Ahhh, the fullness of Spring! It arrives when we're not looking, concealed by fresh winds, bright clouds, and unpredictable weather. Beneath the superficial chaos beats a steady rhythm, as the natural world acclimates to more light and heat. The flora bloom and change, while the fauna increase their activity after the restrictions of winter. It's a time for production, and reproduction. On this transmission of Hearts of Space we sound the fullness of spring, on a program called WINDS OF CHANGE. Music is by ERIK WØLLO, ATOMIC SKUNK, ISHQ, FORREST SMITHSON, DAN POUND, YUNOMI, ALPHA WAVE MOVEMENT, and LEMONGRASS. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

All most Americans know about Vietnam is that we fought a long and pointless war there in the 1960s and 70s. Today, if you live on the west coast, more likely than not there's a delicious Vietnamese restaurant in your community. But the ancient cultures, and the music of Southeast Asia and Vietnam in particular, is a mystery to most of us. A select group of Western composers and musicians have been drawn to these cultures, along with Southeast Asian musicians who've relocated to the West. They're creating a new fusion of traditional and contemporary music. On this transmission of Hearts of Space...subtle, exotic sounds from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Southeast Asia, on a program called ANCESTRAL VOICES 2. Music is by GRAYHAWK, LÊ TỰ CƯỜNG, PEETER VÄHI, RICHARD HOROWITZ, PHAN KIM THÀNH, VANESSA VÕ, LÊ TUẤN HÙNG & ĐẶNG KIM HIỀN, TRÍ NGUYỄN & THE ILIOS QUARTET. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

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

The contemporary classical genre called Minimalism arrived in the middle of the 20th century as a reaction against the rigid avant-garde theories of Serialism, which threw out the tonal center and harmonic systems of a thousand years of European music. Serialism was intellectually brilliant—unfortunately, the music was ugly, tedious, and unpopular. In the 1960s, a number of American composers including LA MONTE YOUNG, TERRY RILEY, STEVE REICH, and PHILIP GLASS found their way back to tonality, with a style based on "minimal" elements: consonant harmony, static drones or a steady pulse, and slowly changing thematic motifs. Minimalism looked back and forward at the same time. Unlike Serialism, it was appealing and popular, and was eventually adopted by a number of European composers who've been featured on Hearts of Space, including MICHAEL NYMAN, GAVIN BRYARS, JOHN TAVENER, HENRYK GÓRECKI, and ARVO PÄRT. One that we missed—who must be the best-kept secret in European minimalism—is the late Dutch composer SIMEON TEN HOLT, who died in 2012. After experimenting with complex chromaticism and serialism early in his career, Ten Holt arrived at his own style of "humanized" minimalism: infused with traditional musical values, rhythmically rigorous, wonderfully melodic, and flexible in performance. His most famous piece, composed in 1976, is called CANTO OSTINATO, which in Italian means "obstinate song," a reference to its continuous, repeating quintuplet rhythm base. Its structure is based on 106 "cells" of a few phrases each which allow great latitude for repeats and interpretation by the performers. The piece can take from two hours to more than a day, and there are dozens of versions for 1, 2, 3, and 4 pianos, pianos plus organ, harp, or marimba, pipe organ, strings, and synthesizer. The piece has been a phenomenon in the Netherlands for 40 years and hundreds of sold out... Continue reading

