Eliane Radigue… why am I only discovering her now!?

sevenape

Today I watched a really cool video by an Italian YouTuber called Oora. He does pretty pretty good hardware reviews and such… Anyway today he was talking about minimalist music, and his favourite album is Trilogie de la Mort, so I took a listen… it is transcendental… made just on an ARP 2500 with no effects, it’s unbelievable. What sounds at first like just single notes played incredibly slowly reveals itself through harmonic overtones that are just barely noticeable. It’s so so so so good. Amazing if you haven’t heard it before, it’s the ultimate statement of “less is more”.

Gavinski

One of my favourite albums over the past couple of years. Yeah, love the minimalism, the subtlety, the level of presence.

GovernorSilver

Fantastic piece by a fantastic composer and electronic musician.

It's deceptive in that a casual listener would think it just drones on and on with the same pitch or two, but over time it actually changes and takes you on a journey.

Gavinski

And you will love the movie Sisters with Transistors, Dan, featuring Eliane and other early electronic female luminaries

sevenape

@Gavinski said:
And you will love the movie Sisters with Transistors, Dan, featuring Eliane and other early electronic female luminaries

Right I know what I’m watching when my wife inevitably falls asleep during Carnival Row.

Thanks!!

sevenape

@GovernorSilver said:
Fantastic piece by a fantastic composer and electronic musician.

It's deceptive in that a casual listener would think it just drones on and on with the same pitch or two, but over time it actually changes and takes you on a journey.

@Gavinski said:
One of my favourite albums over the past couple of years. Yeah, love the minimalism, the subtlety, the level of presence.

It’s really a work of a true artist. She made magic with this !

Svetlovska

Thanks for this. Listening now…

barabajagal

Philandering_Bastard

I really like this photo of her bougie living room instead of the customary upright she has an ARP. Makes me smile.

Gavinski

Nice thangka too!

craftycurate

@Gavinski said:
One of my favourite albums over the past couple of years. Yeah, love the minimalism, the subtlety, the level of presence.

That's an excellent description of it ... it goes deep in the soul for sure. It's hard to completely understand all that goes to make it so rich, but I am aware of the way she uses the subtle shifts in the sound to create gentle movements - phasing, ring modulation ... because of the minimalist soundscape, these subtle shifts become more intense and mesmerising somehow.

Really worth watching this documentary, in which she speaks at length about her process, and her journey.

MrStochastic

@sevenape said:
it’s the ultimate statement of “less is more”.

I admire her restraint.

mojozart

@craftycurate said:
Really worth watching this documentary, in which she speaks at length about her process, and her journey.

Thanks for the tip. This really connects with me.

Many years ago, I was made aware of the visual duality that manifests from watching ripples on the surface of water, but I'd never thought of pursuing an auditory analog like she has.

She turned 91 in January.

Quoting from an article in the NYT last year:

It was only when Radigue was in her 60s that she began to receive recognition in France, and it was even later when she earned a living from her music. An unforeseen shift occurred in 2001. For years, Radigue’s sole collaborator had been her cat. Then, with some reluctance, she accepted her first acoustic commission — “Elemental II,” for the musician Kasper T. Toeplitz — and began collaborating more regularly with performers, including on a release with the laptop quartet the Lappetites.

rvr

Wow that are some proper drones, thanks for sharing

Syn

Eliane has a great collection of music available on Bandcamp, a very worthy purchase !!

ervin

Okay, a genuine noob question to those who like this album: how do you listen to it? You find the time, let everything else go and embark on the three-hour journey? Or do it in parts? Or as background music?

I have no experience with the genre and wonder how you approach it.

oat_phipps

@ervin said:
Okay, a genuine noob question to those who like this album: how do you listen to it? You find the time, let everything else go and embark on the three-hour journey? Or do it in parts? Or as background music?

I have no experience with the genre and wonder how you approach it.

Anyway you want, but it’s best to prioritize the album if you must multitask…choose something familiar or easy to read for example so you don’t get too caught up in something else. While a ton of ambient stuff is great as a layer of background noise and doesn’t require active listening, something like this deserves your focus or you’ll kinda miss the point.

I’m still of the drop everything youre doing, sit back and listen persuasion at bottom though. I love full albums still

jhhl

She recently turned 90 ! Read here and watch the doc!

And Mort Subotnick is also turning 90 soon.

Gavinski

I like to lie on bed and listen to this either with headphones or speakers either side of the bed and listen attentively, a kind of sound meditation. My favourite so far is kyema from the triptique de la morte album. That track is also nice played low as background / sleeping music.

Gavinski

@jhhl said:
She recently turned 90 ! Read here and watch the doc!

And Mort Subotnick is also turning 90 soon.

Will check that out! Was listening to this lovely short reminiscence a reporter had of meeting her. She seems like a pretty amazing person. May need UK vpn if not in UK:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b09z6bg5?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile

mojozart

@jhhl said:
She recently turned 90 ! Read here and watch the doc!

And Mort Subotnick is also turning 90 soon.

She turned 91 a few weeks ago, but who's counting

wim

Interesting piece. But can you dance to it?

michael_m

@wim said:
Interesting piece. But can you dance to it?

As long as you do it very slowly.

Gavinski

@wim said:
Interesting piece. But can you dance to it?

It may not have beats but there's plenty of beating oscillators.

mojozart

@ervin said:
Okay, a genuine noob question to those who like this album: how do you listen to it? You find the time, let everything else go and embark on the three-hour journey? Or do it in parts? Or as background music?

I have no experience with the genre and wonder how you approach it.

There are many ways to listen, and I think her works can support repeated listenings, but I suggest a careful first listening.

Channeling the chat bot, I think it might answer plagerize as follows:

Listen in a resonant, stone-walled or concrete venue. The Trilogie need to be activated by the acoustics of the room to bring them together, for them to rise up as one and bloom and sing. In the right space, they are capable of a very fragile sort of magic.

If you have time, listen to one section per day on three successive days.

shinyisshiny

@ervin i eat mushrooms and float into the ether, letting the oscillators carry me away

ervin

Thank you all for your replies, much appreciated. 🙏

Gavinski

@shinyisshiny said:
@ervin i eat mushrooms and float into the ether, letting the oscillators carry me away

This is the way! Perfect shrooms music.

sevenape

@Gavinski said:
I like to lie on bed and listen to this either with headphones or speakers either side of the bed and listen attentively, a kind of sound meditation. My favourite so far is kyema from the triptique de la morte album. That track is also nice played low as background / sleeping music.

yeah it seems like real deep listening music

sevenape

@barabajagal said:

lovely!

waka_x

my fav of hers is
Islas resonantes