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PGM 957R 'MYSTERIOSO' : nov. 20-27

A classic piece of electronic spacemusic from France by JEAN-MICHEL JARRE. With just a few notes, it creates a whole world of mystery and imagination. Slow, deep, romantic and sublime, it invites us into a place that's unknown and unpredictable, yet alluring.

It's true that all good music takes you away, but since the 1970s artists have been using electronic tools to craft a sound that takes you to places far beyond the reach of ordinary music. Dark ambient electronics have become a vehicle...for transport to deep virtual worlds and exotic environments.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a journey on the dark ambient spaceways, on a program called MYSTERIOSO. Music is by JEAN MICHEL JARRE, A PRODUCE & LOREN NERELL, PAUL ELLIS, MEG BOWLES, RICHARD BONE, ERIK WOLLO, KIT WATKINS, and ANDREW LAHIFF.

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PGM 1058R 'THE TWILIGHT ZONE' : oct. 23-30

As we enter the astrological house of Scorpio, here in the northern hemisphere the light is waning, the natural world is withering, and hidden realms are emerging from the shadows. It's a time for music of dissonant harmonies, dark spaces and strange worlds.

I'm STEPHEN HILL and on this transmission of Hearts of Space, a dark autumn journey called THE TWILIGHT ZONE. The title, of course, was made famous by the 1959 science fiction TV series written, produced and hosted by ROD SERLING, featuring stories of the futuristic, the paranormal and the supernatural.

My introductions to Hearts of Space are too often compared to Rod Serling's. Thank you, but have you actually listened to a TWILIGHT ZONE intro lately? Sorry, no way.

Music is by TIM STORY & ROEDELIUS, KEVIN KELLER, BRUNO SANFILIPPO, MICHAEL JON FINK, JEFF GREINKE, ROBERT RICH, THOMAS NEWMAN & RICK COX, and DWIGHT ASHLEY.

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PGM 1231R 'FALLING' : oct. 2-9

THE SUN begins its long withdrawal from the northern hemisphere after the summer solstice in June. After the autumn equinox in September, the transition seems to accelerate. The days grow shorter, the nights grow longer, and the temperature cools, while the natural world changes color and prepares for the winter to come.

Since medieval times we've called this season "fall." The word comes from Middle English, with Old English and Old German roots. Falling implies movement downward, and in autumn declining solar energy brings a feeling of descending or falling into the season. In music it's marked by slowing tempos, descending chord progressions, darkening timbres, and wistful, even melancholy emotions.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we descend into the autumn soundscape, on a program called FALLING. Music is by DAVID DARLING, JOEP BEVING, CHRISTOPHER TIGNOR, HAMMOCK, LUDOVICO EINAUDI, and TOM EATON.

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PGM 1158R 'EQUILUX' : sept.19-26

Twice a year, we pass a point of balance and equilibrium in the progression of the seasons. Our planet reaches the place in its celestial journey where the center of the sun rises and sets directly over the equator, and day and night are of approximately equal length everywhere on earth. We call these times the equinox from the Latin for "equal night." A less common but possibly more correct name is equilux or "equal light." 

The September equinox marks the beginning of the new season: autumn, and the time of harvest festivals in the northern hemisphere. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, calm and balanced acoustic ambient for the seasonal transition, on a program called EQUILUX.

Music is by PETER BRODERICK, LUDOVICO EINAUDI, FEDERICO ALBANESE, TOM EATON, FLOW, CARL WEINGARTEN & CATHERINE MARIE CHARLTON, GREG HAINES, A WINGED VICTORY FOR THE SULLEN, and ENZO.

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PGM 1189R 'DEEP DUB' : sept.11-18

The history of Jamaican Dub music is rich and fascinating. Dub grew out of reggae in the 1960s, and evolved well beyond its popular parent. It was a studio craft where producers created instrumental remixes of reggae tracks by removing the vocals, adding echo, reverb and delay, and dubbing in new ambient sounds. Essentially, Dub was an early form of popular electronic music.

