Houses of the Wind

"Houses of the Wind" is a haunting, five-movement electro-acoustic piece that critically acclaimed composer Adams created from his field recording of an aeolian harp (wind harp) played by the Arctic winds 30 years ago. Over the years since he made this field recording, both the concept and the sound of the aeolian harp have inspired many of his celebrated instrumental works-including his six string quartets. In 2021 he went back to his original aeolian harp recording and sculpted each movement (or variation) of "Houses of the Wind" from the sounds on that tape, using voice layering, time stretching, and pitch manipulation as his primary compositional tools. John Luther Adams' music has won both a Pulitzer Prize and a Grammy Award and has been performed by such prominent ensembles as the Chicago Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Seattle Symphony, the International Contemporary Ensemble, and the JACK Quartet. Cold Blue Music has released nine recordings of his work, including "Arctic Dreams," "Lines Made by Walking," "Everything That Rises," and "The Wind in High Places." His memoir, "Silences So Deep," was published in 2020.