25/04/2013

International Music Summit (IMS) is a 3-day dance music conference that takes place in Ibiza. MAY 22-24 - 2013

International Music Summit 

MAY 22-24 - 2013

Joining the legendary line up this year is Jean Michel Jarre, one of the earliest pioneers of synthesised music, who will take part in a keynote interview, offering an insight into one of the finest musical brains of a generation. On his forthcoming appearance, Jean Michel Jarre said,

“I was excited to discover the IMS event in Ibiza and particularly the values it holds for a genre of music which I’ve been involved in from the early beginnings. I continue to push the genre forward in many ways, and I see my Keynote Interview at IMS as a way to continue to communicate my passions to a wider and younger audience – who appear to be today’s trailblazers for this genre, all united in one location.”


MORE: essentialibiza

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17/04/2013

Jean Michel Jarre - Pleasure Principle *Geometry of Love" (2003)*



      
"Pleasure Principle" from album "Geometry of Love" (2003).
It is his twelfth studio album and his first release on Warner Music.

Video: Dreams of Nature
Sigur Rós 'Valtari' Mystery Film Experiment: Ég anda by Tatyana Zvanskaya
Producer: Victor Ermakov
Director: Tatyana Zvanskaya
First Assistant Director: Valeria Sosnovshchenko
Director of Photography: Aleksandr Kotenko
Editor & Colorist: Tatyana Zvanskaya
CG artist: Igor Isaev
Cast: Anastasia Zhidkova, Yana Tarabanko
Location: MONOLOG studio

16/04/2013

EXCLUSIVE: Jean Michel Jarre looks to moon for next big gig

 By Shane McGinley
Time Out Dubai,

He hopes Branson’s UAE space partners can help

 


French electronic musicians Jean Michel Jarre, who played to the largest audience ever – to 3.5 million people in Moscow in 1997 – is looking to better than with a gig on the moon and is hoping Richard Branson and the UAE can help him to it, he told Time Out Dubai in an exclusive interview.

“My friend [science fiction writer] Sir Arthur Charles Clarke told me one day, “You know, you could play on the moon”,’ the 64 year-old Jarre told Time Out Dubai.


‘I said it wasn’t reasonable, but with the help of Richard Branson, who knows?’ he added.

Billionaire business tycoon Richard Branson has set up Virgin Galactic with partner in Abu Dhabi and is aiming to start commercial flights into space in the not too distance future.

A number of celebrities have signed up as passengers, including actress Kate Winslet, comedian Russell Brand, actor Ashton Kutcher and scientist Stephen Hawking.

More down to earth, find out what Jarre thinks of Dubai by reading the full interview with him
here : vientdemee


13/04/2013

The First Live Music Performance In Space


"The idea of having concerts in space is very exciting"

- John Spencer  (Head Of The Space Tourism Society)



The Launch Project is the movement that started almost immediately after what is now the Virgin Galactic brand’s spaceship won the x-prize and helped usher in the new era of Space Tourism. Soon to evolve into ‘ONE GIANT GIG FOR MANKIND’ it is an all encompassing multi-media venture behind the first live musical performance from the edge of space.

    ONE GIANT GIG FOR MANKIND will consist of; the weightless performance itself from 62 miles above the earth. A live 3-D broadcast of the event to the whole world, via TV, Internet, mobile devices and cinema screens. There will be several major concerts on terra firma from around the world, all with a direct feed of the show. A feature film documenting the journey of music in space from astronauts taking up their own instruments, to the unravelling race by music artists to be first. The performance itself will be used for a stunning IMAX presentation, that will be adapted to work in planetarium facilities, providing a much more visceral experience of being there with the artist.

       The show from space will also be celebrated by thousands of pop-up events spread across the planet marking this groundbreaking day in music history and a unique milestone in our civilisation.

      The Launch Project is being propelled forward by the company Nought2Sixty Productions who are an off-world entertainment consultancy as well as an on-earth production company. The Launch Project aims to bring to the universe this history making event in MAY 2013


THE COUNTDOWN HAS BEGUN......


    

Source: launch-project.com


Jean Michel Jarre - Oxygène - 1976 (Oxygène I & VI)


Oxygene Part I

  

Oxygene Part VI 

  

Jarre's 1976 solo album Oxygène was responsible for his rise to international stardom. Oxygène comprises six numbered synthesiser tracks that make strong use of melody, rather than rhythm or dissonance. Oxygène makes use of the Dutch Eminent 310, Electro-Harmonix Small Stone phaser on the Eminent's string pads, the Korg Minipops drum machine and liberal use of echo on various sound effects generated by the VCS3 synthesiser.

