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The First Time with Laurie Anderson

6 Music Artist Collection Laurie Anderson
Episode 3 of 4

Laurie Anderson, the prolific American performance artist, composer and musician, chats to Matt Everitt about the pivotal moments and songs that have shaped her life and career.

Laurie Anderson, the prolific American performance artist, composer, musician and writer chats in-depth to Matt Everitt about the pivotal musical moments that have shaped her life and career. As an electronic music pioneer Laurie has invented several devices from voice filters to the 'talking stick' which she has used in her many recordings and performance art shows.

Laurie began studying classical violin at the age of five and later performed with the Chicago Youth Symphony. She left her native Chicago and in 1972 obtained a masters degree in sculpture from Columbia University in New York City.

One of Laurie’s early performance art pieces was 'Automotive' for which she orchestrated car horns and in 'Duets on Ice', she wore ice skates frozen in blocks of ice, playing a duet with herself on an altered violin, replacing the bow hair with pre-recorded audiotape and the strings with a tape head. The piece ended as soon as the ice melted. Laurie came to rely on a driving rock beat as a backdrop to many of her word-oriented pieces and she became widely known outside the art world in 1981 with the eight-minute long single "O Superman", which reached number two in the UK singles chart. The piece was part of a larger multimedia stage work 'United States I-IV' and was included on the album 'Big Science' in 1982.

Laurie has contributed music to films by Wim Wenders and Jonathan Demme, curated the Meltdown Festival at London's Royal Festival Hall in 1997,and became NASA's first artist-in-residence in 2002. Laurie collaborated with the Kronos Quartet on β€˜Landfall’, inspired by Hurricane Sandy, which won a Grammy Award in 2018.

Beginning in the early 90s, Laurie was in a relationship with musician Lou Reed; they were married from 2008 until his death in 2013.

19 days left to listen

1 hour

Last on

Tue 10 Dec 2024 03:00
ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 6 Music

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Music Played

  • Laurie Anderson

    It Tango

  • Laurie Anderson

    It Tango

    • Big Science.
    • Nonesuch.
    • 9.

  • Chubby Checker

    Pony Time

  • Jean Knight

    Mr Big Stuff

  • Brian Wilson & Laurie Anderson

    They're Marching Along (demo)

  • Laurie Anderson

    Time To Go

  • Laurie Anderson

    Is Anybody ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ

  • Laurie Anderson

    It's Not The Bullet That Kills You (It's The Hole)

  • Philip Glass

    Music In Twelve Parts, Part 1

  • Laurie Anderson

    O Superman

  • Brian Eno

    Set Me Free

  • Lou Reed

    Men of Good Fortune

    • Perfect Day.
    • RCA Records Label / sme.
    • 06.

  • Lou Reed

    Men of Good Fortune

  • Arvo PΓ€rt

    PΓ€rt: Fratres (Version for Eight Cellos)

    • Arvo PΓ€rt: Fratres.
    • Telarc.
    • 5.

  • Mogwai

    Ritchie Sacramento

  • Florence + The Machine

    You've Got The Love

    • CD SINGLE.
    • MOSHI MOSHI.
    • 1.

  • Jean‐Michel Jarre & Laurie Anderson

    Rely on Me

    • Electronica 1: The Time Machine.
    • Columbia.
    • 12.

  • Arvo PΓ€rt

    Frantres for Eight Cellos

Broadcasts

  • Sun 14 Mar 2021 13:00
    ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 6 Music
  • Wed 28 Jul 2021 02:00
    ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 6 Music
  • Wed 27 Apr 2022 02:00
    ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 6 Music
  • Wed 17 Jan 2024 23:00
    ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 6 Music
  • Tue 10 Dec 2024 03:00
    ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 6 Music