Pauline Oliveros: A tidbit

Pauline Oliveros in the studio at the San Francisco Tape Music Center, in 1966, at a Buchia-100 series modular synthesizer. Photo: David Bernstein, from Mills College Center for Contemporary Music archive.

(American, 1932-05-30 – 2016-11-24 )

One track: The difference between hearing and listening.

One quotation: Deep listening is a term invented by Oliveros. It involves “an aesthetic based upon principles of improvisation, electronic music, ritual, teaching and meditation. This aesthetic is designed to inspire both trained and untrained performers to practice the art of listening and responding to environmental conditions in solo and ensemble situations”. She presented some of her ideas on the difference between hearing and listening at a Ted Talk in Indianapolis, 2015-11-12.

One Comment: Pauline Oliveros became world-famous in Port Townsend, Washington, because of her 1988 descent into the Dan Harpole underground cistern and the resulting recording. Deep listening is more than a pun. It incorporates principles of improvisation, electronic music, ritual, teaching and meditation. It inspires everyone to listen to the environment.

Yet Another Comment: In 1966, Pauline Oliveros had been working with tape delay techniques in the San Francisco area, where she lived. That summer, she went to Toronto to study circuit-making with Hugh Le Caine for two months, and while working there she suddenly found that she had access to some of the most innovative and sophisticated electronic sound processing and recording equipment available anywhere. That summer she completed ten tape compositions and six ultrasonic tape studies.

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