Release data:

Michael Stearns – Sustaining Cylinders
CD, Earth Turtle Music / Groove Unlimited, 1978/2001

The music on “Sustaining Cylinders”, originally released on the Continuum Montage label in 1978, belongs to the earliest recordings by ambient musician Michael Stearns.
Its sonic content was not designed to play as music, to engage the mind and emotions, but rather as textural meditative backgrounds, as a sonic context for personal explorations.

The two lengthy 30-minute tracks, both composed in 1977, feature a minimal amount of melody while they smoothly evolve in a textural, hypnotic manner. The title track was created using Erv Wilson’s Eikosany, a 20-tone instrument, while the second piece (“Sleeping Conches”) offers a background of ocean surf sounds with heavily processed bells and conches.

All in all, this two-fold collage of sounds is a sure bet for any experienced listener of meditative ambient soundscapes.

Website: www.michaelstearns.com

You can see what reviews I have done of this artist on the Michael Stearns artist page