Brian Eno
's 1979 milestone
Music for Airports
was the first album to feature his term "
ambient
music," although 1975's
Discreet Music
and 1978's
Music for Films
had already been exploratory steps in that direction. It's entirely possible that
Eno
knew at the time that he was inventing a new form of music, but he might not have known just what a milestone
would turn out to be, or that it would be the first
work to get its own tribute album. The New York-based new music collective
Bang on a Can
celebrated
' 20th anniversary by writing new transcriptions of the album's four lengthy pieces. It's incorrect to say that the group orchestrated the album, because these pieces take care to replicate
's originals exactly, down to each piece being precisely the same length its original. The only difference is that
's original
was constructed out of tape loops and this version uses live musicians. That one change makes all the difference in the world. The use of live musicians, especially on
"2/1,"
which is a vocal work for female chorus, opens up the pieces sonically; what had felt squashed and artificial on
's original now breathes. This tribute doesn't replace
's essential original, but it's fascinating listening for any fan of the artist's
work. ~ Stewart Mason