HISTORY |
HEARTS of SPACE grew out of former architect Stephen Hill's fascination with space-creating, ambient and contemplative music. Beginning in 1973, Hill hosted a weekly late-night radio program on KPFA-FM in the San Francisco Bay area. What began purely as a labor of love eventually became the most popular contemporary music program on public radio. Over the intervening quarter century, Hearts of Space evolved into a multifaceted music and broadcast producer encompassing radio syndication, a record company, and now an Internet music service. |
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![]() producer Stephen Hill |
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What is Spacemusic? A timeless experience...as ancient as the echoes of a simple bamboo flute, as contemporary as the latest ambient electronica. Any music with a generally slow pace and space-creating sound image can be called spacemusic. Generally quiet, consonant, ethereal, often without conventional rhythmic and dynamic contrasts, contemplative music is found within many historical, ethnic, and contemporary genres. Spacemusic can relax the body while stimulating the imagination. Restorative powers are often claimed for it, and at its best it can create an effective environment to balance some of the stress, noise, and complexity of everyday life. Unlike conventional background music, spacemusic does not depend on simple nostalgia (in the words of Brian Eno) "to induce calm and a space to think." Rather, it builds expansive sound images from refined timbres and offers subtle psychological resonances. From abstract electronic soundworlds to the romantic grandeur of orchestral soundtracks, from classical adagios to delicate jazz improvisations, Hearts of Space ranges across the music of hundreds of artists to create experiences of quality and depth.
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