Orchestral Tape Studies

Orchestral Tape Studies is a compilation arranged and produced by healing sound propagandist, 扎克. OTS is a group of richly layered movements of fragmented orchestral loops, paying homage to minimalist symphonic composers and orchestras. 扎克 incorporates field recordings and faint drone billows to accompany these selected samples of orchestral loops. With an emphasis on tone and recurrent murmurs, these four arrangements offer 32 minutes of delicate repetition, reticent sound treatments, and subtle manipulations. OTS is intended for low-volume listening. +++REVIEWS+++ These studies are a “compilation arranged and curated by healing sound propagandist, 扎克.” The mode becomes pure striations of ambient texture wafting from an off-white drone. The recording is broken into four parts, that actually work seamlessly as an extended long-player. Throughout there are frozen harmonies continually thawing, sometimes behind a filter, sometimes up front. But before the invigorating higher chords the layers melt and rise. It sounds like orchestral music for made in homage to the deterioration of polar ice, warm and chill, back and forth. Lovely set. — Toneshift Gracefully & respectfully "healing sound propagandist", 扎克 has sampled & looped the sounds of several orchestras' quieter passages then deftly adorned them with gentle drones & the faintest of field recordings to wonderfully soothing, minimal, neoclassical & ambient effect for Past Inside the Present. — The Slow Music Movement “Since arriving on the scene less than a year ago, Indianapolis-based Past Inside the Present has rolled out a rather dazzling catalog of thoughtful and immersive ambient releases of exceptionally high quality. Among these is a gem under the title of Orchestral Tape Studies. The record is by “healing sound propagandist” zakè (扎克), an homage to minimalist symphonic composers and orchestras in which fragmented orchestral loops have been compiled and woven together with oscillating repetitive strands of textural ambient drone. The result is a wonderful meditative exploration of liminality and tonality and one of the most serene and beautiful albums you could hope to enjoy.” — Stationary Travels “ALBUM OF THE MONTH Released on the increasingly influential Past Inside the Present label, Orchestral Tape Studies is a compilation album ‘curated’ by 扎克 (Zaké). Based on looped orchestral samples, which then incorporate original field recordings and production, OTS is a remarkably meditative record, that despite its short running time is one that brims with ideas. Presented in four parts, Zaké describes OTS as “intended for listening at low-volumes” and it’s is a mellow, pleasant listen. Opener Pure Violet is classic Tired-era Stars of the Lid; a horn gently blows in the background as strings delicately meld together to form a cohesive whole, while the ominous sound of wind hums beneath. Infinite Ocean is delightful; the violin sounds like it is buried beneath sand but the way the melody curves is joyous. The repetition lulls you in and seems to wrap you in a cocoon of serenity, with the barely audible wisp of wind now only adding to the calm. Zaké describes himself as a “healing sound propagandist”, and OTS is a wonderfully peaceful record. Solar follows suit, its violin slowly rising up and down throughout the track. Combined with how plaintive the strings are, it makes you feel as if you are being talked down from a panic attack, and that the song exists solely to rid you of anxiety. Closing track Stata is perhaps the most complex; this time the violins are more pronounced, the notes sharper and higher – it never strays into disquieting because rather than sounding foreboding, the strings are instead steeped in melancholy. It’s an acutely poignant end to a record of mostly tranquil stylings. Orchestral Tape Studies is a fascinating album, one that feels like an aid to ridding yourself of a 2am anxiety spiral. It’s a record of beauty and poise, and each note feels perfectly placed. It may just be half an hour in length, but it’s a special 30 minutes.” — All Things Loud