If you think all this had something to do with cannabis, you'd be understating the case. In a 1982 essay, LUKE EHRLICH said: "With dub, Jamaican music spaced out completely. If reggae is Africa in the New World, then dub must be Africa on the moon; it's the psychedelic music I expected to hear in the 1960s...and didn't. The bass and drums conjure up a dark, vast musical portrait of outer space, with sounds suspended like glowing planets or the fragments of instruments careening by, leaving trails like comets and meteors."

Dub was a natural link to later electronic genres like techno, ambient, trip hop and electronic dance music. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, the trancey beats of Jamaican Dub and its electronic descendants, on a program from guest producer DAVID J. EGAN called DEEP DUB. Music is by JAH WOBBLE & MARCONI UNION, ORKUS, FINGERS IN THE NOISE, ECHO GRID, PURL & DEFLEKTION, LOSCIL, and MOTIONFIELD.

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PGM 1146R 'HELIOS' : aug.14-21

Let's hear it for The Sun, ladies and gentlemen. It's impossible to think of anything more important—to our very existence, our history, our evolution, and our future as a species. So it's a big subject: the sun is responsible for super-basic stuff like day and night, the year, the weather, and the climate. It's the key to almost all life on earth, the source of all our energy (one way or another), the key ingredient in everything we eat, and the indispensable element in our vacations. I mean, who wants to vacation in the rain?

Astronomically speaking, the sun is our home star, a member of the "yellow dwarf" class. It's 4.6 billion years old, over a hundred times bigger in diameter than earth, and weighs 330,000 times as much, despite being 98% hydrogen and helium—two of the lightest materials in existence. The sun is a bright sphere of superheated plasma; at its core is a nuclear furnace, where fusion of hydrogen atoms creates temperatures of almost 30 million degrees Fahrenheit, while the surface of the sun is a relatively balmy 10,000 degrees. We're 93 million miles away, and it still feels hot! 

The sun has been central to many human cultures and religions since prehistoric times. It's been worshipped as a deity and celebrated in myth, art and literature, especially in ancient Egypt. Those days are gone, but ambient electronic artists are still inspired by it. On this transmission of Hearts of Space...a tribute to the sun and its season, on a program called HELIOS.

Music is by SOLAR FIELDS, AES DANA, STEVE ROACH, ISHQ, ALPHA WAVE MOVEMENT, ERIC WØLLO, MAX CORBACHO, and HOLLAN HOLMES.

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PGM 1220 'AMBIENT TRAVELER 2' : july 17-24

In the warm, bright days of summer, an ambient fan yearning for travel to exotic cultures will book a flight on Sequencer Airlines. With its steady pulse, it's a perfect rhythm for moving through space. 

The roots go back to 9th century Persia, but the music sequencer idea really got going in the 19th century after the Industrial Revolution, with popular devices like music boxes, mechanical organs, and player pianos. By the first generation of electronic synthesizers in the 1960s and 70s, the Step Sequencer was a machine that turned equal length notes into repeating rhythm patterns. They're simple, delightfully hypnotic, and fun to work with. 

Today things are more complicated, but a lot more powerful. We have audio sample sequencers, loop-based creative music software, phrase samplers, and digital audio recording software many times more powerful than the primitive sequencers of early synths—and hey! They're still fun to work with. 

On this transmission of Hearts of Space...a journey from kinetic sequencer patterns to exotic Southeast Asian ambient soundscapes—on a program called AMBIENT TRAVELER 2. 

Music by ATOMIC SKUNK, DAVID PARSONS, CHRISTEL VERAART, CHRONOTOPE PROJECT, LOREN NERELL, ALIO DIE & LORENZO MONTANA, RICHARD BONE.

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PGM 1055R 'ROMANTICO' : july 3-10

It's been a while since we did a program on the music of the America to our south. It's a whole continent, after all, and the scope and variety of music from the distinctive cultures of Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil is enormous.

