Ambient
music in its true and modern form has only been around for a short
time, but its psychological origins arguably date back to prehistory,
as it could be argued that elements of the genre exist in nearly all
types of music. Though not a formal genre until its coining by Brian
Eno, the roots of Ambient music as we know it today stretch back to
the era of classical compositions. The man generally credited with
starting the chain of the phenomenon was known as Erik Satie.
Erik Satie: (image
taken from http://www.satie-archives.com/)
Satie
is not considered a musician in the general sense. Rather, he is
remembered as an artist and experimenter with sound. Having lived a
less than glamorous life, from his rejection from formal schools of
music to his inability at times to make ends meet, his taste in music
was warped to the point where it was on a level unto itself.1
When it comes to how he kick-started the concepts behind Ambient
music, most will refer to his compositions, starting in 1917, known
as his Furniture Music.2
Pieces
like the one above were meant to be played by a live orchestra in
public settings in order to enhance the mood of that particular area.
As such, they are not tremendously complex, and tend to loop for a
good while. Thus, they are not good for focusing on, but that was
never the point, since the music was simply there to add a backdrop
to a particular setting. For this reason, these pieces are seen as
precursors to the ideas later developed by Eno and others in terms of
how Ambient music should be perceived.
However,
this notion seems a bit simplistic for me, as there is more to
Ambient music than simply being out of the focus of attention.
Another composition exists from Satie though, that, (at least to me),
is more important to the founding principles of the genre, and came
much earlier.
Vexations Sheet Music:
(image taken from http://www.satie-archives.com/web/articl11.html)
This
particular composition was written in 1893, but was not publicly
known until after Satie's death in 1925. What we get from this piece
is not so much a song, but rather, an envelope of emotion. Satie
wrote on his original sheet of the piece to the performer that,
“To
play this motif 840 times in succession, it would be advisable to
prepare oneself beforehand, in the deepest silence, by serious
immobilities.”
Some
performers, like John Cage (who we will get to later) have taken this
to heart, and have made public performances of this song, playing it
840 times in succession2.
The primary vibe you might get from this composition, (and perhaps
one you have already guessed from the implication of repeating this
840 times) is that of boredom. However, rather than simply being
boring due to incompetence, the composition seems to define the
emotional state instead. The idea that it implies boredom, however,
is not the main reason I bring this song up. Vexations
is important because it is a song that, while it does not vie to be
focused on, hums in the background, and encompasses its listener in
an emotional setting. For that reason, I have declared it as the
earliest truly ambient song that I know of.
Despite
the influence that Satie's music had on various artists and
listeners, his works were not very well known, as he was more or less
a social outcast. In fact, the vast majority of his published works,
(and his fame, for that matter), did not arise until long after his
death.1
The person primarily responsible for Satie's rise in historical
importance is the renowned musician John Cage, who made public many
of Satie's lost works.
John Cage: image taken
from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_Cage_Laugh.png
John
Cage is one of the most influential composers of the 20th
century. His take on music was so vastly different from his
contemporaries, it shook the very foundations of the medium. As a
prime example, we look at his most (in)famous composition, 4'33”.
Essentially,
it's a three-part track of silence. At first, you might wonder how
something like this was ever even accepted as art, let alone stand as
one of the most famous compositions of the 20th
century. You might think that this song was simply a jab from Cage,
stating that anything could be made to be art, if you add enough
pretentious and obfuscating explanations behind it, and you might be
right. However, the consensus that many critics seem to come to
after hearing this particular performance is that when someone
performs 4'33”, they are not actually performing. Rather, it is
the audience, the theater, and the world outside that becomes the
performance.3
For this reason, 4'33” stands as the
last universal common ancestor of all true ambient music. It doesn't
have a focus on any front stage or spotlight, rather, the focus is on
atmosphere, on the surroundings. It teaches us that anything can be
considered music, and as such, the universe is an orchestra.
