Friday, January 15, 2010

Brian Eno's "2/2"

A low murmur is joined by two higher, yet still subdued wails from opposite sides. Even more wails join in, but further apart, and seemingly at random. The sounds are elongated and seem to trail on forever, imperceptibly fading out behind even more moans. The moans are harmonious, rarely breaking out of fifths, thirds, and octaves. There is an occasional augmented third in the chaos that sporadically resolves into a major third. The structure of each moan becomes clearer as the sound continues: they fade in quickly from nothing and peak before fading back out into infinity. This chaotic pattern continues until only the slightest hint of a unified, orchestrated rising progression makes its way to the fore before quickly being lost in the infinite, subdued, harmonious disorder. How can such a contained, orderly harmonious sound simultaneously be perceived to be so chaotic and disorderly?

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