This is a present from a small, distant world, a token of our sounds, our science, our images, our music, our thoughts and our feelings. We are attempting to survive our time so we may live into yours.

— President Jimmy Carter

What a unique and beautiful idea this time capsule of music, images and sounds was. I am still wrapping my head around the idea of extraterrestrial life and what they would do if they stumbled upon the record. Would they be able to listen to it? What would their perception of Earth be? How would they interpret the information or understand it?

This also reminds me of the delicacy and allure of the record over digital means such as the CD. I was just listening to Tom Petty last night on my record player at home, and on the news a few days ago there was talk of the increase sales for records over the pandemic. I think we need to remember that it isn’t about replacing already great but older versions of technology, because they can be as magically or even favoured over newer technologies.  As Smith (1999), suggests ,

              Digital technology can indeed, prove to be a valuable instrument to enhance learning and extend the reach of information resources to those who seek them, wherever they are, but only if we develop it as

              an addition to an already well-stocked tool kit, rather than a replacement for all of those tools which generations before us have ingeniously crafted and passed on to us in trust (para. 37).

I chose my song selection as what I believe to be a good representation of our diverse culture on Earth. I wanted to be inclusive of a variety of styles including words and music to help with the interpretation of what we are sharing. Offering this variety to hopefully include something that could be understood. I also wanted to try to capture the joyful life on Earth rather than maybe the actual reality with what we are experiencing now with a pandemic on our hands. Although it is important to paint a truth, I think it is important to show the joy over the gloom at this time.

 

My List:

• Bach, The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 2, Prelude and Fugue in C, No.1. Glenn Gould, piano. 4:48
• New Guinea, men’s house song, recorded by Robert MacLennan. 1:20
• Navajo Indians, Night Chant, recorded by Willard Rhodes. 0:57
• Peru, panpipes and drum, collected by Casa de la Cultura, Lima. 0:52
• “Johnny B. Goode,” written and performed by Chuck Berry. 2:38
• Holborne, Paueans, Galliards, Almains and Other Short Aeirs, “The Fairie Round,” performed by David Munrow and the Early Music Consort of London. 1:17
• China, ch’in, “Flowing Streams,” performed by Kuan P’ing-hu. 7:37
• Senegal, percussion, recorded by Charles Duvelle. 2:08
• Java, court gamelan, “Kinds of Flowers,” recorded by Robert Brown. 4:43
• Bach, Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F. First Movement, Munich Bach Orchestra, Karl Richter, conductor. 4:40

References:

McDonald, L. (Executive Producer). (2019-present). Voyager Golden Record [Audio podcast]. Defacto Sound. https://www.20k.org/episodes/voyagergoldenrecord

Smith, A. (1999). Why digitize? Retrieved June 15, 2019, from Council on Library and Information Resources website: https://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub80-smith/pub80-2/