Music is predestined to penetrate the boundaries of perception and consciousness. Its fleeting appearance as a temporal art form naturally reflects existential dimensions—its becoming and passing away are inscribed in its propagation from moment to moment, from sound to sound. For John Palmer, mental and spiritual energy and inner feelings are central aspects of his imagination, which nevertheless ignites in a productive tension with non-musical phenomena. His CD project Other Places is a prime example of this. Other Places steht exemplarisch dafür.
In these “other places,” imaginary and real spaces, thoughts, memories, and experiences of a composer who is often inspired by Zen Buddhism and understands his life and work as a journey into his own inner self interpenetrate. In this inner sphere, spirit and matter, dream and reality, structure and sensuality merge inseparably. The individual pieces symbolize stages on this journey of sound, but despite metaphorical connections between them, they also speak for themselves. Although each “place” is a stopover on the way to the next—just as life is ultimately only a stage between birth and death—it is these stopping points, these moments of intense perception, that essentially constitute the beauty of life and invite us to linger.
John Palmer explores times and “spaces” in his works with a high degree of abstraction, piercing emphasis, and luminous timbres. The sounds take on a life of their own, constantly re-exploring the polarity between free flight and ritual character.