Hearts of Space #1045 NEW AGE RECONSIDERED 23-May-2014 MP3 320kbps

Hearts of Space #1045 NEW AGE RECONSIDERED 23-May-2014 MP3 320kbps

Genre: Contemporary Instrumental, Electronic Space, Non-Seasonal

New Age music, ladies and gentlemen: famously, a genre with a reputation for well-meaning but insipid music.

Like most stereotypes, it's only partly true. From the beginning (in the early 1980s) there were always outstanding and original musicians thrown into the new age category, along with the shall-we-say uninspired. New age filled a need for slow, contemplative environments in a noisy, fast-paced world; it also filled a need in record stores (remember record stores?) for an instrumental music category that wasn't jazz, folk, or classical. It was the first music trend to gain commercial success after the home studio revolution of the 1970s; no wonder it was overrun with mediocre self-released albums.

Despite this history, in the last few years, a number of younger music fans have returned to the genre with open ears and open minds. Classic albums are being reissued, and new compilations of the inspired, the forgotten and the unjustly ignored are being released, along with new work by some of the old masters. There was even a story about the revival in the Sunday New York Times Magazine!

On this transmission of Hearts of Space, a program called NEW AGE RECONSIDERED.