MP3 John Bellarmine Vallier - Freedom Waves

Freeway sounds from the 405, recorded in the Los Angeles National Cemetery in Westwood, simultaneously soothe the contusions of everday life and inspire patriotic fervor.

1 MP3 Songs
NEW AGE: Environmental, NEW AGE: Ambient



Details:
FREEDOM WAVES
July 2005

Freedom is a fundamental American value. In our Declaration of Independence we assert the Colonies to be âFree and Independent States.â In the First Amendment we pledge our commitment to uphold the freedoms of religion, speech, press, and peaceful assembly. And in 21st CenturyAmerica we use the term to defend a panoply of issues, from reproductive choice to military campaigns.

Despite its omnipresent stance as an ideal in the American mind, freedom is rarely associated with something heard. With âFreedom Wavesâ the sound of freedom is enunciated as a collectively unconscious composition coalesced during the act of being free. In this piece the participant is invited to sit down in a patriotically imbued lounge chair. Once seated the participant will hear sounds from the 405 Freeway where it borders the Los Angeles National Cemetery. Participants are invited to listen to and reflect upon these sounds as they highlight the way in which most Americanâs experience freedom on a day-today basis: freedom of movement on the freeway. These sounds, which are akin to the swooshing of ocean waves lapping on a shoreline, simultaneously soothe and remind Americans of their libertine values and trajectories. The participant comes away from the experience with a reinvigorated sense of relaxed patriotic bliss.

Some may say patriotic songs such as 'The Star Spangled Banner' or 'God Bless America' best represent sounds of freedom. I argue that these songs lost their authenticity as they became misappropriated by ideologues and refashioned by the culture industry. What is heard in âFreedom Wavesâ is not noise but a new form of citizen composition, where each traversing American adds their mechanical voice to a liberating chorus while exercising an inalienable right to freely pursue happiness. This is, as theorist Jacques Attali writes, âparticipation in collective play" and "immediate communication" which aims to "locate liberation not in a faraway future . . . but in the present, in production and in one's own enjoyment."

JBV