August's Kairos by .No on Concertzender

Foto: Wino Penris. Bewerking: Astrid van der Meijs

Another month, another Kairos. August is no different even if we are or were on holiday. Each month Wo. listens to the program and comes up with his comments, feelings and thoughts on the music .No presents to his listeners. Not seldom this leads to confrontations with kinds of music that go way beyond Wo's musical comfortzone. To heighten the experience Wo. received an email message. "I've noticed that you listen with your head and that is exactly what Kairos is not for. Please start listening with your soul, with feeling". 'O.k.'?, Wo. thought a bit doubtful. 'How can I analyse what I hear if I'm not allowed to think'? Try he can, so let's see what happens.

"True attention" is the dedication .No gave this Kairos, so now I understand his email better. I'm going to close my eyes and just listen. See you in an hour or so.

One hour later

Hi, I'm back. That was quite hard, actually. Half of the time I wanted to write something, make a comment, share my thoughts and forced myself not to. "I don't know what I'm listening to", went through my head a couple of times. I don't have control, in other words. But why have control when I'm listening with my eyes closed?

My first thought, now I allow myself to write, is how difficult I found it to keep my attention on the music the whole time. Listening to music is equal to doing something else in my case. Reading, writing, (during travel) mostly. I shouldn't think but feel. The human mind never sits still. Always busy pushing in thoughts and even insights.

This Kairos has three parts. The first circa 35 minutes are beautiful. I recognised Hans Kockelmans' playing at the beginning (I think), but after that? All unknown, but so beautiful. Notes like rolling waves, some huge, totally making me disappear under water without a single chance at drowning. I allow myself to turn and roll over with the waves, being absolutely sure things will be alright. (Arneo's 'Fresh' brought me there into this warm bath.)

Again I notice the flawless mix. Some songs really seem a continuation of one part of a suite going over in the next. Until a man starts singing in French, where high voices sang in English, and a high voice precedes the Frenchman. There just is no telling.

All this beauty is brutally interrupted by something electronic and that during the peaceful male voice that recites Anita Frenk's poem. The verse is widely separated by this electronic garbage, spoiling all the beauty and my daydreaming of warm water like a peaceful, non-nauseating rollercoaster. The words ram home like a sledgehammer though: ""Vaarwel", zei de man van de zee"... noise, noise ..."en verbond zich met de Aarde". That became very personal. I was back at the deathbed of my father instantly, but this image mixed with the scene out '8mm' where Nicolas Cage enters the home of the snuff-movie maker where this horrible, electronic music is being played at full volume. The poem and the music brought me into such totally different places, but with an important equivalent: near death. The "music" seemed to continue forever. Please .No, may it end I found myself thinking at least a dozen times, but it doesn't.

When it finally does, the last circa 15 minutes we return to tranquility, but I couldn't find my pleasant mood back. Again I'm reminded of Mike Oldfield at the time of 'Tubular Bells' in one of the songs and I see pictures from the tv show from somewhere in the mid-70s flash by my mind's eye.

The voice announcing the end startled me. Is it over? Finally one classical sounding composition comes by. This was a very modern Kairos, I realised at that moment. Yes, it surprised me, also because I heard several songs from artists that I do not mind hearing more from or so I think.

And I never got to the end. Skype goes off and a five hour plus delayed call comes in any way. Business at midnight. Why not?

So, what did I hear? It's time to have a look. I'll copy it in for your convenience. Did I make the challenge? Yes, in a way I did. A lot of the music really reached me at a different level than usual listening to Kairos. On the other hand, .No made it easy for me as most of the music are songs or could be with a band around the artist. Most songs or compositions suited me, except Robert Normandeau. Please leave me alone from now on, sort of forever. I liked this Kairos, but now for reality...

Gedicht: Anita Frenks.

00:08      Hans Kockelmans. Prelude 151.
Opname in eigen beheer.
01:05      Annelies Monseré. A new home.
Album: Nest. Morc 60.
04:26      Arneo. Fresh.
Album: Takenn dour van Arneo. COOP BREIZH CD 1099.
09:33      Philip Glass. Closing uit glassworks.
Album: Glassworks. Sony Classical SMK87968.
15:16      Anouar Brahem. Vague / E la nave va.
Album: Le voyage de Sahar. ECM 1915 9874651.
21:14      Will Samson. Painting a horizon.
Album Balance. Karaoke Kalk 69CD.
24:54      Paul Vens & Friends. L’amour.
Album Serenity. Ѡ Music V2015.
28:58      Dick Toering. The river in my house. Album: Quiet music never ends. Listermusic/eigen beheer.
34:35      Steve Reich. Slow uit Electric Counterpoint.
Van album Phases (disc 3). Nonesuch 7559-79962-2.
37:51      Robert Normandeau. Murmures.
Album: Palmimpsestes. IMED 12116.
46:45      Hans Kockelmans. Een vreugdedansje.
Opname in eigen beheer.
47:49      Susanne Abbuehl. In the dark pine-wood.
Album: Compass. ECM 1906 987 1934.
50:39      Howard skempton. Well, Well, Cornelius for Piano. John Tilbury, piano.
Album: Well, Well, Cornelius. Sony SK 66482 (E)
53:39      Nils Frahm & Peter Broderick. You Don’t Love.
Album: Wonders van Oliveray. Erased Tapes Records ERATP039
56:52      Baldassare Galuppi. Magna Opera Domini.
Album: Motets van Il Seminario Musicale/Gérard Lesne/Verinique Gens/Peter Harvey.
Virgin Classics 72435 45030 2 3.

Wo.

You can listen, with feeling, to August's Kairos here:

http://www.concertzender.nl/programmagids/?date=2015-08-06&month=1&detail=80005