A moment of silence for R. Murray Schafer
August 24, 2021 8:42 AM   Subscribe

Composer, author, teacher, and pioneer of acoustic ecology R. Murray Shafer has passed away (CBC), NYT.

R. Murray Schafer tirelessly worked to encourage careful and attentive listening. He explored the sociological, cultural, and even mythological resonances of sound, especially emphasizing our severance from natural or well-organized soundscapes by the ceaseless increase of noise pollution.

He founded the the World Soundscape Project in 1969 at Simon Fraser University, and wrote the founding book on acoustic ecology: "The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the Tuning of the World". And, of course, he composed a wide variety of music in many genres.

A short film from the National Film Board of Canada gives a brief introduction to his ideas: Listen
posted by kmkrebs (16 comments total) 18 users marked this as a favorite
 
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posted by whatevernot at 8:53 AM on August 24, 2021


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Big loss. Met him in the early 00s and we absolutely adored his energy. One of the greats.
posted by Ten Cold Hot Dogs at 8:54 AM on August 24, 2021


I'm shocked and bereft. Many of his theories and techniques inspired my own sound work, and my first lesson with any new First Year sound class is in acoustic ecology and deep listening. A great loss.
posted by prismatic7 at 9:00 AM on August 24, 2021 [1 favorite]


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posted by AugustWest at 9:14 AM on August 24, 2021


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When you see eulogies from both the eternal weirdo Friendly Rich and experimental rap group clipping, you know he had a huge impact.
posted by scruss at 9:15 AM on August 24, 2021 [2 favorites]


My dad worked frequently with Murray Shafer when I was a kid, and so I saw many of his works at an age for which they were not necessarily intended. The biggest standout from my memory is The Greatest Show, which was staged in Peterborough in 1988. I'm the boy throwing the ball in the linked video, and that kind of scenery was frequently the backdrop of my childhood. I think Shafer probably had a more profound effect on me than I realize. I'm thankful for that.
posted by Alex404 at 9:24 AM on August 24, 2021 [8 favorites]


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posted by clew at 9:33 AM on August 24, 2021


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posted by Foosnark at 10:05 AM on August 24, 2021


R.I.P. to a fellow Sarnia boy.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:52 AM on August 24, 2021


A huge enormous influence on my own work. A great loss.

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posted by Lutoslawski at 3:40 PM on August 24, 2021


years ago while an undergrad at Simon Fraser University, I took a Communications elective called The Acoustic Dimensions Of Sound because a friend told me it involved being able to muck around in what they called The Sonic Research Lab. They called it creating Music Concrete and took it all pretty seriously as academics do. I just thought of it as making weird sounds and had a blast.

Anyway, that was Schafer's program. And though he wasn't around much when I was there, his book, the just published Acoustic Dimensions Of Sound, was required reading. I still have my original copy and what do you know? It's actually worth something. Which is more than I can say for most text books from studies past. Which I suppose speaks volumes for the ideas involved. Some of the most relevant stuff I've ever come across in the realm of academia (or anywhere else for that matter).

Noise has never sounded quite the same.


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posted by philip-random at 5:19 PM on August 24, 2021


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posted by joannemerriam at 5:50 PM on August 24, 2021


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posted by away for regrooving at 12:18 AM on August 25, 2021


Love that he and Charlie Watt checked out together.
Could be evolutionary music coming our way soon!
posted by Mesaverdian at 12:15 PM on August 25, 2021 [1 favorite]


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Thanks for sharing those links. His choral music is quite lovely.

(His work makes a number of appearances in Valeria Luiselli's "Lost Children Archive," which I'm currently reading.)
posted by nikoniko at 6:02 PM on August 25, 2021


* tolling of the bells *
posted by Kabanos at 10:17 AM on August 30, 2021


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