This particular reading is from Thema (Omaggio a Joyce), a famous electroacoustic composition from 1958 or 1959 by Luciano Berio experimenting with voice recording and editing techniques on magnetic tape. It is based on an interpretative reading of the poem “Sirens” by James Joyce.

Mezzo-soprano Cathy Berberian reads from the eleventh chapter from James Joyce’s Ulysses and it is her voice that can be heard on Air War. Thema (Omaggio a Joyce) is divided in two parts, the first one being Berberian’s expressive reading ponctuated by electroacoustic experimentation, the second, a non-narrative experimentation on tape. Kath is very likely to have sampled from the first section.

It is to be noted that in this chapter, the protagonist is losing their sanity.