Whether it comes from the mountain cultures, the grasslands, the rainforest, or one of the great cities; is based on influences from the native Indians, or from Spain or other European countries — the music of South America has a depth and passion all its own, and genres like Tango have created fans around the world.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we return to the soul and space of South American music, on a program called ROMANTICO. Music is by OSCAR REYNOLDS, INKUYO, TRIO GARUFA, GUSTAVO SANTAOLALLA, ASTOR PIAZZOLLA, STEPHAN MICUS, DINO SALUZZI, and EGBERTO GISMONTI.

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PGM 980R 'MELLOTRONIC' : jun 5-12

Ahhh, the sweetness of early summer, the balm of warm breezes, the pollen, the allergies. It's a good time for electro-acoustic music with gentle rhythms, soft harmonies and seductive melodies. In a word, something "mellotronic."

Now, historians of electronic instruments will tell you that the Mellotron was a tape-based, polyphonic, sample-playback keyboard, developed in England in the early 1960s. The instrument achieved classic status for its key role in popular albums by the Moody Blues and the Beatles, and brought violin, cello, brass, flute and choir sounds to innumerable albums from the Progressive Rock era.

These days, every laptop can be a sampler, the original Mellotron sound is a menu choice, and the orchestration of electronic music is open to all. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we revisit the romantic-contemplative side of ambient electronica, on a program called MELLOTRONIC. Music is by PATRICK O'HEARN, LUDOVICO EINAUDI, THIERRY DAVID, CRAIG PADILLA, MICHELE IPPOLITO, and FRANK STEINER, JR.

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PGM 1213R 'PROGRESSIVE AMBIENT' : may 15-22

The "progressive" label is growing, and it has nothing to do with politics. 

In music, the term has a history that goes back to Progressive Folk in the 1930s. After that came Progressive Jazz from the 1940s to the 1970s, Progressive Rock, Pop, and Bluegrass in the 1960s, Progressive Country in the 1970s, Progressive Metal in the 1980s, and Progressive Electronic and Progressive House in the 1990s.

Progressive is what happens when a genre has matured, and there's an abundance of highly skilled musicians who want to stay creatively challenged. 

On this transmission of Hearts of Space...if the progressive label means expanding stylistic and conceptual boundaries and synthesizing cultural influences—then I'm gonna say we're overdue for a genre—and a program—called PROGRESSIVE AMBIENT.

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PGM 1011R 'ELECTRON TRAVELER' : apr.24-may 1

Even in the early days, the pioneers of electronic music knew they were on to something special. Here was a way of sculpting sound that made it like clay — something you could shape to your own creative vision. Today every artist can have electronic tools of almost unlimited power at their fingertips. We've had several generations of musicians tending the electronic vineyards, and these days the sonic wine is available in many varietals.

For example, "downtempo" is a name invented in the 1990s to describe slowed-down, less intense electronic dance music. It's still beat-y but the atmosphere is chilled; rather than pumping you up, it floats you along with a relaxed vibe that leads to pure Ambient realms.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a journey from Downtempo rhythms to Ambient space, on a program called 'ELECTRON TRAVELER'. Music is by AES DANA, MARCONI UNION, HIBERNATION, HEALER, and RADIANT MIND.

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PGM 785R 'LAMENTO' : apr. 3-10

Descending into the dark season, we find music that portrays human emotions at their most vulnerable: music of pathos, loss and remembrance. These are some of our most powerful and affecting feelings, and they call for music that reaches into the depths of our souls.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a special program of choral, vocal and instrumental music for the dark season from guest producer ELLEN HOLMES called LAMENTO.

A lament is a cathartic song or poem expressing grief or mourning. Many of the oldest and most enduring poems in human history have been laments; they're found in the Iliad and the Odyssey, the Hindu Vedas, and in ancient Near Eastern religious texts, including the Old Testament. 

Music is by GEORGE ROCHBERG, ARVO PÄRT, GARRETT FISHER, SAVINA YANNATOU, SILVIA NAKKACH, ZBIGNIEW PREISNER, NIKOLAI KARETNIKOV, VICTOR KALINNIKOV, ALEXANDER KASTALSKY, URMAS SISASK, and SANCTUARY.

