Multimedia
Review
OHM+: The Early Gurus
of Electronic Music. Thomas Ziegler, Jason Gross, and Russell
Charno, producers. 2005. Ellipsis Arts DVD 3694 (143 minutes; picture
Format 4:3; NTsC All region).
Compilations of early electronic music will always raise some question
as to what qualifies some composers to be considered "gurus" or pioneering
figures, while others are considered secondary contributors to the evolution
of the field. unfortunately, though, there aren't enough comprehensive
collections to be overly critical of the few that exist. Sub Rosa's recent
four volumes (on eight CDs) titled An Anthology of Noise & Electronic
Music have been noted for their combination of traditionally canonized
electronic compositions with lesser-known works spanning over eight decades.
in contrast, OHM: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music box set
(released in 2000) contains three concisely compiled audio CDs with some
of the more venerated electronic works (some are edited excerpts), mainly
from the 1950sŪ1970s. In short, such a collection previously did not exist
and its pedagogical value is without question.
|
|
