New World's earlier release Vespers & Other Early Works brought us up to speed with
Alvin Lucier's "classic" electro-acoustic music of the 1960s and '70s. Wind Shadows is devoted to
Lucier's work of more recent vintage, with the selection here dating from 1984-2003. The electronic components throughout are only minimally applied, and two of the pieces, Letters and Bar Lazy J, are written for conventional instruments with no electronics employed. It is through force of habit that it is customary to view the American electronic composers of
Lucier's generation, such as
Robert Ashley,
Gordon Mumma, and
Pauline Oliveros, as being within the realm of "enfants terribles." Nevertheless, "enfants" they are not, all of them now having reached the age of 70. If still active in the field, this would qualify such an artist worthy for status as an "institution," but this music is anything but institutional in nature. While neither "fresh" nor taken down a well-trodden path,
Lucier's later music demonstrates a seasoned practitioner of experimental music finding a comfortable place within a certain limited area of endeavor and exploring it with comprehension.
At least two of the pieces are memorials; one is reminded of a
John Cage lecture back in 1980 where, distracted from the main theme, he spoke about what a drag it was to get older, as every time you turn around you find yourself attending a funeral.
Lucier's memorials are somber pieces, centered on drone complexes played by clustered wave oscillators -- the live musicians interact and separate from the center provided by the drone. This basic idea extends to all the pieces on the album, the one exception being 40 Rooms, which is a pointillistic effort à la Webern cast into the ambience of a generously applied artificial reverberation. Of these nine works, the most appealing is Q, as it has the most variety in terms of instrumental sound and approach. Wind Shadows is meant for patient listening; all of the pieces take a very long time to get off the ground and do not make their virtues easily apparent. For those who are into more passive listening, however, Wind Shadows might prove a plus, as its music does not jump out and grab one's attention.