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PGM 749R2 'TRANSLUCENT MUSIC' : mar.27-apr.3

In dark and dangerous times, we're confronted with depressing and painful emotions. Irrationally, when we consciously immerse ourselves in fear and dread, we can emerge stronger. Music has mysterious restorative powers that come from the emotional confrontation with deep and challenging feelings. The Ancient Greeks called it...catharsis.

At the other end of the emotional spectrum, in dark times we crave light and hope—balm for battered souls. Here music brings beauty and peace, inspiration and joy.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a journey in the fragile lightscape of the psyche, from dark, to translucent, to luminous—on a program called TRANSLUCENT MUSIC.

Featuring LISA GERRARD & JEFF RONA, ELENI KARAINDROU, ARVO PÄRT, VALENTIN SILVESTROV, and KARL JENKINS.

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PGM 1038 'CELTIC LEGACY 2' : mar. 13-20

Every year on the threshold of spring, we celebrate the memory of St. Patrick and the sublime music of the Celtic lands on the western edge of Europe. For folk music fans, it's a visit to one of the key sources of American music; for lovers of the ethereal ballad, it's a deep drink from the well; and for anyone who appreciates fine acoustic music and great vocalists, it's an unending delight. For Celtic music renews itself in every generation, embracing the present while honoring its long and brilliant expression of essential human emotion.

On this transmission of HEARTS of SPACE, another journey in the Celtic soundscape, on a program called CELTIC LEGACY 2. Music is by MIKE OLDFIELD, CLANNAD, DAVID ARKENSTONE & CHARLEE BROOKS, KATE PRICE, JOHN DOAN, AINE MINOGUE, and BRIAN KEANE.

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PGM 1068R 'WINTERTONES 2' : feb. 21-28

 

The latter days of winter bring a special kind of fatigue mixed with impatience. For residents of snow-crossed parts of the country, winter has begun to overstay its welcome; while here in California the trees are blossoming, and February feels like spring.

As the sound of the season evolves, music of the far north and Arctic countries still resonates, connecting with contemplative acoustic mainstays like the cello and the piano. From deep minimalist patterns to Romantic melodicism, we find the soul and comfort to endure.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, wintry acoustic spacemusic for the season on a program called WINTERTONES 2.  With Icelandic musicians OLAFUR ARNALDS and HILDUR GUTHNADOTTIR, cellist DAVID DARLING with SYLVIA NAKKACH and JACQUELINE TSCHABOLD BHUYAN, MICHAEL HOPPE & HAROLD MOSES, BRUNO SANFILIPPO, and RALPH ZURMUHLE.

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PGM 895R 'WINTERSONGS 2' : jan. 24-31

In a time of cold and dark, we instinctively move toward warmth and light. So the winter songbook that comes down to us from Northern and Eastern Europe is replete with warm harmonies and brilliant timbres. From Norway, Bulgaria, Moldavia, Germany and Austria, music of the folk and classical traditions is wonderfully alive and resonant at this time of year.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, cold day hymns, songs, lullabies, and the immortal music of BACH...on a program called WINTERSONGS 2. 

Music is by IRARI, IREN LOVASZ, MEDIAEVAL BAEBES, LISA HAMMER, JOSEPH HEBERT & MERRILL COLLINS, KITKA, TRIO MEDIEVAL, JOHANN HEINRICH SCHMELZER, and JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH.

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PGM 1030R2 'COLD and BRIGHT' : dec. 27-jan. 3

Winter settles in to the Northern hemisphere bringing powerful storms, but also radiant clear days with azure skies and deep vistas. Unlike most sensible animals, human activity seems to increase as the temperature drops, and we fill the brief days leading up to the new year with all manner of hustle and bustle.

Holiday lights twinkle in the crisp air, and while the traditional sounds of the season are warm, rich and harmonious, it's also a perfect time for intricate electronic rhythms that echo the activity, and crystalline tones that ring in the chilled atmosphere.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, an Ambient/Electronic journey for early winter, on a program called COLD AND BRIGHT. Music is by BRYAN CARRIGAN, BLUETECH, FORREST SMITHSON, NATURAL FREQUENCIES, PHILLIP WILKERSON, and JUSTIN VANDERBERG.

