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

Yesterday evening 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 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

December arrives on the heels of the Thanksgiving holiday, and we settle into winter in earnest. From the chilly forest countries of northern Europe—Germany, Poland, Ukraine, England and Estonia—comes a post-modern neo-classical music that's traditionally tonal and modal—warm, slow and contemplative. It's a deliberate step away from the old avant-garde frontiers of atonality and serialism to a style that's spiritually resonant and broadly popular. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a program called WINTER STRINGS. Music is by MAX RICHTER, ARVO PÄRT, VALENTIN SILVESTROV, FRANZ SCHUBERT, STEFANO SCODANIBBIO, HENRYK GÓRECKI, BEN LUCAS BOYSEN, and LUDOVICO EINAUDI. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Now there's a winning combination: the classic floating keyboard sound of German synthesist KLAUS SCHULZE, and the cor Anglais or English horn — actually neither English nor a horn, but an alto oboe, a member of the double reed family. They go together like peaches and...well, just pick your favorite food analogy. While earlier artists often drew purist lines between electronic and acoustic instruments, today it's all fair game for the architects of space and Ambient music. And why not? It brings us the magic combination of unlimited electronic sound design, and traditional instrument expression. On this transmission of Hearts of Space...a journey in the dark forests and electro-acoustic soundscapes of late autumn, on a program called SHADOWLANDS. Music is by KLAUS SCHULZE, HAROLD BUDD, CHRONOTOPE PROJECT, FRORE, DIATONIS, MARK BANNING, and DAVID HELPLING & JON JENKINS. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

You may be surprised to learn that in philosophy, there are two kinds of eternity: one exists outside of time; the other exists within time but is of indefinite duration. That kind of eternal is called sempiternity or everlastingness. Whichever kind of eternity you prefer, the idea of something that goes on forever, endless and infinite, has a powerful psychological appeal in an age of rapid, constant, disorienting change. It's a radical absolute—one of the few concepts religion, science and philosophy share; and more therapeutically, a place where our overburdened minds can go to rest. Inspired by these heady speculations, contemporary composers have sought to create a kind of timeless music. Whether acoustic or electronic or both, it creates a sense of unlimited time in musical space. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, we seek the timeless...on a program called LITTLE ETERNITIES. Music is by JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON, CHAD LAWSON, TALE OF US, TOM CAUFIELD, KEVIN KELLER, ÓLAFUR ARNALDS, A WINGED VICTORY FOR THE SULLEN, and JEFF GREINKE. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

The dulcet tones of the Native American cedar flute have inspired a soothing sub-genre of contemplative music. Pioneered by native musicians from the American Southwest, over the last 30 years the genre has attracted non-native musicians, who expanded into electronics and exotic percussion. It's a sound we enjoy in the fall, when it complements the mellow light and withering colors of the landscape, and evokes the vast, echoing canyons of the high desert. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, an Indian Summer journey for Native American cedar flute, on a program called TWILIGHT EARTH 4. Music is by ANN LICATER, COYOTE JUMP, COYOTE OLDMAN, BYRON METCALF, JOHNNY WHITEHORSE, PAMELA WHITMAN & RICH KURTZ, TONY GERBER, MYSTERIES OF THE NIGHT, and SCOTT AUGUST. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Hearts of Space was born and raised during the formative years of electronic music in the 1970s and 80s. Because we've been covering the ambient side of its evolution for over forty years, the program has often been associated primarily with electronic music. But since the very beginning, we've always given almost equal time to traditional, purely acoustic forms of contemplative, space-creating music, as well as "electro-acoustic" hybrids. The reason was simple: long before electronics, there were centuries of music from dozens of world cultures that not only offered profound listening experiences — they defined and set the standard for what music can be. To be sure, electronics opened up vast new tonal and expressive dimensions for contemporary music — but we still return to traditional acoustic music, sit in virtual palace halls on ancient nights, and drink from the source of musical language. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, contemplative sounds on venerable acoustic instruments, on a program called ARCHAIC CONCERTS. The title is taken from the 1976 debut album of the unique German musician STEPHAN MICUS, who inspired, and is featured, in this program. Music is by STEPHAN MICUS, MYSTIC JOURNEY, MICHEL BANABILA & MEHMET POLAT, HANS CHRISTIAN, DJIVAN GASPARYAN, and SHUNSUKE MIZUNO. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

Halloween comes at the end of October, a very different celebration of the dark side of the human psyche. It's the time we willingly immerse ourselves in stories of death, fear, the supernatural...and the myths and rituals we create around them. Credit for the tradition generally goes to our Celtic ancestors, who combined the old pagan harvest celebration of Samhain—with its exciting nighttime bonfires—and the three-part Christian festival of Allhallowtide: a mournful commemoration of recently departed souls, saints and martyrs, whose spirits were said to wander the earth at this time of year in search of...hospitality. These traditions are a rich creative field for musicians of the "Dark Ambient" genre. They weave together deep drones, disembodied voices, melancholy wailing, frigid bells, and gloomy strings—with a dark galaxy of powerful electronic and environmental effects to create truly epic electro-acoustic worlds—soundtracks to films you'd rather hear...than see. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a gloomy-stormy-floaty Dark Ambient journey, on a program by Canadian guest producer DAVID J. EGAN called: GHOSTLY SHADOWS. Music is by DARK SANCTUARY, THE GHOST BETWEEN THE STRINGS, ARKTAU EOS, TAPHEPHOBIA, NEVOD, LUSRUTA, BASS COMMUNION, SKAVEN, DEAN DE BENEDICTUS, and NEST. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

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 ] Continue reading

In 35 years of Hearts of Space, there've only been a handful of occasions when we devoted an entire program to a single album or composition. This week we do it with a superb collaboration between Iranian singer MAHSA VAHDAT and Norway's 50 voice SKRUK CHOIR, under the direction of PER ODDVAR HILDRE, with music and arrangements by the great Norwegian pianist TORD GUSTAVSEN from the album I VINENS SPEIL—In the Mirror of Wine. It's a journey across time, space, and culture, a moving encounter between traditional Persian songs, Norwegian church music, and jazz. A program called EAST MEETS NORTH, on this transmission of Hearts of Space. [ view program page ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading

From the prehistoric days of musical instruments, we have the flute, the rattle, and the drum; later, primitive trumpets and reeds; and from ancient Mesopotamia more than 4,000 years ago, early members of the chordophone family of plucked strings — lyres, zithers, harps, and lutes. Stringed instruments have come a long way since then. In Europe, bowed strings were refined into the violin family we know today, while lutes evolved into the guitar. Music for strings developed along with the instruments, and Western classical music is rich with variations. Among stringed instruments, perhaps the most versatile is the cello: a virtual solo string orchestra. On this transmission of Hearts of Space, contemplative music for strings with a focus on the cello, on a program called TIMELESS STRINGS. Featured cellists are JAMIE SIEBER, DAVID DARLING, JONATHAN HUGH, and MARTIN TILLMAN. [ view playlist ] [ view Flickr image gallery ] [ play 30 second MP3 promo ] Continue reading