Every year at Easter, we take the opportunity to catch up on the finest sounds in sacred choral music. There's something mysterious and majestic in the sound of voices in harmony. As often in the past, we turned to guest producer ELLEN HOLMES of Adagio Recordings, who brought us a bouquet of sublime pieces from the repertoire. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, our common theme is QUIET PRAYERS. Not only Easter sacred music — but sacred music that sounds right at Easter. It comes from many countries and spans several centuries: from medieval hymns to 21st century art songs. QUIET PRAYERS...a sacred choral collection for Easter, on this edition...of Hearts of Space. Music is by DOBRI CHRISTOV (Sophia Orthodox Choir), JEAN RICHAFORT (Huelgas Ensemble), G.POPESCU-BRANESTI and PAUL CONSTANINESCU (Kontakion Choir), RIMSKY-KORSAKOV (Bulgarian Voices Angelite), ANONYMOUS (Trio Medieval), JOHN TAVENER (Anonymous 4), MORTEN LAURIDSEN (Nordic Chamber Choir), NIKOLAI KEDROV SR.(Kitka), ALEXANDER SHEREMETIEV (Academy Chorus), JOSEF KETCHAKHMADZE (St. Petersburg Chamber Choir), TOMAS LUIS de VICTORIA (Voices of Ascension), PEROTIN (Choeur Gregorien de Paris-Voix de Femmes), GUILLAUME BOUZIGNAC (Les Arts Florissants), MAURICE DURUFLÉ (Corydon Singers), ARVO PÄRT (Hilliard Ensemble and Christoph Maria Moosmann). [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Flying...and Floating. As a literal description of the experience, it goes back to the early days of popular electronic music and the early days of Hearts of Space. Over the years we've done programs called Floating Whispers, Floating Worlds, Floating Gardens, Floating Reveries, Floating Waves, Floating Winds, and yes, Flying and Floating 1, 2, and 3. Back then I said "flying music is rhythm-powered and moves through space, heading for worlds beyond; floating music is goal-free—ethereal, static, and timeless." You know, I can't really add anything to that. We still enjoy expanding into unlimited virtual spaces, and yearn for the quiet pleasure of weightless suspension in time. On this transmission of Hearts of Space...another journey in our electronic touring series, on a program called ELECTRON TRAVELER 4. Music is by ASCENDANT, KEVIN KELLER, ALPHA WAVE MOVEMENT, DWIGHT LOOP, MASSERGY, and ERIK WØLLO. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

The story of English singer/songwriter MARK HOLLIS is an inspiration to serious musicians and listeners everywhere — a lesson in 'following the muse' to a place of true creativity. Born in London in 1955, Hollis came of age in the 1970s and embarked on the mythic road to fame and fortune by starting a rock band. After a few false starts it worked, and the group TALK TALK began a short, brilliant pop music career that included several gold records in England and Europe in the 1980s. But Mark Hollis' artistic yearnings pulled him off the beaten track and into a subtle, moving and deeply contemplative space — influenced by jazz, blues, ambient and chamber music, yet sounding unlike anyone else, before or since. The two final TALK TALK albums—SPIRIT OF EDEN from 1988 and LAUGHING STOCK from 1991—plus a 1998 solo album titled simply MARK HOLLIS, are all quiet masterpieces and timeless works of art, graced by profoundly poetic lyrics and vocals from powerfully emotional...to evanescent. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a MARK HOLLIS Retrospective called INSIDE LOOKING OUT. Mark Hollis hung up his guitar for the last time in February 2019, aged 64. This program is dedicated to his music and his memory. Info: http://users.cybercity.dk/~bcc11425 (fan site) SPIRIT OF EDEN Lyrics LAUGHING STOCK Lyrics MARK HOLLIS (solo album) Lyrics [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Early electronic music had a reputation for being cold, austere, and technical. That was good if that's the feeling you were trying to express, but even in those early days some electronic musicians wanted to create something altogether warmer and more "organic"—a "humanized" electronic music if you will—inspired by the beauty and complexity of the natural world, including acoustic instruments and nature sounds, but with the new and almost limitless creative possibilities of electronic sound design. I met one of those artists in the early 1980s when he was a 19 year old student at CCRMA—(they called it KARMA) Stanford University's famous Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics. In those days ROBERT RICH was building his own electronic instruments and studying lucid dreaming. His early work helped define and expand the scope and quality of ambient, dark-ambient, tribal and trance music. For forty years and over 40 albums, he's pursued his vision of an organic electro-acoustic music, and become a core artist for Hearts of Space. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we focus on Robert Rich's 2019 double album TACTILE GROUND. He calls it "an exploration of the synesthesia of sound on skin"—on a program called SENTIENT TOUCH. Music is by ROBERT RICH, LORENZO MONTANA, FORREST FANG, and JEFF GREINKE. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