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PGM 1096R 'AFTERGLOOM DELIGHT' : nov. 29-dec.6

The end of the euphemistically named "daylight saving time" each fall is generally greeted with a chorus of depression. Not only is it clearly the final nail in summer's coffin, it's an all too blatant reminder of the long winter ahead.

Our Celtic ancestors gathered around bonfires at this time of year to chase away the gloom and recall the Pagan and pre-Christian festivals of the sun — then looked forward to the year-end solstice and religious holidays and the festive celebration of light itself.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, ambient chamber music for the transition to the season of light, on an early winter program called AFTERGLOOM DELIGHT. Music is by KEVIN KELLER, A WINGED VICTORY FOR THE SULLEN, HELEN JANE LONG, YUTA NAGASHIMA, and BRUNO SANFILIPPO.

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PGM 1195R 'DESCENDING DARK 2' : nov. 1-8

This could be the sound of the Sugar Plum Fairies in the netherworld — we're coming up on Nutcracker time, after all — but no: it's the on-ramp to a journey into the cooling, darkening, deepening autumn soundscape. It's time to join the animals and prepare for the long winter ahead; time to focus, plan and complete those lingering projects, and get together with friends you missed over the summer. 

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a seasonal electronic journey in the autumn soundscape, on a program called DESCENDING DARK 2. 

Music is by SLEEPY TOWN MANUFACTURE, SOLARIS, PAULINA CASSIDY, DEBORAH MARTIN, KIT WATKINS, KLAUS SCHULZE, ERRANT SPACE, and BOB HOLROYD.

 [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ]

 

PGM 1161R 'THE GATHERING DARK' : oct.11-18

Despite the unseasonably warm temperatures and their sometimes disastrous consequences, one thing in our environment remains absolutely unchanged: the sun and the earth continue reliably tracing their cosmic orbits. And so, for very good astronomical reasons, here in the northern hemisphere the autumn days grow shorter, and the light grows ever dimmer, as we plot our course toward the winter solstice. 

The music of the season is measured, calm, with restrained passion and glints of bright color against a darkening background. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we score the season of fading light and falling leaves, on a program called THE GATHERING DARK.

Music is by JEFF PEARCE, DARSHAN AMBIENT, TIM STORY & ROEDELIUS, JEFF GREINKE, TAPES AND TOPOGRAPHIES, EYES CAST DOWN, and HAMMOCK.

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PGM 1025R 'NOCTURNES' : sept.27 - oct.4

The first movement of BEETHOVEN's famous Piano Sonata No.14 in C Sharp Minor, better known as the "Moonlight Sonata." The nickname came from a German music critic in 1832 who impressionistically compared the effect to "moonlight shining on Lake Lucerne."

Beethoven intended it as a prelude, but in the score he instructed the performer to keep the sustain pedal down for the entire movement — a kind of special effect that mixed the music with natural harmonic reverberation from the piano. With its hypnotic triplets and ghostly melody, for Ambient music fans, it's one of the simplest, yet most memorable pieces ever written.

Beethoven may have inadvertently started a movement to redefine the piano as an instrument for contemplative, spatially expanded music, seeding the Impressionism of Debussy, the early ambient music of Satie, and laying the foundations of modern Minimalism.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a program of sublime night music for piano called NOCTURNES. Featured artists are MICHAEL DULIN, KEVIN KELLER, BRUCE LEVINGSTON, JENNY LIN, RALPH ZURMUHLE, LUDOVICO EINAUDI, and CHAD LAWSON.

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PGM 1117R 'PSYCHETRONIC SUMMER' : sept. 6-13

PSYCHEDELIC MUSIC was born in the 1960s, a predictable mutation of psychedelic drugs and popular culture. The roots of the word psychedelic mean "revealing the mind" — a revelation that turned out to be both colorful and unpredictable.

