July 6-10, 1982: Live on national radio from Chicago for five nights: KPFA's Charles Amirkhanian with Joan La Barbara at (insert mayor's name here) New Music America.
The most complete schedule I could find was this valuable one from Ear magazine.
These audio treasures from the stream links below will be transcribed and will appear after the regular day-by-day substacks dealing with the 1982 Chicago festival, from July 5 to 11.
Pretty self evident what this post should be: Charles Amirkhanian picks up where he left off the year before in San Francisco with his special radio broadcasts via KPFA on the New Music America festival. Joan La Barbara co-hosts for the five regular episodes (but not the Percy Grainger special)
The descriptions for each episode that follow were I presume provided by Charles Amirkhanian.
https://archive.org/details/NMA_1982_07_06
Program 1 - July 6, 1982
Archive.org description:
Radio station WFMT in Chicago presents the first of six broadcasts from Navy Pier, as part of the fourth New Music America Festival. Charles Amirkhanian hosts, assisted by composer and vocalist, Joan La Barbara. The concert includes electronic music by Tom Cameron, Robert Moran’s “Spin Again” for harpsichords, organs, and percussion, “Autumn Resonance” for piano and delay by Wayne Siegel, and to conclude, Meredith Monk’s work for four voices and organs, “Turtle Dreams”. Also heard, although unfortunately not seen, is a work of avant-garde musical theater by the performing duo of Ed Harkins and Philip Larson known as THE. This work combines strictly choreographed movements by the two, often involving sight gags of one type or another, mixed with electronic and new wave rock music. the intermission features includes a profile of Charles Ives, a talk with John Cage about his sound installation “A Dip in the Lake”, and a look at the only theremin virtuoso ever, Clara Rockmore.
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Program 2 - July 7, 1982
https://archive.org/details/NMA_1982_07_07_1
Radio station WFMT in Chicago presents the second of six broadcasts from Navy Pier, as part of the fourth New Music America Festival. Charles Amirkhanian hosts, assisted by composer and vocalist, Joan La Barbara. The concert begins with a string quartet by John J. Becker, the first deceased composer to have their work performed at a New Music America Festival. This is followed by a work for solo cello by Joseph Paul Taylor and “Tableaux Vivants” a work for flutes and two voices, by Larry Austin. Other pieces heard in this concert is “Centering” by Ruth Anderson which use galvanic skin response sensors to trigger oscillators, and Glenn Branca’s very loud work for nine electric guitars and drums, “Indeterminate Activity of Resultant Masses “. The action then moves to Lake Michigan where a squadron of boats participate in Charlie Morrow’s environmental sound work “Toot ‘n’ Blink Chicago” by blowing their horns and flashing their lights in accordance with the instructions given over the radio. Intermission features include a profile of John J. Becker as well as a report by Neil Tesser about his work with Kirk Nurock’s Natural Sound Ensemble. This group traveled to the local Chicago Zoo to perform a number of pieces for both human and animal voices, music in the same tradition of Jim Nollman’s “Turkey Song”.
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Program 3, July 8, 1982
https://archive.org/details/NMA_1982_07_08_2
Radio station WFMT in Chicago presents the third of six broadcasts from Navy Pier, as part of the fourth New Music America Festival. Charles Amirkhanian hosts, assisted by composer and vocalist, Joan La Barbara. Included in this concert are works by Don Malone, Kyle Gann, Ben Johnston, Jay Clayton, and Michael Byron. Intermission features include a roundup of events from earlier in the day, including a noontime concert of Percy Grainger’s music with pianists Dennis Russell Davies, Yvar Mikhashoff, and Neely Bruce, At the end of the program are segments on microtonal composer Harry Partch, pianist and conductor Dennis Russell Davies, and a brief excerpt from an interview with the “bad boy of music”, George Antheil. (from KPFA Folio)
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Program 3b, July 8, 1982
Special program/concert to celebrate Percy Grainger
https://archive.org/details/NMA_1982_07_08_01
After an introductory talk by Charles Amirkhanian about the life and work of Percy Grainger we hear a recital of many of his works.
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Program 4, July 9, 1982
https://archive.org/details/NMA_1982_07_09
Radio station WFMT in Chicago presents the fourth of six broadcasts from Navy Pier, as part of the fourth New Music America Festival. Charles Amirkhanian hosts, assisted by composer and vocalist, Joan La Barbara, with additional commentary by Neil Tesser. After beginning with a rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner” sung by various unidentified and not necessarily professional singers, the actual concert gets underway with Harold Budd performing a number of his works for solo piano. This is followed by two songs performed by a jazz trio led by Roscoe Mitchell on saxophone joined by tenor Tom Buckner. Other pieces heard include a tape piece by Annea Lockwood that features an interview she had with sculptor Walter Wincha, just days before his death, a work by Peter Gena inspired by two moons orbiting Saturn. Intermission features include a profile of Lockwood and an interview with Robert Ashley about his opera “Perfect Lives (Private Parts)”, and a look at the work of Richard Maxfield.
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Program 5, July 10, 1982
https://archive.org/details/NMA_1982_07_10_2
Radio station WFMT in Chicago presents the fifth of six broadcasts from Navy Pier, as part of the fourth New Music America Festival. Charles Amirkhanian hosts, assisted by composer and vocalist, Joan La Barbara. This concert features the “Clarinet Quartet” by Douglas Ewart, the world premiere of Christian Wolff’s “Preludes for Piano” and Phi Winsor’s “Same Tired Old Changes”, and a work for solo shakuhachi (Japanese flute) and tape by Dary John Mizelle. Also included is a performance by Peter Gordon and the Love of Life Orchestra. Intermission features include a profile of composer and pianist Leo Ornstein, a look at the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, an interview with John Cage, and concludes with a profile on Conlon Nancarrow.