Music is the common language of Turtle Island. The musical soundscape invites us to search all of its corners, and I particularly enjoy travelling to those islands that sing/celebrate in tones and languages which I can't comprehend linguistically or intellectually, but can feel deep in my bones. I don't know much about music, have never played an instrument, and can't carry a tune, but I like to be moved by sound...
As a kid growing up in an urban home, my friends and I listened to KRS-1, Public Enemy, Nirvana and AC/DC. One day in college as a was thumbing through the used albums(!), I came across a dark cover with light gray digital markings and a single bright red word splashed across the front: Koyaanisqatsi. Just below the title in small white, crisp print were the words "Music by Philip Glass."
Late at night, if I close my eyes, sometimes I still hear Albert DeRuiter's baritone (monotone?) chant from the title track of Philip Glass' soundtrack to the film Koyaanisqatsi: Life out of Balance. As a side note, not knowing what an "arthouse" was, and lacking the bravery to seek one out alone, I did not see the film for which the music was written for until almost 10 years later.
Years later when I went to see the movie Kundun, the music was unmistakenly similiar to the record of my college days. Again, "music by Philip Glass". Checking the liner notes to the Kundan soundtrack, I learned that Glass is a practicing Buddhist. With this knowledge, my understanding of the simple, almost atonal sounds of both records connected with me on yet another level.
For a unique musical experience, I would like to suggest that you seek out these two soundtracks: Koyaanisqatsi and Kundun both composed by Phillip Glass. Glass is just one artist of interest on Turtle Island and I invite you to suggest some others, just as I will in future Soundscapes.
Click to purchase the compact disk Koyaanisqatsi online through Barnes & Noble
Click to purchase the compact disk Kundun online through Barnes & Noble
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