For an instrument that's been around for over three hundred years, the piano continues to surprise. Ever since the arrival of popular electronic instruments, ambient musicians have been busy reinventing the sound and the setting of the piano. Musically, the 19th century Romantic Classical composers who perfected the piano concerto inspired VANGELIS (and thousands of new age pianists) to create personal, "high affect," emotionally-centered music—while the gentle, ironic French proto-ambient composer ERIK SATIE inspired others to create quiet, unpretentious miniatures. Still others have taken the instrument into cosmic space, where it chimes and sings across the starfields. In the 21st century, the piano is (almost) everywhere. On this transmission of Hearts of Space...(with appreciation to MICHAEL BROOK, creator of the Infinite Guitar) the evolving sound of THE INFINITE PIANO. Music is by VANGELIS, CHAD LAWSON, TOM EATON, BILL DOUGLAS, BEN LUKAS BOYSEN, and NILS FRAHM. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Every year at the threshold of spring, we return to the joy and heartache of Celtic music. 
We celebrate a culture whose roots go back to Iron Age Europe, that became one of the foundations of western European folk music, and by virtue of waves of Irish and Scottish immigration, a major element in American folk music as well. During the last 20 years we had a bit of a boom in Celtic music. These days things have quieted down, but the genre is still abundant with talented musicians and superb recordings. On this transmission of HEARTS of SPACE it's a timely journey in the Celtic soundscape called THE TURNING TIDE. Music is by JEFF JOHNSON & BRIAN DUNNING, singers MAEVE McKINNON, KAREN MATHESON and CATRIONA WATT, fiddler ATHENA TERGIS, Celtic harpist AINE MINOGUE, and the bands ALTAN and SOLAS. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

The creators of cosmic electronic music are a dedicated group. They spend years honing their craft, a kind of sonic alchemy designed to transport the listener to "strange new worlds." Their sound is inspired by the cosmic panorama: endless star fields and infinite galaxies; formless regions of interstellar dust and gas; and hypergravity, supermassive black holes. They travel across time and space on the steady rhythms of electronic sequencers—the engines of extended flight—and paint on a cosmic canvas, creating sonic images of the vast universe we observe. Created in the 1970s by the first generation of electronic space musicians, the genre quietly continues to evolve, fueled by new technologies and a new generation of artists. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, the classic sound of electronic spacemusic, on a program called XPANSE. With SVERRE KNUT JOHANSEN & DAVID HELPLING, TELOMERE, DAVE LUXTON, MICHAEL NEIL, RADIANT MIND & STEVE ROACH, CHRONOTOPE PROJECT, ASC, and MICHAEL STEARNS. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

For all the challenges that winter brings, it also offers a time for quiet, solitude, pristine stillness, rebirth, and renewal. This meditative aspect of the season has inspired contemporary post-classical composers to create sparse yet majestic soundscapes. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we bring together the serene melancholy of ambient chamber music, the patiently unfolding cadences of sacred minimalism, and the ethereal lightness of choral harmonies, on a program called A FRAGILE BEAUTY. Music is by LUDOVICO EINAUDI, ELENI KARAINDROU, JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON, MAX RICHTER, and VOCES8. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

