Exploring the Musical Relationship Between Artists and Animals: Songs that Celebrate Creatures Big and Small

2023-07-14 04:32:20

From the young singers of the Ruut duo from Estonia to the musical nature observer Andrew Bird from the USA, singers are always looking for stories regarding four-legged friends that want to be told in songs. The artists consciously enter into a dialogue with nature and its non-human inhabitants in order to draw attention to the fact that we humans are not the measure of all things.

Laurie Anderson dedicates an entire CD to her dog. Andrew Bird sings of three white horses heralding death, the duo Ruut of peacefully grazing cattle, a silent commentary on the industrial exploitation of animals. The four-legged friends of the animal world still have a great attraction for musicians.

This is the second part of our summer series: Beyond Human. Birds, insects, mushrooms and little monsters in music

It’s getting clearer and clearer. All other living beings are superior to us humans. They’re not robbing the planet. They don’t fight wars. And they live symbiotically. Trees help weaker plants to survive with their shade. Fungi communicate via the Wood Wide Web. Dolphins even save us flawed beings from drowning.

So shouldn’t we humans unite in a large-scale “composting community” with all living beings that are not human? This is what scientists like Donna Haraway (“Stay restless”), Merlin Shaldrake (“Interwoven Life”) or Lynn Margulis (“The Symbiotic Planet”) demand in their theories, none of which focus on us humans.

So let’s join forces with these “non-human” beings in Friday’s game rooms for a summer.

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Composer: Laurie Anderson
Overall title: HEART OF A DOG / original film music
Titel: Animals are like people
Soloist: Laurie Anderson /spoken with accompaniment
Length: 02:16 min
Label: Nonesuch/Warner 7559794888

Composer: Meredith Monk
Album: Meredith Monk – Our Lady of Late
Titel: Cow Song
Performers: Meredith Monk /voice, glass
Length: 02:19 min
Label: Wergo SM 105850

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