Metaphysics and heavy breathing (or Tippett’s Fourth Symphony)

How can art (in this case, music) illuminate human experience? Here project collaborator Toby Young contemplates Tippett’s Symphony No. 4 (1977), a ‘birth to death piece’ which features amplified human breath, most notably at the start and end. Can experiencing the piece help us understand what it means to ‘be’ in the world?

Toby Young (2016) ‘Metaphysics and Heavy Breathing (or Tippett’s Fourth Symphony)’ Tempo, 70:34-42. doi:10.1017/S0040298215000960

Listen to the symphony (in 3 parts), performed by Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Richard Hickox
Part 1

Part 2

Part 3