It seems the farther north you go, the warmer the music. It's a generalization to be sure, but whether the genre is North Country folk music, classical, jazz, electronics, or some creative hybrid — northern musicians have a history of chasing away the chill with melodies and harmonies that please the ear, warm the heart, and nourish the soul. More often than not those harmonies are consonant, derived from the great European romantic tradition, and extended with love and care. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a midwinter collection of acoustic instrumentals that bring us that sought-after feeling of warmth and space...on a program called WINTER HARMONIES. Music is by BILL DOUGLAS, SECRET GARDEN, WILLIAM ZEITLER, JEFF PEARCE, KETIL BJORNSTAD & DAVID DARLING, FRANCOIS COUTURIER, THE TYTINGVAG ENSEMBLE, and introducing M.K.SOL. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Winter...has a way of overstaying its welcome. After several months of sullen skies, numbing cold, and too many days of frigid rain, sleet, or snow—even the most ardent champions of the season fall silent. We've arrived...at forbearance. Here in California, the trees blossom in mid-February regardless of the weather. After a big rain, the ground is strewn with pink and white petals. Soon the storms will taper off and spring will arrive. For most of the country though, there's still a long time to wait. Ambient electronic artists find inspiration in the winter atmospheres, and create music with dark drones, virtual storms, chilled tones, and monochromatic harmonies. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, it's another wintry journey on electronic waves — on a program called WINTERTRONIC. Music is by TRANSPONDER, HOLLAN HOLMES, SOLARIS, NETHERWORLD, BLUETECH, KIRSTY HAWKSHAW, JANNE HANHISUANTO, and ILUITEQ. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

The serene spaces of contemplative minimalism have attracted some strange bedfellows over the years, including classical, new music, and experimental composers, serious jazz artists, ambient-electronic sound sculptors, and native musicians from the far north. They share a taste for consonance, repetition, slow tempos, electro-acoustic instrumentation, and expanded ambience. In these vast, frigid spaces, time seems to slow and even stop. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, timeless soundscapes inspired by the arctic north, on a program called FROZEN TIME. Music is by CHRISTEL VERAART, JEFF GREINKE, TIGRAN HAMASYAN, JOHN LUTHER ADAMS, MICHAEL JON FINK, SOMEI SATOH, and OLAFUR ARNALDS. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

WINTER BRINGS CRYSTALLINE BELLS and metallic tones reverberating in chilled electronic soundscapes. In the far north, the long night sky fills with the hypnotic lights of the auroras, while infinite stars sparkle in the frigid air. Warm harmonies and fire in the hearth bring a sense of peace in an uncertain world. On this transmission of Hearts of Space we set a course on the north star, with a wintry journey to the electronic north, on a program called POLARIS. Music is by GEORGE WALLACE, ERIK WØLLO, BRYAN CARRIGAN, CHRISTEL VERAART, KLAUS SCHULZE & LISA GERRARD, OÖPHOI & PAUL VNUK JR., and JEFF PEARCE. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Consider, dear listener, the "resonant percussion" family of instruments—bells, bowls, gongs, and cymbals. When struck, rubbed, stroked or vibrated, they can produce sustained tones and clouds of sound that take on a special resonance in the cold, crisp winter air. Simple but powerful, these venerable acoustic instruments attract a singular breed of musician: a connoisseur of pure sounds, an improviser, a conductor of contemplative experience. They've been used in worship and meditation for thousands of years. Today they're the foundation of the therapeutic field of Sound Healing; while in the studio they're being combined with ambient electronics to create spiritually charged virtual environments. On this transmission of Hearts of Space the contemplative world of resonant percussion, on a program called MAGIC METALS 2. Music is by ALPHA WAVE MOVEMENT, YUVAL RON, DIATONIS, KEVIN BRAHENY FORTUNE, KARMA MOFFETT, RIVER GUERGUERIAN, HANS CHRISTIAN, and DEUTER. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

