La Monte Young Marian Zazeela, Dream House Sound and Light Environment, “a time installation measured by a setting of continuous frequencies in sound and light.” MELA Foundation, 275 Church Street, 3rd Floor, NYC
Photo: Marian Zazeela Copyright © 1993

Stepping into the Dream House in New York’s Tribeca neighborhood is like walking into an alternate universe. The room is a creation by minimalist legend La Monte Young (”The Well-Tuned Piano”) and his collaborator, visual artist Marian Zazeela, and it’s one of the city’s most mind-expanding audio experiences.

Visitors are instantly jarred by what appears to be a noisy drone, but it’s actually one of Young’s compositions composed of 35 tones that create small and never-before-heard intervals between the notes Ab and C. Young generated and redistributed the tones over nearly the entire range of human hearing with the help of a unique electronic instrument called the Rayna synthesizer. Twisting your head just a fraction of an inch can alter your perception of the sound, and some visitors simply come to zone out. Sonic Youth are devotees of the space, and Brian Eno and David Byrne used to check out the pair’s first Dream House in the 1980s.

For the story behind one of New York’s most unusual spots, click here:

• The Biggest, Oddest (and Most Unique) Sound in New York