hearts of space | news

The HOLIDAY Channel

Thanksgiving is past and we are now into that very special time of year called The Holiday Season. We make it easy for our Standard and Full Service subscribers to access the seasonal gems in the Hearts of Space Archive with this special channel. It's filled with heartwarming seasonal music, folk and classical melodies and choral masterworks.

To hear it on our web site, Just click CHANNELS in the main menu bar or select HOLIDAY from the Channels drop-down menu. On the Hearts of Space iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch app, tap the CHANNELS icon on the main screen or the Channels tab on the bottom navigation bar.

 

PGM 996 'ILLUMINATION' : nov.30 - dec.7

After the Thanksgiving holiday the chilled months of the winter season begin in earnest, and with them the celebration of light itself, conjoined with the year-end religious celebrations. From the pre-Christian and Pagan festivals of the sun, to Christian, Jewish and Hindu celebrations of light, we chase away the gloom of the season with a special radiance.

The music of midwinter embodies this transition from the dark harmonies of late autumn to the festive atmosphere of the year-end solstice and religious celebrations: lyrical, optimistic, and heartwarming. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, ambient chamber music for the transition to the season of light, on a program called ILLUMINATION. Featured artists are KEVIN KELLER, JENNIFER ZULLI, TIM STORY, and RUSSEL WALDER.

 [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ]

PGM 959R 'ETHEROPHONIC' : nov. 23-30

You're listening to the first wholly electronic musical instrument: the theremin, invented in 1920 by a 21-year old Russian physics student named LEV TERMEN. It emerged out of  Russian government research into proximity sensors. Today, every smartphone has them, but back then it was cutting-edge technology.

No less a historical figure than VLADIMIR LENIN was so impressed by the theremin that he took lessons to play it, and sent young Termen around the world to demonstrate it as an example of Russian scientific achievement.

Lev Terman arrived in New York in 1927 and became LEON THEREMIN. The original name for his instrument was the aetherphone or etherophone, later the Theremin and Thereminvox. It was the first musical instrument played entirely without touching: metal wands for pitch and volume are controlled by the position and movement of the hands and body in air, which makes it very difficult to play.

The first real virtuoso of the theremin was a former Russian violinist named CLARA ROCKMORE, who developed a technique called aerial fingering. With this, she could play Romantic classics like this Rachmaninoff Vocalise, as well as the eerie sci-fi soundtracks for which the instrument became known. The late ROBERT MOOG of Moog synthesizer fame built theremins and sold theremin kits, and today the instrument remains a kind of cult classic among electronic musicians.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, the theremin and some of its ethereal electronic descendants, on a program called ETHEROPHONIC. Music is by CLARA ROCKMORE, ARMEN RA, GEVORG DABAGIAN, DJIVAN GASPARYAN, MICHAEL MUSED, MAITREYA, BERNARD XOLOTL & DANIEL KOBIALKA, and ROBERT MARGOULEFF & MALCOLM CECIL.

[ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ]

PGM 995 'DIMINUENDO' : nov.16-23

We're descending into the autumn soundscape, a world of deepening colors, diminishing daylight, and declining temperatures. As the sun withdraws, we ride the trail of recession in the natural world. It's a time for patience, acceptance, forbearance.

​Ambient musicians reflect the feelings of the season with acoustic and electronic sounds, slowing time and stretching space with descending progressions and darkening harmonies. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, an ambient journey for late autumn, on a program called DIMINUENDO. Music is by PATRICK O'HEARN, ERIK WOLLO, PAUL AVGERINOS, BRUNO SANFILIPPO, HAROLD BUDD & BRIAN ENO, ROBERT RICH, and DARSHAN AMBIENT.

[ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ]

PGM 994 'RITUAL DRONES' : nov.9-16

SORIAH is the stage persona of Portland-based performance artist and composer ENRIQUE UGALDE. Though Ugalde grew up in California and is of Mexican descent, the name SORIAH is derived from the Persian. His music is a singular combination of Khöömei — the Central Asian tradition of overtone singing from Tuva, plus a rich blend of influences from raga, shamanism, electro-acoustic soundscapes, noise, butoh, and free improvisation.

It's a potent mix, and the dark days of Scorpio are the perfect time to experience the uncompromising intensity of Soriah's music. In fact, recordings only tell part of the story: he's one of the most powerful live performers you'll ever hear.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we immerse ourselves in the deep underworld ambience and profound ceremonial spaces of SORIAH...on a program called RITUAL DRONES.

[ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ]

PGM 927R 'RUSSET and AMBER' : nov.2-9

In the history of brilliant unintended consequences, the cello ranks high. A descendant of the bass violin, it was invented by Italian luthiers in the 17th century, and based on a technical innovation: to make the instrument smaller, they wrapped gut strings with wire to augment the bass.

The cello's musical roles expanded rapidly in the 18th century due to its more convenient size and versatility. Today, no western instrument has the emotional range and depth; from its foundational role in the orchestra and the string quartet, to its uncanny vocal emulations and profound solo flights...the cello seems to have no boundaries.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we feature the dark harmonies and plaintive tones of the cello, on an autumnal soundscape called RUSSET and AMBER. Music is by DAVID DARLING, MARTIN TILLMAN, HANS CHRISTIAN, MAYA BEISER, and ANGELE DUBEAU.

[ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ]