Radiovisions: #8, The New Consonance
Analog Audio
Event Type
DocumentariesOrigin
NPRIdentifier
RV.1981.12.27.c1Program Series
RadiovisionsProgram Length
59 minDates
1981-12-27 | broadcast| 402 | created
Description
Starting in 1969, Charles Amirkhanian was the first radio producer to broadcast substantial quantities of music by first generation minimalist composers. His early interviews with Steve Reich, John Adams, Paul Dresher, Laurie Anderson, Lou Harrison, and others form the basis of this fascinating exegesis of the sea change in contemporary music brought on by the use of consonant harmonies, steady pulse, and hypnotic repetition.But what was the historical artistic context that provoked this reaction, and what was the public's level of acceptance of these new one-note geniuses? That question and others are explored in this detailed and fascinating look at modern music and the changing nature of the avant-garde scene during the period from 1900 to 1980. Some of the breathtaking claims, like Lou Harrison's assertion that the music of Brahms, composed as it is in equal temperament, "is dreadfully out of tune", caused a scandal at the time and led series host Gunther Schuller to disavow the entire thrust of the program's narrative thread.
But from beginning to end, this definitive 60-minute statement about the West Coast sound in maverick music, challenges and informs with rare insight and will keep you glued to your loudspeakers.
Genres
New musicMinimalism
Subjects
Minimal musicNew music
Consonance (Music)
Dissonance (Music)