She has won many awards including a MacArthur Fellowship, and she holds honorary Doctor of Arts degrees from Bard College, the University of the Arts (Philadelphia), The Julliard School, the San Francisco Art Institute and the Boston Conservatory.
Her music was used in films by Joel and Ethan Coen (The Big Lebowski, 1998) and Jean-Luc Godard (Nouvelle Vague, 1990 and Notre musique, 2004).
In a recent interview she said that her favourite music includes Brazilian music, especially Caetano Veloso's recordings, the music by Mildred Bailey ("the great jazz singer from the ‘30s and ‘40s"), and Bartok's cycle for piano Mikrokosmos.
Turtle Dreams
Meredith Monk Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AHI went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AHI went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AHI went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AHI went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AHI went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AHI went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AHI went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
I went
I went to the store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
AH
As a lyrics interpreter, it is important to understand the context in which the lyrics are presented to analyze its meaning. "Turtle Dreams" is a song by Meredith Monk that has a unique quality primarily because most of the lyrics in the song consist of one line – "I went to the store" – and are repeated multiple times throughout the song with many variations. This repetition creates an almost hypnotic state where the listener is drawn in by the rhythm and tonality of the music, rather than the lyrics themselves. The vocalization and intonation of each repetition hold the key to interpretation based on what the listener might infer.
The song is incredibly minimalistic and seemingly repetitive, but when pondered upon, one can derive a meaning out of it that is relevant to one's life. The song teaches us the importance of routine and the repetition of tasks that make our lives easier in the long run. It suggests that daily tasks might seem trivial, but they carry immense value in making everything we do more efficient and manageable. The repetition of one line throughout the song becomes a metaphor for the monotony of daily life.
Line by Line Meaning
I went
I embarked on a journey
I went to the store
I visited a retail establishment
I went to the STORE, store, store
I visited a particular store and emphasized it with repetition
I went to the STORE, store, store, store, store
I emphasized the specific store with even more repetition
AH
An exclamation of surprise or realization
AH
AH
I went
A continuation of the previous statement, expressing a sense of wonder about the journey
Contributed by Oliver C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@hatehatehateforever
Esta canción es una locura!! No puedo dejar de escucharla
@J.P.Belcher
Not to sound disparaging, but this is bizarre, almost beyond comprehension, but in a way I find fascinating. I've struggled to find anyone else who can watch it all the way through, but must have watched it a dozen times by now. I think a lot of people just find it too avant garde to appreciate the impressive talent of these vocalists.
@bianchikat
ive been listening to Atlas again today and found this on youtube, there was another version years ago with the lovely blue starry background as on my vinyl LP. I first saw it on Channell 4 TV in 1983 and it stunned me..I saw Meredith ad her ensemble twice in England both times fantastic and moving..
@Signosteatrodanza
Inspiración, meditación...
@emilijaserebriakova5517
the choreography is so hard and those high notes! Fabulous!!!!
@utubeleplague
Thanks! Now I can finally enjoy this !!!
@poloaky
Esto es una joyita.
@aerphax
Original mood creators
@astralhorizons
I don't know what the heck just I saw, but its fckn brilliant!!!!
@iannis5416
What a breath taking performance, thank you for the (re)upload!