Ambient Music comes in many shades, and it is a green cast
which permeates STILL LIFE volume two (51'56") by Nelson
Foltz + Tom Lynn. Their work creates an atmospheric journey
through the emerald hued regions of Fourth World Music. An
unguided tour, this shamanistic adventure provides nuanced yet
detailed aural surroundings within which the listener may roam.
The piece begins extremely softly with a sub-sonic drone
beneath slowly breathing tones. Its development is nearly
imperceptible as the airy notes continually layer up and gently
recede. With spaced scales played on a kalimba, the rhythmic
section is introduced and this long-form piece begins to take
shape. The soundfield fills out with various hand drums and
other native percussion devices playing together in pulsing lines.
This intricate stratum of sounds began its origins in something
other than a synthesizer or other electronic music device.
However, once out in the air these waves are processed digitally.
When Foltz's trombone blows are introduced it sounds as if the
spirit of some lost tribe is trying to communicate with us. Processed and pitch
shifted - and played in a style similar
to that of trumpeters Jon Hassell or Nils Petter Molvaer - the horn
tones are transformed into an eerie and breathy hybrid.
Occasionally sliding between notes gives these solos a
distinctive quality, as does the warm and fuller tone of this
instrument. STILL LIFE progresses to a more active point where
all the elements come together in a slow cyber-dance ritual (the
calm beats and intermittent bassline of which continue to
reverberate in our minds long after the piece winds down). Foltz
and Lynn are artists working in the medium of sound, and in the
dimension of time. The magic realism they have devised on
STILL LIFE bends time in the mystic ways of the ancients - a
concept those of the First World need to recognize and
incorporate.

Tune in to STAR'S END this weekend for music from STILL LIFE
volume 2 by Nelson Foltz + Tom Lynn

For more on STILL LIFE, access: http://www.still-life.org

-

THE LIGHT BEYOND by Jeff Pearce

Jeff Pearce is well known to the Spacemusic community for his
unique approach to the guitar. Pearce produces tones that rarely
betray their origin as they are processed, delayed, distorted and
looped to create complex harmonies and timbres. His music is
compelling and moody, traversing the Space, Ambient,
Experimental and New Age genres.

Jeff Pearce is also an active live performer. His solo outings in
Philadelphia at The Gatherings Concert Series were each
followed by live in-studio concerts for STAR'S END. THE LIGHT
BEYOND is the album that came of his on-air concert on the
STAR'S END broadcast of 06.11.00. Pearce attributes the rare
fragility and intuitive contour of his performance to the space; the
space he was physically playing in, the space his head was in
and the space his music was being broadcasted out into.

Tune into STAR'S END this weekend for music from THE LIGHT
BEYOND by Jeff Pearce

For more on Jeff Pearce, access:
http://www.jeffpearcemusic.com

For more on THE LIGHT BEYOND, access:
http://www.hypnos.com

-


STAR'S END broadcasts every Saturday night/Sunday morning
from 1am-6am (EST) on:

88.5fm WXPN Philadelphia, PA
88.1fm WXPH Harrisburg, PA
90.5fm Worton/Baltimore, MD
104.9fm Allentown, PA

and live on the web...

-

Chuck van Zyl
Host of STAR'S END Ambient Radio
http://www.starsend.org