Psychedelic music aimed to reveal an expanded version of the mind, using audible distortion and warped perspective, sustained floating textures and drones, fractal repetitions and feedback, liberally seasoned with sounds from nature and exotic cultures, especially India.

As a trend, it ran its course in the 1960s, was revived in the 1970s, quoted lovingly by fashionable bands in the 80s and 90s, and became a core influence on millennial genres like Trip Hop, Shoegaze, Acid Jazz, Acid House, and the many varieties of Trance — to name a few. We just can't seem to quit it.

Like an aesthetic virus, the pure electronic form of psychedelic music invented in the 1960s and 70s infected musicians using sound as a vehicle for inner space travel and consciousness alteration. In a word: trippy.

Along the way, these sonic explorers found kindred spirits in archaic traditions like shamanism and pagan rituals. What began as free exploration with mind-bending chemicals ultimately became a quest for new modes of perception, psychological therapy, escape from the normal boundaries of self, and at its most extreme — visions and hallucinations at the borders of oblivion. These grassroots experiments paved the way for the massive tribal-Electronic Dance Music festivals of today, with their promise of transcending self through ecstatic group experience.

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a journey in the altered soundscapes of psychedelic space, on a program called PSYCHETRONIC SUMMER.

Music is by THE FUTURE SOUND OF LONDON, SCANN-TEC, ISHQ, LIGHTWAVE, FORREST SMITHSON, CYBERNIUM (MICHEL HUYGEN & PASCAL LANGUIRAND), and CSILLAGKÖD.

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PGM 985R 'BADLANDS' : aug. 30-sept. 6

Out on the western range, there's places where the deep prairie meets the desert at the end of the line. Places where the tough get going and the outlaws go to hide: where the land's eroded, the water's scarce, the weather's bad, the nights are dangerous, and everything you see is a survivor. It's called..."The Badlands." 

On this transmission of HEARTS of SPACE, a program inspired by this hard and beautiful environment, called BADLANDS. Music is by DANIEL LANOIS, ERIC TINGSTAD, CARL WEINGARTEN, BRUCE KAPHAN, EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY, JAPANCAKES and DAVID TORN.

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PGM 1155R 'NOCTURNAL TRANSMISSIONS' : aug. 23-30

Would you believe me if I told you that all the sounds you're hearing are made with an analog synthesizer? Strange but true. It's the work of KEVIN BRAHENY FORTUNE, one of the early masters of long-form electronic ambient music. And it's a good story. 

The 1970s were a decade of discovery and development for electronic music. Early analog synthesizer modules by ROBERT MOOG, DON BUCHLA, and SERGE TCHEREPNIN fueled an explosion of creativity. If you were serious, you wound up building your own instruments and creating your own sounds. Then KEVIN BRAHENY (the Fortune came later...) was a talented musician and soprano saxophone player in Los Angeles who worked designing and building electronic instruments with several of the early pioneers of analog synthesis in California. 

The foundations for Ambient electronic music were being created out of the new possibilities opened up by the synthesizer, and the psychological and social changes inspired by psychedelic drugs. This new sensibility lead to the creation of extended musical "journeys" of 30 minutes or more, which could be released on cassette. Later, even longer journeys were possible on CD. 

In 1980 Braheny improvised a live 35 minute "lullaby" to close a HEARTS OF SPACE fundraising special on our home station, KPFA-FM in Berkeley. It turned out so well it was released later that year as "Lullaby for the Hearts of Space," along with a composed companion piece called "After I Said Goodnight. " And that's where we begin this edition of Hearts of Space called NOCTURNAL TRANSMISSIONS.

Music is by KEVIN BRAHENY FORTUNE, CHAD HOEFLER, ROBERT RICH, ALIO DIE, and IASOS.

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

 

PGM 810R 'DESERT DREAMFIELDS' : july 26-aug. 2

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." 

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a deep journey called DESERT DREAMFIELDS. Music is by STEVE ROACH, DWIGHT LOOP, TOM HEASLEY, and the late A.PRODUCE.

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