Praise for THOUSAND MILE SONG
“A warmly inquisitive writer who makes technical information as entertaining as tales about nude whale watchers, Rothenberg tells remarkably dramatic and funny stories of his musical encounters with whales. . . . As he rekindles whale awe, Rothenberg calls for a revitalized commitment to protecting these ‘great singers of the sea.’”
—Booklist (starred review)
“This guy is capable of some mean jazz with whales. Yes, with whales. . . . The results are astounding.”
—New York Times
“If you are musically inclined and interested in whales and whale song, this is the book for you.” 11
—Toronto Globe and Mail
“Rothenberg’s eloquent pen makes Thousand Mile Song a page-turner. The book is no less than a quest that sings because its stories hold such delightful tunes. Like the book, they resonate deeply well after we turn the final page.”
“While Rothenberg’s madcap mission to play jazz to the whales seems as crazy as Captain Ahab’s demented hunt for the great White Whale, it is sometimes such obsessions that reveal inner truths. His affecting and often moving music is aural evidence of his attempt to bridge emotion and rationality, with a faintly bonkers but undoubtedly stimulating intent: to push at the barriers between human history and natural history. By coming to a better understanding of these strange, beautiful, and sentient animals, we begin to understand ourselves, too.”
—London Daily Telegraph
“When it comes to the science of whale song, Rothenberg has done his homework. He has thoroughly researched the subject and presents his findings in clear, accessible prose.”
—Parabola
“Rothenberg’s jazz clarinet playing is really rather good. The whale samples add a spectral backdrop, sometimes forcing their way forwards, at other times remaining an echoey inspiration.”
—Financial Times
“A joyful ride among the orcas, belugas and humpbacks, aimed at enticing these behemoths into a jam session . . . approaches the stirring border of interspecies contact with dignity and glee.”
—Kirkus
“Have we found common ground? Or are we messing with their minds? Rothenberg, to his credit, doesn’t give answers, but sends possibilities, like notes, floating out there. In our hearts, we should know that these wails are worth saving.”
—London Sunday Telegraph
“Intriguing . . . [Rothenberg’s] paean to the beautiful music these great mammals make should lend further support to attempts to save the whales at a time when they are increasingly threatened.”
—Publishers Weekly
“The whales’ music is strange, stirring, soulful.”
—Chronicle of Higher Education
“Is the artistic impulse solely human? Is making music with a giant underwater creature . . . perhaps a new way of understanding this mysterious and remarkable animal?”
—SHARMAN APT RUSSELL, OnEarth
“Although Rothenberg is not the first musician to play along with whales, he may be the first to take the musical results seriously.”
—The Independent
“Jamming with whales? A siren song from the deep. . . .”
—Daily Mail (UK)
“They say that there are two peaks of intelligence on this planet: humans and cetaceans. I’m not sure about humans anymore, but this book identifies whales and dolphins as living in such a complex world of sound and song that they are certainly high on the ladder. Maybe at the top. I humbly bow to their superiority, and I applaud David Rothenberg for opening their world to us.”
—RICHARD ELLIS, author of Men and Whales
and The Empty Sea
“Rothenberg’s words and sounds reveal a fine and subtle music that crosses the boundary between land and sea.”
—JON HASSELL, musician and composer
“Why do we feel differently about whales than about fish? Is it because they have the largest brains in the known universe? No; it’s because their songs touch the song centers in our own brains. It’s not intellectual—it’s soul. And it’s here.”
—CARL SAFINA, author of Song for the Blue Ocean
and Voyage of the Turtle