FLIGHT 182 MEDITATIONS is released to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the bombing of Air India Flight 182 off the Irish coast on June 23, 1985. In this work you will hear evocations of loss and longing situated within the archive that is Canada/Air India, a nexus of historical and social trauma: the bombing of an airplane on June 23, 1985 in which all 329 passengers and crew were killed, including 82 children under the age of thirteen. Saklikar’s aunt and uncle were among the dead. The work continues Saklikar’s exploration into the nature of individual loss found in the midst of collective suffering, the continued disappearance/appearance of the past. Air India Flight 182 never happened, is always happening… Oliver's previous work on themes of collective grief finds new expression here, employing a mixture of filmic and documentary techniques with contemporary immersive sound processing. "My objective", the composer says, "was to create a reverberation of meaning that often occurs in the mind of the reader as they absorb a poem in solitary reflection. So as words and sound reverberate and intermingle on reading, I have created such reordering in my sonic creation, going further, to present the listener with heretofore unheard-of new sounds and meaning. In the fall of 2012, Rick Carswell introduced Renée Sarojini Saklikar to John Oliver and suggested a collaboration, and invited them to perform at the 2013 New Westminster Literary Festival. Oliver was immediately taken by Saklikar's collection titled children of air india: un/authorized exhibits and interjections: here was a mixture of voices and styles, the elegiac juxtaposed alongside reportage, dramatic monologues, and personal stories. Oliver’s collaboration with Saklikar resulted in the creation of sequences in the work now referred to as Tropes 1 and 2, in which the composer captures the poet's words and replicates them; transforms, recombines, distorts, and extends them to create sonic symphonies out of words. Public accord spurred Oliver and Saklikar to create this now one-hour long work that spans the simple accompanied poetry reading to the complex manipulations of the Tropes. Thanks to Rick Carswell for introducing Renée to John and making this project possible; Silas White at Nightwood Editions, Elektra Women’s Choir (Morna Edmundson, Artistic Director). Special acknowledgement and thanks to the Arts Council of New Westminster for its support of this project through LitFest New West activities; the BC Arts Council and Art Song Lab for supporting Renée's first steps in music collaboration; to friends and family who supported this work from its inception: Renee's husband, mother, and cousin Irfan; John's wife and daughters. A very special thank you to our donors for supporting this recording: James and Elinor Janzen, Chuck and Amber Foundation, Richard and Alison Carswell, Paul Janzen in memory of Wes and Laura Janzen, Peter Julian, John D Wallace, Judy Darcy, John and Anita Hagen, Lorrie Williams, Delora and William Harper, Linda Asgeirsson, Colin Miles, Andree St. Martin. Words used with permission: children of air india: un/authorized exhibits and interjections, Renée Sarojini Saklikar, Nightwood Editions, 2013. Some sounds incorporated into the composition were obtained from freesound.org. Credits can be found on the composer John Oliver's web site.