We are pleased to announce the release of our new Song of Myself album, which includes
a 4-panel wallet, a 43-page booklet, 14 black and white and color illustrations,
and extensive liner notes by Cris Forster.
Editorial Review
Beloved poet Walt Whitman (1819–1892) invented a new poetic language to express himself “…freely, fully and truly.” Musical visionary Cris Forster (b. 1948) invented new musical instruments for the same reason. After realizing that “…the tunings and timbres I want to hear do not exist on store shelves,” Forster abandoned the life of interpretive musician, sold his grand piano, and bought a band saw. By the age of 28, he designed and built his first two instruments, Chrysalis I and Harmonic/Melodic Canon.
Written for these two instruments and voice, Song of Myself: Intoned Poems of Walt Whitman is a setting of eleven poems from Whitman’s masterwork, Leaves of Grass. Forster performed his work at the prestigious Berlin Music Festival, then returned home to create this memorable recording in 1980. That recording has been expertly restored for this album. In perfect concord with Whitman’s poetry, Forster infused his music with personal energy, passionate spirit, and free-thinking individuality.
Since 1980, Forster has perfected an orchestra of ten original acoustic instruments, composed numerous works in Just Intonation, and written the acclaimed book Musical Mathematics: On the Art and Science of Acoustic Instruments. Like Whitman, he has remained true to his calling. In the enclosed illustrated 43-page booklet, Forster writes a revelatory account of his own life and influences, and shares deep insights drawn from his enduring relationship with Whitman’s writings.
In a review that appeared in Berlin’s Der Tagesspiegel in 1980, Sybill Mahlke calls Forster, “A modern bard, perhaps also a Whitman priest, whose interpretation constitutes a nexus between the centuries…”
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♫ For a list of the eleven poems on this Audio CD, please visit Song of Myself Score.