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Music from the New Wilderness

Martin Bartlett, Don Buchla, Kwakiutl artists, David Mahler, Al Mattes, Al Neil, Pauline Oliveros, Norbert Rubesaat, Songs, Ned Sublette, Hildegard Westerkamp and Antonio Zepeda
March 14 to 30, 1980

This festival, conceived and organised by Martin Bartlett with help from Donna Zapf, Hank Bull and David Kelln, was inspired by the similarities between the rituals, games and songs of tribal or ancient peoples and 20th century art, music and poetry. This notion was first proposed by American poet Jerome Rothenberg and developed by Charles Morrow and Richard Hayman’s New Wilderness Foundation. The festival brought together electronic music and pre-Columbian folk music, performance art and Kwakiutl song-makers. It was a resounding success and marked the first of many similar interactions to follow. – Jerome Rothenberg (USA) 03/15/80 Keynote introductory reading and performance by the poet, ethnopoeticist , editor of Shaking the Pumpkin and ‘Technicians of the Sacred’ and founder of the New Wilderness Foundation. – Electro Acoustic Music 03/14/80
Tape compositions from Japan, France, New Zeland and USA – Hildegard Westerkamp, Norbert Rubesaat (Canada), ‘Cordillera’ 03/16/80 to 03/23/80
In the gallery, an acoustic environment by Hildegarde Westerkamp based on the poems of Norbert Rubesaat. – Don Buchla (USA) 03/17/80
‘One of the foremeost innovators in the realm of electro-acoustic music, and a pioneer in the development of the synthesizer. An evening of live electronics assisted by Ami Radunskaya on cello and electric cello.’ – Antonio Zepeda (Mexico), workshop 03/18/80
‘Internationally known for his exploration of music using instruments from the ancient civilizations of North, South and Central America’ Ritual music for Toltec flutes, Aztec whistles and ocarinas, Mayan drums. – Ned Sublette, David Mahler (USA) 03/20/80
Original works for voice, piano, electronics and film performed by the composers (double bill). – Al Neil, Martin Bartlett & Al Mattes (Canada) 03/21/80 – Al Neil, Martin Bartlett (Canada), ‘Sound and Shadows’ 03/21/80
Piano solo by Al Neil. Shadow play with Kate Craig and Hank Bull. – Songs and dances by Kwakiutl artists (Canada) 03/22/80
Organised by Chief James Sewid of Alert Bay.
Listen to a sample of the piece here (3 MB mpeg-3). – Pauline Oliveros, sonic meditations workshop 03/30/80