Brian Eno: image taken
from
http://en.wikipedia./wiki/File:Brian_Eno_Profile_Long_Now_Foundation_2006.jpg
Now we come at last to Brian Eno. Eno is the true definition of a musician. Apart from his two predecessors, (perhaps not even), he is the most influential musician, at least in the field of electronic music. Having studied and respecting the works of Erik Satie, among other minimalist artists, and being inspired by the works of Cage, releasing several of his compositions on his own labels, he is generally regarded as the father of Ambient music.4 His early works were not at all what one would call ambient, but elements of the genre became increasingly robust as he continued to make releases and solidify the genre's concept. Eventually, it culminated in the first real ambient album, Ambient 1: Music for Airports.
Ambient 1 Cover: image
taken from
http:https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim0K8A1vTICai_ZHUcIXyf9ROgpyjcXQc8hy8yls1sW4aiAco-GJum3j9fvz2zTKG4S_DsGUUXxMDpGTrI-MllewUDCgTzzsNolUq1mTIzW4hB1NIksaWiJqsTm6Ty5abBYfJ7T_sPxhk/s1600/Brian+Eno+Ambient+1+Music+For+Airports.jpg
If one were to read the notes included with the release,
they would find Eno's formal definition of the genre:
“Whereas
the extant canned music companies proceed from the basis of
regularizing environments by blanketing their acoustic and
atmospheric idiosyncracies, Ambient Music is intended to enhance
these. Whereas conventional background music is produced by stripping
away all sense of doubt and uncertainty (and thus all genuine
interest) from the music, Ambient Music retains these qualities. And
whereas their intention is to `brighten' the environment by adding
stimulus to it (thus supposedly alleviating the tedium of routine
tasks and levelling out the natural ups and downs of the body
rhythms) Ambient Music is intended to induce calm and a space to
think.
Ambient
Music must be able to accomodate many levels of listening attention
without enforcing one in particular; it must be as ignorable as it is
interesting.”5
Although I have practiced making Ambient music for
years, I didn't pay this particular album much interest at first. It
simply felt like a half-baked composition, lacking any complexity.
Now, I herald it as one of the greatest examples of the genre, for a
couple reasons. Firstly, it does a tremendous job of filling in your
surroundings, and essentially taking you to a very different setting.
Secondly, it functions incredibly well as a calm-inducing
sound-scape. Finally, it is wrought with emotion, to the point where
it can send you into a euphoric trance if you are in that persuasive
state.
Because of this, it was revolutionary, and started the
genre in a single sweep. No true fan of Ambient music doesn't at
least know of this release. From here, it blossomed into the
multitude of artists and listeners who make up the modern Ambient
scene.
That about sums it up. The rest, as they say, is
history.
1“The
homepage of the French composer ERIK SATIE” Last modified on
Sunday, January 23, 2011 5:16:07 AM
2Wikipedia:
“Furniture Music” Accessed on Monday, February 20, 2012
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furniture_music
3“John
Cage and the Avant-Garde: The Sounds of Silence:” Last modified on
Sunday, April 02, 2000 3:25:58 PM.
http://www.classicalnotes.net/columns/silence.html
4Wikipedia:
“Brian Eno” Accessed on Wednesday, February 22, 2012
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Eno
5“Music
for Airports liner notes” Accessed on Wednesday, February 22, 2012
http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/brian_eno/MFA-txt.html
Once again, great topic. What I appreciate about this post is my introduction to Erik Satie, whom I was unfamiliar; I will check him out. I presume his music must have been performed with live acoustic instrumentation? Cage not only produced experimental music, but I feel truly carried it into the fine art playing field (i.e. through concept, presentation, etc).
ReplyDeleteWhile I love Brian Eno, own a substantial portion of his catalogue, listen to him frequently (recently his collaboration with John Cale), I must criticize this comment: "he is the most influential musician, at least in the field of electronic music". I find that akin to saying a recent star in any form of the art is more influential than the great predecessors in which the contemporary figure stands on the shoulders of. In other words, I find it to be with merit but without historical accuracy. Pierre Schaeffer and Karlheinz Stockhausen, especially the latter, were more instrumental in the development of "electronic music" than Brian Eno. But again, I think your blog is wonderful and you have done a good job.
Well it just goes to show how little I actually know about the whole subject of music in general.
DeleteTo be honest, most of the things I listed in this post were new discoveries to me as I researched them. I will certainly take a look at the names you have listed here as well.