Topos Daniel Hill

The influence of place is undeniable. This recording aims to capture the influences of unique places into a set of sonic meditations. After five plus years of exploring the Greek Islands of the Cyclades, Hill wanted to capture and preserve the essence of these amazing places, or perhaps more accurately, try to retain the beneficial end results of unique places on body and mind. We can take pictures of a place; we can record the sounds of a place; we can video a place; we can measure and map a place, but still the essence has not been captured. Hill wanted to see if the essence of a place could be preserved, imprinted, and encoded into a sonic weaving of timber, tone, color, texture, and rhythm so that this distant place could be “visited” any time by just listening. The dream-like light of the Mediterranean, the salty wind, sand, rocks, waves, fish, mountains, fresh water springs, and the ever-present sun, moon and stars: the affect of these places cannot be captured in words, so Topos is a sonic simulacra.

Andros is the northernmost island of the Greek Cyclades archipelago. It is very green and extremely windy. It has a chthonic feel and it’s deep history is hauntingly evident everywhere.

Simulacra- we were stranded on the island of Amorgos- the waves and wind preventing any ship from leaving. A towering mountain rising from the sea, Amorgos is breathtaking, otherwordly, ancient, elemental, shamanic: we hiked across it’s length, ate it’s honey and the herb that only grows there; swam in its plunging seas; Amorogos got under my skin and penetrated my dreams. An indescribable place.

Poori is, or was, an unblemished natural beach on the island of Koufonissi. It has since, unfortunately, been developed. My memory of this place is one of the most peaceful, beautiful places I have ever been and am glad to have preserved my subjective experience in sonic form.

Tracker is an amalgam of all the islands visited, but the southern shores of Crete stand out in my mind. There, on the sandy south-western tip of Crete, it feels like one is standing at the edge of the world; a place of origination, where anything can happen, a place frozen in time, in perpetual sun; a place to just “be”.



TOPOS- from Greek τόπος topos, “place”

“Simulacrum (plural: simulacra), from Latin: simulacrum which means “likeness, similarity”,[1] was first recorded in the English language in the late 16th century, used to describe a representation, such as a statue or a painting, especially of a god.” –wikipedia


Instruments: Guitar, Bass Guitar, analog and electronic percussion, Motor Bow, E-bow, Baglama, synthesizer.


Recorded and Mixed by Daniel Hill 2002-2007 New York City

Photo by Daniel Hill- Amorgos 2001
COPYRIGHT DANIEL HILL 2007
credits
released August 10, 2023

Instruments: Guitar (Gretsch Tennessean, Hamer solid body electric, Ibanez acoustic), baglama, e-bow, motor-bow, percussion, synthesizer.

Recorded and Mixed by Daniel Hill 2002-2007 New York City

Photo by Daniel Hill- Amorgos 2001
COPYRIGHT DANIEL HILL 2007