Originally released in 1990, Crossings presents three works for classical instruments and oscillators (1982-85) that investigate the acoustic phenomena produced when closely tuned tones interact in space. Alvin Lucier explains the process: "The three works on this compact disk explore interference phenomena between sound waves. When two or more closely tuned tones are sounded, their oscillations periodically coincide to produce audible beats of sound. The speed of the beating depends upon the distances between the pitches of the sounds. The further apart, the faster the beating; at unison, no beating occurs. Furthermore, under certain conditions, the beats may be heard to spin around the room."

This is Lucier's methodology at its purest: minimal intervention revealing maximal acoustic complexity. As instruments sustain tones against fixed oscillators, the resulting beat frequencies create patterns of reinforcement and cancellation that move through physical space. The effect is both scientific demonstration and deeply musical experience, as these interference patterns produce shifting clouds of harmony, rhythm, and spatial movement from the simplest possible materials.

The three pieces demonstrate variations on this core principle, each exploring different instrumental timbres and frequency relationships. The clarinet's woody resonance, the strings' sustained power, the oscillators' pure sine waves—all combine to create music that seems to emerge from the room itself rather than from the performers. Lucier treats acoustic space as active participant, making audible the normally invisible behavior of sound waves as they interact in three-dimensional space.

Performed by Thomas Ridenour (clarinet), The New World Consort of Wesleyan University, and Lucier himself on electronics, these recordings capture the composer's work at a pivotal moment in his development. Following Still and Moving Lines of Silence in Families of Hyperbolas and preceding his later orchestral investigations, Crossings represents Lucier's mature mastery of interference phenomena—music made from the physical properties of sound itself.

Essential listening for anyone interested in acoustic ecology, psychoacoustics, minimalism, or the radical investigation of sound's fundamental behaviors. This is experimental music that experiments with reality itself.