Name: Elijah Jamal Asani
Nationality: American
Occupation: Composer, sound artist, producer
Recent release: Elijah Jamal Asani's new album ,,, as long as I long to memorise your sky ,,, is out via AKP.
Recommendation on the topic of sound: “Faya Dayi” film by Jessica Beshir; “Memoria” film by Apichatpong Weerasethakul; “Invisible Cities” novel by Italo Calvino; “Moonlight Love Songs” album by Aaron White

If you enjoyed this Elijah Jamal Asani interview and would like to stay up to date with his music, visit his official website. He is also on Instagram, and bandcamp. 



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

While my body’s reaction depends on the type of music that I am listening to and where I am; music as a whole has become a transportation device for me. Ambient music in particular is like a lullaby pill.

There have been many many nights where I created an ambient composition or loop, and upon making said loop, I lay back and close my eyes to listen to it with my body, and then next thing I knew I was waking up at 3 am with the music still playing after unintentionally falling asleep to the lull.

How do listening with headphones and listening through a stereo system change your experience of sound and music?

There seems to be more intimacy/privacy when listening through headphones, especially when I am in public. Not only in the act of listening to music but also making music; I think its okay for some things to be for our ears alone.

Stereo system listening feels more like a communal approach, as the sound will reach anyone in the vicinity and leak into the subconscious of those present.

It's also a powerful tool as it is very possible to sway the energy of a group of people with particular sounds, words or music.

Tell me about some of the albums or artists that you love specifically for their sound, please.

For the past few years, my playlist has been a concoction of Nala Sinephro, Aphex Twin’s ambient and piano work, Marion Brown, Hiroshi Yoshimura and then a rolodex of different ambient playlists on spotify.

That said, a lot of my artistic inspiration has been coming from films lately. Some inspiring artist for me are Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Jessica Beshir, and Andrei Tarkovsky.

While they are all commonly known as a directors, I personally consider them a composers of film.



Apichatpong in particular utilizes sound to heighten the story to a point where the soundtrack (or any other sonic element) feels like a character in the film. and his utilization of drawn-out soundscapes alongside long takes creates moments of ambient film that I tend to gravitate to.

Do you experience strong emotional responses towards certain sounds? If so, what kind of sounds are these and do you have an explanation about the reasons for these responses?

Bells and chimes.

Whether the wind is playing them or I am acting as the wind in that moment, I have no words that explain my resonation.

Are there everyday places, spaces, or devices which intrigue you by the way they sound? Which are these?

Places of worship.

The sound (or profound silence) that comes with prayer. whether it be the call to prayers of a mosque, the echoes of a catholic cathedral, the drums of a tribe, or the sound of the water on sacred land, each belief system has a different frequency or sonic element to it that carries intrinsic energy of hope and desires and fears and & and …

Have you ever been in spaces with extreme sonic characteristics, such as anechoic chambers or caves? What was the experience like?

The Grand Canyon.

While the canyon is rightfully heralded for its visual beauty, there is also a sonic element to it that I believe gets overlooked by many visitors. As I meandered deeper into the canyon, I realized that every crevice and turn has different cavernous pockets that create distinct echoes that are beyond unique to the land.

The change is slow/progressive as it became transfixing after some time, almost like my ears had expanded open more or shifted into a new shape.



What are among your favourite spaces to record and play your music?

Outside.

Whenever I make the concerted effort or have the opportunity to make music outside, it is mostly a serene moment.

I wish there were more outdoor music festivals that were catered to experimental/ambient music, because I think certain sonics and nature are meant to coexist.

Do music and sound feel “material” to you? Does working with sound feel like you're sculpting or shaping something?

Yes, there is certainly a tangible aspect to sound; almost like a river carving the land.

Within sounds, sometimes I am floating on the river and sometimes I am the river itself.

How important is sound for our overall well-being and in how far do you feel the "acoustic health" of a society or environment is reflective of its overall health?

Sounds contain energy (desires and fears and hopes and healing and trauma and so on) so yes I believe sounds can alter our wellbeing. Both alone and in a communal environment.

When I hear of the concepts of natural quiet or noise pollution, I realize more that subconsciously, sounds can alter the energy of our communities and consciously sounds effect our emotional wellbeing.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds?

My most memorable moments of sound are having heard a sound, yet never fully understanding or realizing what the source of the sound was.

For example, I recall taking a walk in a forest on the outskirts of the northern Arizona deserts and in the distance, maybe 70 yards away, I started to hear a constant and fast knocking on a tree.

This knocking had a similar sound and speed to that of a woodpecker, yet the resonance/weight that the sound carried was too big for a bird create. The sound did not seem man-made, yet it had to have been coming from something that was bigger than a human.

I am still unsure what the sound is, as the mystery still lingers to this day; though I had my field recorder on me during this walk, so keep your ears open for it …



Many animals communicate through sound. Based either on experience or intuition, do you feel as though interspecies communication is possible and important? Is there a creative element to it, would you say?  

Yes, I’ve heard of plants reacting to music, or birds chirping to cats.

Sometimes it may not even be intentional, but rather a product of location. For example, I live near a crows' nest, so I hear crows everyday and I know they hear me every once in awhile.

I also know the wind has something to say every now again and again. And yes I am sure there is a creative element, although I believe there is also a symbiotic survival element to different species communicating to one another.

Tinnitus and developing hyperacusis are very real risks for anyone working with sound. Do you take precautions in this regard and if you're suffering from these or similar issues – how do you cope with them?

I am not as mindful about this as I should be. Though maybe an unintentional precaution/coping for me is that a lot of my music the past few years has been quiet/subtle/in the vein of healing.

Some subliminal protection.

We can surround us with sound every second of the day. The great pianist Glenn Gould even considered this the ultimate delight. How do you see that yourself and what importance does silence hold?

For me its not silence that is particularly important, but rather softness.

Sometimes we confuse loud or aggressive volume with power; though we forget that over time, a drop of water can put indentations into a stone in the same way a power tool can.

Seth S. Horowitz called hearing the “universal sense” and emphasised that it was more precise and faster than any of our other senses, including vision. How would our world be different if we paid less attention to looks and listened more instead?

I resonate with this sentiment; our ears are one of the few senses that cannot be turned off or deactivated. So wherever we are, that natural quiet / natural loudness is many times out of our control yet guiding us.

Most spirits are felt, so I believe we are at our most divine when we are combining our senses.