This time on Hearts of Space, we're back to the floating worlds of ambient-electronic music. It's an open-ended medium—almost unlimited in its ability to invent new sounds and use them to create virtual soundscapes. Despite epic changes in the business of recorded music over the last twenty years, the ambient-electronic genre is healthy and slowly expanding as a studio-based art. Composers on five continents hone their craft in personal studios, create albums, and release them on independent platforms like BANDCAMP.com and the major streaming services. They're "unsigned artists" and they like it that way. They collaborate with kindred ambient artists, and even work with independent record labels whose taste they like. Many of them have families and a skilled day job and their music is a serious avocation; others have found a way to survive on their music and related activity. Right now, everybody wins on the important thing: there's something at the heart of the ambient experience that feeds both the musicians and the audience, with a rich stream of serious new releases and a growing catalog of classics. On this transmission of Hearts of Space...another ambient electronic journey, on a program called INFINITE HORIZONS. Music is by ILUITEQ, ERIK WØLLO, IAN BODDY & ERIK WØLLO, JUHA-MATTI RAUTIAINEN, and STEVE ROACH. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

It's been far too long since we devoted a Hearts of Space program to the pipe organ. Yes, the pipe organ. Did you know that there's a public radio program dedicated entirely to the pipe organ called PIPEDREAMS? It's even older than Hearts of Space, and still going strong. The pipe organ dates back to ancient Greece in the third century BCE. About a thousand years ago, it started making its way into churches. Because of its tonal character and volume, it proved the ideal instrument to lead people in singing. Over those 10 centuries, the organ evolved into an extremely high-tech machine. Its range, size, and importance grew along with the Christian religion—especially in Protestant churches, where the congregation sang together. By about 1600, the pipe organ was the most complex machine that humans had created — massive assemblies of bellows, valves, wood and metal pipes that could fill the vast reverberant spaces of European cathedrals with powerful sound. Hundreds of years before amplified music, the pipe organ was the first full-spectrum, full volume, multi-voice, super-instrument. The organ console was what we'd now call an "advanced ergonomic user interface." It was—without a doubt—the king of instruments, used to lead sacred services and create sublime moments of elevated religious emotion. The pipe organ enjoyed a kind of golden age in Baroque Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries, with rapid technological development and a growing repertoire of ecclesiastical works. By the early 20th century, French avant-garde composers were pushing the instrument to its limits—from delicate meditations and orchestrated tone poems, to bombastic showpieces exploring dissonance and extreme tonalities. Where Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque organ music had been limited to the church, the new music was also secular and experimental. In France, one devout Catholic composer embraced both the church and... Continue reading

We're flying over the north polar icecap — in winter, a dazzling wonderland of white and deep blue. It's a vast glacial world of snow and ice, fractal patterns shot through with veins of melting water. Ambient electronic music, with its chilled harmonies, slowly changing rhythm patterns and endless reverberant sound images, creates the perfect soundtrack for this spectacular landscape. In the polar night above the Arctic Circle, the winter sun never rises above the horizon; only the hypnotic ion curtains of the auroras relieve the darkness, while the sounds of moving water and breaking ice punctuate the solitude. It's a contemplative environment of sublime majesty and depth. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a journey to the Arctic north, on a program called POLAR FLIGHT 2. Music is by ASCENDANT, YAGYA, BANCO DE GAIA, SIMON LOMAX, WINGS OF AN ANGEL, and EASYCHORD. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

This week, dear spacefan, we conclude our two-part mini-documentary on the electronic space guitar celebrating our 1200th program—with music by American, English and Norwegian artists who extended the dimensions of the instrument in the 21st century. On these centennial programs, we take a retrospective look at the music we feature, often documentary-style, rather than our normal uninterrupted format. Of course, if you listen on our web service or mobile apps, you can turn off the voiceovers with one click or tap and still hear uninterrupted music. On this transmission of Hearts of Space: SPACE GUITAR SUPERSTARS — Part 2. Music is by BUCKETHEAD, DANIEL LANOIS, LEO ABRAHAMS, EIVIND AARSET, CLIVE WRIGHT, JON DURANT, DAVID HELPLING, ROBIN GUTHRIE, CARL WEINGARTEN, HAMMOCK, and JEFF PEARCE. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

