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| Ambient History |
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> Electronic Music History > Ambient History |  |
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| ELECTRONIC MUSIC | |
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| > Late 19th cent. early 20th cent. > 1940s to 1950s > 1960s to late 1970s > Late 1970s to late 1980s > 1980s to early 2000s |
The term was first coined
by Brian Eno in the late 1970s to refer to music that would envelop the
listener without drawing attention to itself. Hence, Brian Eno is considered
the father of ambient music. Sometimes associated with elevator music and
Muzak, it is more often similar to mood music or an ambient background
in movie and radio sound effects. Often listeners will forget they are
listening to ambient music, which is one of the biggest attractions of
the genre. It can be any musical style, including jazz, electronic music
and modern classical music. |
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| Retrospectively, some of the works of the 20th century French composer Erik Satie, today best known for his Trois Gymnopédies suite, can be regarded as predecessors of modern ambient music. The invention of the theremin in the early 20th century is also considered an important influence on the later development of ambient music. Similarly some of the works of the French composer Edgar Varèse, who used the theremin extensively in his music can also be viewed as predecessors of ambient music. | |||||||||
| > Post-rave
fusions > Growing commercial interest |
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| Early works from the 1970s by Kraftwerk have greatly influenced the genre. Other earlier artists such as Jean-Michel Jarre and Vangelis in the 1970s and Ray Lynch and Mannheim Steamroller in the 1980s, all of which were considered "New Age," also influenced the growth of ambient electronic music. | |||||||||
| > Styles
of ambient : music * Organic ambient music * Nature inspired ambient music * Isolationist ambient music * Ambient electronic music * Ambient dub * Ambient groove |
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| Purely ambient music is traditionally beatless. In the late 1980s and early 1990s ambient music underwent a resurgence with the reconciliation of rhythm with the dreamy, meandering reverb of the first (late 1970s - 1980s) wave of ambient music. Under the guise of various styles, ambient electronic music (sometimes referred to as ambient techno or ambient dub) saw the birth of a new wave of electronic music in the works of artists like The Orb, Aphex Twin and the Irresistible Force. | |||||||||
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| Organic ambient music is characterised by integration of electronic, electric, and acoustic musical instruments. Aside from the usual electronic music influences, organic ambient tends to incorporate influences from world music, especially drone instruments and hand percussion. Organic ambient is intended to be more harmonious with nature than with the disco. Some of the artists in this sub-genre include Robert Rich, Steve Roach, Vidna Obmana, O Yuki Conjugate and Tuu. | |||||||||
| > History > Musicology |
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| Some works by ambient pioneers such as Brian Eno, which use a combination of traditional (such as piano) and electronic instruments would be considered organic ambient music in this sense. | |||||||||
| HOUSE MUSIC | |||||||||
| > Late
1960s to early 1980s > Early 1980s-Late 1980s : Chicago years > Late 1980s-Early 1990s : British Connection > Social aspects of raves > Late 1980s to early 1990s : United States > Early 1990s to mid 1990s : " Summer Love" > Mid-1990s & beyond > The rise of the UK "superclub" |
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| The music is composed from samples and recordings of naturally occurring sounds. Sometimes these samples can be treated to make them more instrument-like. The samples may be arranged in repetitive ways to form a conventional musical structure or may be random and unfocussed. Sometimes the sound is mixed with urban or "found" sounds. Examples include much of Biosphere's Substrata, Mira Calix's insect music and Chris Watson's Weather Report. Some overlap occurs between organic ambient and nature inspired ambient. | |||||||||
| > History > Musicology |
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