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Deep Listening ® with Pauline Oliveros
Discovering the Sound World of the Exploratorium

April 3 and 4, 1—4 p.m.
 
The first in the six-part Sonic Series , this special workshop introduced Oliveros' practice of Deep Listening ®, which involves heightened awareness of and active engagement with the sounds that surround us.
 
Blindfolded participants were slowly led through the Exploratorium, a profound experience that allowed them to listen deeply to the sounds around them. A follow-up discussion gave participants the opportunity to share their "blindwalk" experiences and compare them with recordings of what they had heard.
 
" Deep Listening ® is listening in every possible way to everything possible to hear, no matter what you are doing. Such intense listening includes the sounds of daily life, of nature, or one's own thoughts, as well as musical sounds." - Pauline Oliveros
 
Deep Listening ® emphasizes the differences between listening and hearing. On the physical level, hearing is an involuntary physical act, the result of sound waves impinging upon the ear. Everyone with healthy ears can hear. Listening, however, requires cultivation. It requires noticing and directing attention, as well as interpreting what is heard.
 
About the Presenter:
 

Pauline Oliveros' life as a composer, performer, and educator has focused on opening her own sensibilities, and those of others, to the many facets of sound. Since the 1960s, she has profoundly influenced American music through her work with improvisation, meditation, electronic music, myth, and ritual. Many credit her with being the founder of present-day meditative music. All of Oliveros' work emphasizes musicianship, attention strategies, and improvisational skills.

To learn more about Oliveros' work, go to: www.deeplistening.org.