Tangerine Dream

are Springtime & Summer in Nagasaki among the most atmospheric TD albums in sometime?
Considering the horror of the events translated into music on these first two parts, its proved thought provoking to me.
I have mentioned ive got a very vivid imagination but i read up on the terrible atomic bombings and the effects on the people afterwards and find the music haunting,horrific,beautiful & sad.

Cant wait for the next parts of this series.

I think they are very atmospheric and are able to trigger a vivid imagination of the scenery at that time - but we shouldn't forget the very personal, individual story of Mr. H. T. as the main background for this extraordinary sound journey.
TD - especially in SUMMER - musically don't exclude any human feelings - from love to death, very authentic in my opinion.

For me it's very enjoyable music mainly. I don't need background. The music works also, if one doesn't know a background. Nothing changed probably, if these releases were called Eternal Light (or somehow differently).
Where in the Jeanne d'Arc release do we recognize the french national hero or her life?

Cyclone wrote:For me it's very enjoyable music mainly. I don't need background. The music works also, if one doesn't know a background. Nothing changed probably, if these releases were called Eternal Light (or somehow differently).
Where in the Jeanne d'Arc release do we recognize the french national hero or her life?

While it is true that the Atomic Series can be enjoyed simply as music, as Cyclone seems to feel, I think these releases also give us all an opportunity to go beyond merely listening to the songs.

Cyclone is correct when he suggests that if these works were titled something else, then they would generate different emotional responses in us. The titles (whether Springtime/Summer in Nagasaki or Jeanne d'Arc) give us a foundation upon which to build whatever interpretations the music generates inside our minds.

Music is an art form, and art -- truly good art -- should stimulate a response in us, whether it is simply whistling along with the tune we hear or finding some "deeper meaning." But it's all personal.

I seem to recall someone posting a response to the Springtime CD in which he wrote something along the lines of the vocal chanting heard early in the composition suggested to him a foreshadowing of the coming tragedy. I, however, chose to interpret it as the mood of wartime Japan, which by then was losing. The chanting could have been a response to that or was, perhaps, the mournful wail of a woman who had lost a son or husband in battle.

There are no wrong interpretations to something as abstract as music. What matters is how the music moves you. If one cannot conjure up an image of Joan of Arc speaking to her troops around a campfire, that does not mean that the music has failed in any way. But if you are tempted to tap your fingers or toes to the music, or to play a track over again because it is so beautiful, then it has succeeded.

My hat's off to Edgar for agreeing to composing something so bold and challenging -- and so successfully, too. I personally cannot wait for the remainder of the Atomic Series.

NAVEL OF LIGHT wrote:are Springtime & Summer in Nagasaki among the most atmospheric TD albums in sometime?
Considering the horror of the events translated into music on these first two parts, its proved thought provoking to me.
I have mentioned ive got a very vivid imagination but i read up on the terrible atomic bombings and the effects on the people afterwards and find the music haunting,horrific,beautiful & sad.

Cant wait for the next parts of this series.

Last night I was reading an account of the USAAF fire bombing raid on Tokyo during 9/10 March 1945 in Max Hasting's book Nemesis. It was very sobering reading about the horrific suffering inflicted on the civilian population in the resultant firestorm which claimed 100,000 lives and left one million people homeless...poweful emotions. I listened to Springtime in Nagasaki first thing this morning and the music is powerfully evocative and thought provoking. A brilliant piece of work.

To be honest, I have tended only to listen to these stunning albums from a music perspective only. They are very atmospheric pieces.

Next time I listen I will think more about the events and find out more about what happened............

Very much looking forward to the next installment!

I think that 11:02 AM is a very evocative piece of music. When I listen to it I get very vivid images of a Far Eastern city waking up for the day. Then towards the end of the peice I hear/see, as if a camera has pulled back, the rumble of the B29 on it's final approach. For some reason the music conjures up image of sunlight glinting off it's windows as it cruises through a clear blue sky. Then slowly the bomb silently begins to fall and after a brief quiet period the nuclear flash is seen followed by the inevitable mushroom cloud. These images are so vivid for me it's almost like a waking dream, I don't think I've ever had such strong images with another piece of music.

The magic of music conjuring up images, and TD have always been masters of it .

timer wrote:The magic of music conjuring up images, and TD have always been masters of it .

I only have the first installment but the second one is going to be downloaded very shortly from this site.

Is there an album well be out later on this year.

I love 11:02 off the summer in Nagasaki.
The atmosphere from this track is superb
I get the Hustle & bustle of a the busy city with everyone going about their daily lives, with the countdown of the inevitable interwoven with it leading the confusion & the ultimate horror at the end.
even as i'm writing this it makes my hair stand up on end

alipaul wrote:I love 11:02 off the summer in Nagasaki.
The atmosphere from this track is superb
I get the Hustle & bustle of a the busy city with everyone going about their daily lives, with the countdown of the inevitable interwoven with it leading the confusion & the ultimate horror at the end.
even as i'm writing this it makes my hair stand up on end

I wholeheartedly agree, alipaul. This is a powerful track. It conjures up all sorts of images. The metallic-sounding sequencing suggests (to me) an industrial city, but soon this sprightly tune begins to fade, to be replaced with a mournful choir. Then the suggestion of something sinister, culminating in a crescendo of sound then an abrupt, low, thrumming noise. The piece then ends with a series of dramatic, almost melancholy chords (suggesting to me a montage of post-explosion photographs and images). The final chord punctuates the entire piece with a musical exclamation point.

Sheer genius!

alipaul wrote:I love 11:02 off the summer in Nagasaki.
The atmosphere from this track is superb
I get the Hustle & bustle of a the busy city with everyone going about their daily lives, with the countdown of the inevitable interwoven with it leading the confusion & the ultimate horror at the end.
even as i'm writing this it makes my hair stand up on end

Having read your comments alipaul and rotwangs , I listened to 11.02 the other night , last thing, lights out.

Blimey, very moving and deeply thought provoking, almost disturbing at the end.

Incredible piece of music.

well as ive said on this forum (and as you can probably tell from my forum name ) the two albums released so far are by far my favorite TD releases in years. Ive never lost faith in the band but this material is fantastic.
Listening to Navel of Light (part 2) on the way home on the bus tonight i completely forgot where i was and missed my stop! The emotion in this music is incredible...its so moving and haunting. The voices used evoke all kinds of images in my own mind and of the historic (and terrifying) facts behind the music.

Please Edgar, release the next part soon?

Totally agree Navel, two astounding recordings, think my i pod is worn out!

Chris Monk wrote:I think that 11:02 AM is a very evocative piece of music. When I listen to it I get very vivid images of a Far Eastern city waking up for the day. Then towards the end of the peice I hear/see, as if a camera has pulled back, the rumble of the B29 on it's final approach. For some reason the music conjures up image of sunlight glinting off it's windows as it cruises through a clear blue sky. Then slowly the bomb silently begins to fall and after a brief quiet period the nuclear flash is seen followed by the inevitable mushroom cloud. These images are so vivid for me it's almost like a waking dream, I don't think I've ever had such strong images with another piece of music.

Sums it up perfectly chris.



I hope Autumn is imminent.