We did a retrospective program of Robert's music at the turn of the millennium, covering his recordings from the 1980's to 2000. Since then, not only has he been extraordinarily productive, in 2007 he released his own compilation of his previous work. Rather than a simple retrospective selection, he composed new pieces, modified or remixed others, and tied the music to a remarkable DVD art film in surround sound called ATLAS DEI, produced with digital artist and filmmaker DANIEL COLVIN.

The film is described as "a lyrical journey through time and space into the mystery of our cosmos...weaving the strands of science, myth, and poetic vision into an eloquent tapestry of the human enigma."

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Pgm 671 "TRANS-TRIBAL EXPRESS" : Week of July 6th...

What's in a "tribe"?

The word returned to popular culture in the 1960s and has been in and out of fashion ever since. Of course, in most of the so-called "third world" it's not fashion: tribal societies are still the day-to-day reality, and musicians from sophisticated Western countries have been finding inspiration and vitality in tribal music for hundreds of years. It makes sense: all of us have roots in tribal culture somewhere. 

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a report from the intersection of ambient electronics and tribal rhythms called TRANS-TRIBAL EXPRESS. Music is by ERIK WOLLO, MO BOMA, STEVE ROACH, REMANENCE, RUDY ADRIAN & RON BOOTS, SATORI, ANTONIO TESTA & ALIO DIE, and BYRON METCALF.

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