Some thoughts on Fearless Reception, a piece I am working on with The Rogue Trio:
Few experiences excite the passions in our hearts as much as the transmission of sound and the transit of people. When broadcasts transmit, their sounds enter new spaces and provoke intense, conflicting emotions, especially when they question or subvert previous senses of balance and hierarchy.
When a broadcast emerges from a radio’s receiver, it comes into contact with its new surroundings: those listening begin a process of deciding whether to try to understand the received sound or to reject it. When an immigrant comes to Arizona, similar reception–based emotions occur. Fears about “others” and difference happen on both sides. Anger flows from injustices and misunderstandings. But love, even amid the imperfect and distorted negative reception, blooms through community members recognizing their shared humanity. By continuing to broadcast through the hardships perhaps we can give other people the fearless reception they deserve.
Ralph Lewis: Composer 