Five years ago, Max Richter released Sleep, an 8-hour lullaby, a soundtrack to your sleep, that was also put on in a live context in Berlin where the audience were given beds from midnight to 8am.
“It’s my personal lullaby for a frenetic world – a manifesto for a slower pace of existence,” is how he put it at the time which is chiming now in the time of Coronavirus.
That’s why perhaps that 15 worldwide radio stations and members of European Broadcasting Union (EBU) including USA, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Germany, Luxembourg, Greece, Estonia, Spain, Denmark, Slovakia, Lithuania, Belgium, Italy, France, Slovenia, Netherlands and Latvia will all be broadcasting the recording this Easter weekend.
In Ireland, Lyric FM will broadcast it from Monday 13th April at 12 midnight to 8am so as soon as Easter Sunday finishes and the 13th passes into existence.
“Five years ago I wrote SLEEP as an invitation to pause our busy lives for a moment. Now we are all facing an unexpected and unwelcome pause. It is far from easy to adjust to this new normal, which daily brings fresh anxiety and suffering to our communities, to those we love, and to ourselves. At this time the magical ability of creativity to elevate our days and to connect us with one another is more valuable than ever, and I’m really happy that BBC Radio 3 and the EBU will allow us to listen all together across the world. Please stay home, stay safe, and enjoy this 8-hour place to rest with those you love”.
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005 . He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Cara Magazine, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, founder of Lumo Club, club promoter, event curator and producer of gigs, listening parties & events in Dublin.
