Fourth World Musics

The term “Fourth World” means a unification of music from various epochs with modern electronic techniques and was coined by Jon Hassell, the legendary trumpeter and composer. Take a listen to Vernal Equinox (1978) which has a lot of “Fourth World” ideas. He also put forth the concept of "Vertical Listening".

The beauty of this genre comes from the notion that it’s almost always impossible to pinpoint the exact geographical and chronological origin of the sound. The music composed by Jon Hassell was not entirely primitive nor futuristic, it was a combination of both- the unison which gave birth to one of the most mysterious, esoteric and sensual music genres in the history of music.

We have heard and know how instruments like piano or trumpet sound. They have a “classic” presence that stayed the same from the moment of invention until now. What Jon Hassell did was that he took classic instruments like trumpet, recorded music loops live and then electronically manipulated them beyond recognition. This production method led Jon Hassell to multitude of innovations.

Mastering one instrument can be sufficient enough for it act as an orchestra.

Jon Hassell in the middle of his studio installation.