Summary: Five thousand miles from New York, commentator and medic Geo Beach had to practice a different kind of medicine, praying for a minister at Ground Zero, on "Understanding America after Nine-Eleven" .
This is a top-notch audio editorial; you get sucked into his voice. By my 2nd listen I think I realized what the message of the piece was -- it's a lot to take in with one listen because you get taken in by his excellent prose. Is there such a thing as a piece being TOO well-written? Very nicely done.
I remember watching the events unfold on television -- I had no radio in the hotel room my family was crammed into while our new home was being fumigated -- and saw two firefighters emerge from the dust of the collapsing first tower, turn to each other and hug, right there on camera, not even realizing they were on camera. I cried when the first building began to fall, and I cried when I saw these two burly men crying and hugging, knowing they'd come _this close_.
That's the feeling I get from this piece. I like to hear new formats, but sometimes a good, straight-forward commentary hits home just as well. This piece reminds me a lot of that day in the hotel room, when we woke up and saw the events. There was a lot of shock, much more grief, but some relief and, for some who made it out alive, joy.
This piece should be played any time they are talking about Sept 11, but I'd like to hear it in mid-spring, when you aren't expecting it. It will ring louder then, when separated from the rest.
Unusual, given all that has been written about the event, to find a new angle on the events of 9/11. Really LOVELY writing, drawing on producer's new life in alaska, and medical background, but a lot to take in in one sitting; I wanted to pause and digest. Touches on the common theme of helplessness that all of us felt, far from NYC and DC. This is utlimately about the aftermath, recovery and renewal, and how we heal, in our individual ways.
This is a beautifully written piece that revolves around September 11th; a piece that is part commentary, part monologue.
It is elliptical, poetic, and artfully constructed and in the end it delightfully folds onto itself. The writing is also vigorous and vivid and very textured. This piece remarkably addresses philosophical, intellectual and emotional complexities without a smidgen of sentiment. What is most unfortunate about this piece is the reading. It is too fast, kind of cornball, and in the end the reading undoes a lot of what was beautifully done. Nonetheless it is worth your time.
Comments for An Anatomy of Humanity
Produced by Geo Beach / Tempest studios
Other pieces by Geo Beach
Rating Summary
4 comments
Justin Grotelueschen
Posted on October 17, 2004 at 08:35 AM | Permalink
Review of An Anatomy of Humanity
This is a top-notch audio editorial; you get sucked into his voice. By my 2nd listen I think I realized what the message of the piece was -- it's a lot to take in with one listen because you get taken in by his excellent prose. Is there such a thing as a piece being TOO well-written? Very nicely done.
Hans Anderson
Posted on December 05, 2003 at 07:38 AM | Permalink
Review of An Anatomy of Humanity
That's the feeling I get from this piece. I like to hear new formats, but sometimes a good, straight-forward commentary hits home just as well. This piece reminds me a lot of that day in the hotel room, when we woke up and saw the events. There was a lot of shock, much more grief, but some relief and, for some who made it out alive, joy.
This piece should be played any time they are talking about Sept 11, but I'd like to hear it in mid-spring, when you aren't expecting it. It will ring louder then, when separated from the rest.
Helen Woodward
Posted on September 10, 2003 at 08:43 AM | Permalink
Review of An Anatomy of Humanity
Unusual, given all that has been written about the event, to find a new angle on the events of 9/11. Really LOVELY writing, drawing on producer's new life in alaska, and medical background, but a lot to take in in one sitting; I wanted to pause and digest. Touches on the common theme of helplessness that all of us felt, far from NYC and DC. This is utlimately about the aftermath, recovery and renewal, and how we heal, in our individual ways.
Chelsea Merz
Posted on September 10, 2003 at 08:25 AM | Permalink
Review of An Anatomy of Humanity
It is elliptical, poetic, and artfully constructed and in the end it delightfully folds onto itself. The writing is also vigorous and vivid and very textured. This piece remarkably addresses philosophical, intellectual and emotional complexities without a smidgen of sentiment. What is most unfortunate about this piece is the reading. It is too fast, kind of cornball, and in the end the reading undoes a lot of what was beautifully done. Nonetheless it is worth your time.