Hear music that was imagined in colors. The featured composers in this episode of New Sounds have synesthesia, a rare neurological phenomenon where two or more of their senses cross wires and connect in an unusual way. While some synesthetes relate numbers to textures or words to tastes, these musicians see colors when hearing music and vice versa. Hear Andy Akiho’s and Michael Torke’s musical interpretations of yellow, Aphex Twin’s blue, Robert Fripp’s red, and a darker crimson from Akiho again. Also included in the episode are works by non-synesthetes — electronica artist Sam KDC with his track titled “Synesthesia,” a jazz power trio named after synesthetic artist Wassily Kandinsky, and Keith Jarrett with his improvisational take on light/dark.
PROGRAM #3564 Synesthesia (First aired on 2/10/2014)
ARTIST: Aphex Twin
WORK: Blue calx, excerpt [1:00]
RECORDING: Selected Ambient Works Volume II
SOURCE: Warp Records 21
INFO: warp.net
ARTIST: Andy Akiho
WORK: Kiiro (Yellow) from Synesthesia Suite [5:10]
RECORDING: No One to Know One
SOURCE: Innova 801
INFO: innova.mu
ARTIST: Michael Torke
WORK: The Yellow Pages [6:50]
RECORDING: Torke: The Yellow Pages
SOURCE: Argo Records 430 209-2
INFO: Available at Amazon.com
ARTIST: The Kandinsky Effect
WORK: Left Over Shoes [4:32]
RECORDING: Synesthesia
SOURCE: Cuneiform
INFO: Available at Amazon.com
ARTIST: Sirius Quartet
WORK: Jeremy Harman: Heal [0:13]
RECORDING: Paths Become Lines
SOURCE: Autentico Music AMCDA 00004
ARTIST: Andy Akiho
INFO: allmusic.com; Also available on iTunes
WORK: Karakurenai, "Rochester Song" (Crimson) from Synesthesia Suite [4:26]
RECORDING: No One to Know One
SOURCE: Innova 801
INFO: innova.mu
ARTIST: King Crimson
WORK: Red [6:15]
RECORDING: Red
SOURCE: DGM Discipline Global Mobile
INFO: Available at dgmlive.com/shop or Amazon.com
ARTIST: Aphex Twin
WORK: Blue calx [7:20]
RECORDING: Selected Ambient Works Volume II
SOURCE: Warp Records 21
INFO: warp.net
ARTIST: Sam KDC
WORK: Synesthesia [7:30]
RECORDING: Synesthesia
SOURCE: Veil 001
INFO: Soundcloud | surus.co.uk
ARTIST: Keith Jarrett
WORK: Opening [12:24]
RECORDING: Dark Intervalss
SOURCE: ECM 1379
INFO: ecmrecords.com