Transcript for the Piece Audio version of John Luther Adams: Tuning in the sound of a frozen world

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Imagine A place where music comes from all directions. IT changes according to time of day, geomagnetic activity, aurora activity, the path of the sun and moon through the sky and seismic shudder. And it runs 24/7, 365 days a year.

Musik

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THIS IS JOHN LUTHER ADAMS' INSTALLATION, THE PLACE WHERE WE GO TO LISTEN. THAT'S TRANSLATED FROM AN INUIT NAME.

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22:17
JLA: The name is Naalagiagvik which means more or less literally translated “The place where you go to listen,” It’s Inupiak name. The Inupiat are the northern Alaskan Inuit people.

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THE PLACE IS AN EXPANSIVE WORK HOUSED IN THE MUSEUM OF THE NORTH AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA IN FAIRBANKS. BUT IT'S A RECENT EXAMPLE OF THE ECOLOGICAL MUSIC THAT JOHN LUTHER ADAMS HAS BEEN MAKING OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS. HIS COMPOSITIONS ARE DRAWN FROM THE ENVIRONMENT, MOSTLY ALASKA WHERE HE LIVES, OFTEN IN DARKENED SKIES AND SNOW SHROUDED LANDSCAPES. HE'S LIVED THERE SINCE 1975 IN A PLACE OF SOLITUDE WHERE HE TUNES IN THE WORLD, following a lineage from john cage.

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37:04
JLA: Absolutely. I often speak of Cage as the first great ecological composer. He opened our ears to the music all around us and that’s an enduring influence on my work.

Musik

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IN "THE PLACE WHERE YOU GO TO LISTEN" OR WORKS LIKE "IN THE WHITE SILENCE," ADAMS DOESN'T USE ENVIRONMENTAL SOUNDS AT ALL. HE WORKS WITH ORCHESTRAS AND ACOUSTIC MUSICIANS, CREATING HIS OWN REACTION TO THE ENVIRONMENT.

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13:46
JLA: Well, I am not sure the music is the sound of nature, but at times it maybe, but even more I hope it is the feel of nature, that the music is a kind of landscape and I invite you the listener into this landscape.

MUSIK

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JOHN LUTHER ADAMS HAS A NEW BOOK CALLED THE PLACE WHERE YOU GO TO LISTEN: IN SEARCH OF AN ECOLOGY OF MUSIC. HE ALSO HAS A NEW ALBUM OF OLDER, ELECTRONIC WORKS CALLED THE PLACE WE BEGAN.
THIS HAS BEEN AN ECOLOGICAL ECHO LOCATION. I'M JOHN DILIBERTO.

MUSIK OUT