The great tradition of choral singing has a glorious history extending over thousands of years. Even in these diverse, multicultural, often secular days, the tradition endures because there is something deeply satisfying and essentially human in the sound and the practice of group singing. Choral groups range from trios to 200 voice chorales; they're often unpaid and done purely for the love of it. The genre has attracted specialist composers in every era, some working within churches and religious institutions, others as solo artists. During the winter holiday season, we enjoy choral classics like The Messiah and traditional hymns and carols in sacred spaces from cathedrals to street corners. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, another sacred music journey from our longtime guest producer for classical and sacred music ELLEN HOLMES, on a program called 'MAGNIFICAT.' From the Western Christian tradition, we have music by MOZART, HANDEL, CHARPENTIER, COUPERIN, GUERRERO, ANDREA GABRIELI and JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH; from the Eastern Orthodox sacred service, music by ANONYMOUS MASTERS, by ARCHBISHOP IONAFAN, NIKOLAI KEDROV SR., DIVNA and the MELODI CHOIR, N.FRUNZA, ANATOLY LIADOV, and OTTO OLSSON. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

On December 18th 2019, I was privileged to hear virtuoso San Francisco organist JONATHAN DIMMOCK play this extraordinary 1935 work by French composer OLIVIER MESSIAEN at the Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland, California. To call it “symphonic“ in scale and scope is an understatement. At over two hours in nine sections, it is longer, more varied and more dramatic than all but the most monumental symphonies. The astonishing tonal creativity and spiritual depth of Messiaen’s music; The extensive voices and vast power of the bilaterally symmetric "stereophonic" Conroy Memorial Organ; The magnificent immersive acoustics of the cathedral that amplify and reverberate the instrument, creating mystical structures in the air; All that, and Jonathan Dimmock’s deep insight into the soul of Messiaen’s music and wide-ranging, free, masterful performance. It came together in a sublime musical and sonic experience: the finest live concert sound I’ve ever heard. :: SH 12.19.2018 www.jonathandimmock.com https://open.spotify.com/album/5TCwJo7od1h794HRQdaTHD?si=t7-e2-3eSmilwa61jYbQ4A https://www.ctlcathedral.org/ Continue reading

This week, dear spacefan, we reach another milestone in our journey through musical time and space, with our 1200th transmission in the Hearts of Space series. It's taken 35 years. On these centennial programs, we like to take a retrospective look back at the music we feature, often documentary-style, rather than our normal uninterrupted format. (Of course, if you listen on our web site or with our mobile apps, you can turn off the voiceovers with one click or tap and still hear uninterrupted music.) This time we focus on the evolution of the electronic and ambient guitar since the 1970s—on Part 1 of a two-part program called SPACE GUITAR SUPERSTARS. And let's admit right up front that even with two hours, the subject is so extensive that we can't possibly include every artist who's made a contribution: these are just some of the highlights we've featured on Hearts of Space. Let's first recall that in the mid-20th century musical world of ERIC CLAPTON and JIMI HENDRIX, the electric guitar was transcendent—the lead voice and dominant sound in popular music. But the confluence of musical innovation, new audio technology, and psychedelic drugs led to an unexpected development: the electric guitar became electronic, and with "effects" the sound of the instrument expanded and de-materialized into a vehicle for travel in virtual acoustic space. SPACE GUITAR SUPERSTARS (Part 1)... on this transmission of Hearts of Space. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

In the early days of December, we leave behind the trials and tribulations of the year past and focus on the annual rituals of the holiday season. In the shortest days and longest nights of the year, light itself becomes the theme, and an integral part of the year-end religious celebrations. Whether it's traditional, commercial or spiritual, the music of the season takes on a festive, energetic air, culminating in the dazzling celebrations of the new year. It's a time for generosity, optimism, and hope. On this transmission of Hearts of Space we celebrate the spirit of the season, on a journey called TOWARD THE LIGHT. Music is by MATTHEW STEWART, SUBDREAM, FORT FAIRFIELD, DAVID HELPLING, TRENTEMØLLER, JUTA TAKAHASHI, STEVE ROACH & ROBERT LOGAN, BRIAN ENO, and MAX RICHTER. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading