Laurie Anderson Makes Music for Dogs

When I was in high school I thought Laurie Anderson was the coolest woman in the world. This was the 80s when her album “Big Science” moved her from performance artist to new-wave-pop-rock star status. There was a period when her albums had a permanent place on my hi fi (remember when you could stack the records). For some reason her LPs didn’t make the crossover into my CD collection and I went years without her. Then last year my sister Sheila burned her “Big Science” CD for me and I fell back into and out of a brief obsession. But now with Anderson’s debut of “Music for Dogs” at the Sydney Opera House last Saturday, she reigns again, IMHO, as the coolest woman in the world.

Thousands of owners and their dogs attended the performance which was written for canine ears and included thumping beats, whale calls, whistles and a few high-pitched electronic sounds imperceptible to humans. According to Kristen Gelineau of AP:

Anderson, who often plays music for her rat terrier
Lollabelle, said the idea originated during a chat with cellist Yo-Yo
Ma while the two were waiting backstage at a graduation ceremony. “We
thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if you’re playing a concert and you look
out and everyone’s a dog?’” Anderson said. “So I thought if I ever get
a chance to do that, I’m gonna do it. And today was it. So this is like
a highlight of my life.”

The response of the dogs ranged from howls of delight to quivering knees, but judging from these Getty images, the response of their owners was unanimous — bliss.