Most of us ordinarily overlook the aural effects imparted by our environment when listening to music, but it turns out there’s an entire branch of science dedicated to deliberately altering or studying these effects! It’s called “acoustics” (phonetically, ah-coo-sticks), and in this arena, these so-called “acousticians” are frequently contracted with the ultimate goal of imbuing a particular architectural or interior design with some desired set of sonic characteristics. But no matter how complex the science behind all this may be, it doesn’t take an expert to appreciate the idea that, for instance, cavernous rooms generally allow for more reverberation, which consequently adds an air of magnificence to words spoken or music played. Get it?
Tokyo-based ambient musician Chihei Hatakeyama more than gets it.
His new album for the Room40 label, Mirage, was recorded over a five-year period and represents a culmination of Hatakeyama’s concurrent interest in the “phenomenology of music and architecture.” During that period, he reportedly took a field trip to Turkey, and as he meandered through the winding and interweaving pathways of the local bazaars, he “became acutely aware of how architecture shapes sound and in doing so effects the very nature of music’s resonance.” Hatakeyama tried to replicate that experience on Mirage through a “a series of new processes” and by incorporating field recordings from his trip into his latest ambient work.
Frankly, the man has been undertaking these sorts of meticulous musical meditations for more than a decade now. But aren’t we lucky? You and I won’t have to wait nearly that long to hear the results, because they’re available in album-form on June 9. Pre-order Mirage right here and get yourself acclimated to the methodical nature of Hatakeyama’s madness with the brand new video for album track “Starlight And Black Echo” down below.
Mirage tracklisting:
01. Sad Ocean
02. Starlight And Black Echo
03. Bus Terminal In Konya
04. Voices On The Corner
05. Distant Steam Train Whistle
06. Anatolia Mirage
07. Phantom Cats In Cathedral
08. A Silence Of Day
09. In The Quiet River
More about: Chihei Hatakeyama