All those ethereal sounds on Oxygène IV come from the VCS3 ...It was the first European synthesizer, made in England by a guy called Peter Zinovieff. I got one of the first ones. I had to go to London in 1967 to get it, and it's the one I still have onstage 40 years later
—Jean Michel Jarre,

A minimalist concept album recorded at his home studio, on a small budget, Oxygène initially proved difficult to sell. Jarre was turned down by several companies, until Schaeffer's fellow student, Hélène Dreyfus (at the time her husband Francis's artistic director), persuaded her husband to publish the album on his label Disques Motors. The first pressing of 50,000 copies was promoted through hi-fi shops, clubs, and discos.

I just had three or four synthesizers and was using a Scully eight-track and a mixture of Ampex 256 and 3M tape. The whole album was done on just one eight-track and you can hear that in the piece — it's quite minimalist and I think that contributes to its timelessness
—Jean Michel Jarre,

By April 1977 Oxygène had sold 70,000 copies in France. Interviewed in Billboard magazine, Dreyfus director Stanislas Witold said "In a sense we're putting most of our bets on Jean Michel Jarre. He is quite exceptional and we're sure that by 1980 he will be recognised worldwide. Oxygène has since sold an estimated 12 million copies—the best-selling French record of all time. It reached number 2 in the UK album charts, number 65 in Canada, and broke the top 100 in the US. The album contains his most recognisable single, "Oxygène IV"'which reached number 4 in the UK single charts.

11/04/2013

Oxygène 7--13 - (Oxygène VII & X)



       

      

Oxygène 7--13
...is a 1997 album of instrumental electronic music by Jean Michel Jarre, his ninth overall studio album. It is the sequel to his 1976 album Oxygène, and is dedicated to Jarre's former mentor, experimental musician Pierre Schaeffer. While the album was recorded using many of the same synthesizers as Oxygène, and the titling suggests a continuation from where the first album ends, many tracks have a more uptempo, trance-like character. The album is not as widely acclaimed as the original Oxygène, but has been quite successful nonetheless, especially among fans. Released approximately twenty years after the worldwide release of the first Oxygène, it is Jarre's final album in his traditional style (exclusive of Oxygène: New Master Recording), and thus comes full circle. It was also the last album by Jarre featuring Michel Geiss as collaborator.

"Oxygène 7", "Oxygène 8" and "Oxygène 10" have been released as singles. A number of remixes of Oxygène 7--13 tracks have been made, including those comprising most of the album Odyssey Through O2. The Orb's single "Toxygene" was originally intended for release as a remix for the single release of "Oxygène 8", but was rejected by Jarre for being too distant from the original.

09/04/2013

Jarre technologies s’installe à Londres ou en France ? Pour acheter des enceintes «Jean Michel Jarre» appelez le…

Posted by Magazine En-Contact on 5 avril 2013

Le service à bord d’Air France n’est plus ce qu’il était et les billets sont trop chers comparé aux compagnies du Golfe(…)

David Cameron et les équipes de invest in the UK ont envie que nous nous installions à Londres, il nous ont déjà fait des propositions tandis que nous attendons toujours un rendez-vous au ministère en France… 

J’ai rencontré pleins d’agences web pour nous aider à développer le digital j’ai rien compris à ce qu’elles m’ont raconté(…)

Nous voulons développer les ventes en ligne de nos enceintes et de produits technologiques comme l’Aero Skull … 

Serial entrepreneur, Roland Caville est le Pdg et fondateur de Jarre Technologies, la société qui conçoit, fabrique et commercialise partout dans le monde les enceintes qui portent une marque célèbre : Jean Michel Jarre. Et surtout, il a la fraîcheur langagière de tous ceux qui ont voyagé, créé et développé des sociétés un peu partout dans le monde ( il vit entre Hong Kong,Paris et ailleurs…)

Pour prendre un grand bol d’oxygène – voir son interview filmée exclusive accordée à En-Contact lors de son dernier passage à Paris. De façon très sérieuse, car il l’est aussi il nous explique que la vente en ligne et le service client de Jarre Technologies seront disponibles en plusieurs langues, en multi-canal (voix, mail, chat) en septembre !


        

Maurice Jarre - Interviews 1997

Maurice Jarre - Interview 12 juillet 1997 

Le compositeur Maurice JARRE est de retour au festival de théâtre d'Avignon. Il est très attaché à cet événement auquel il avait participé au temps de son créateur, Jean Vilar. Pendant les douze premières années du festival, il en était le compositeur. Aujourd'hui, les "34 musiques de scène" créées à cette époque sont rééditées


Maurice Jarre - Interview 23 juin 1997

Portrait du compositeur de musiques de films Maurice JARRE, installé aux Etats unis.



Jean Michel Jarre - Education Without Borders 2013

United Arab Emirates
25/03 — 28/03/2013




Jean Michel Jarre first came to international fame with his number one hit album, Oxygene which went on to sell over 18 million copies worldwide.

A pioneer in his field, Jarre has largely contributed to the fastest growing musical revolution of the 20th century, electronic music: conceiving music in terms of sounds rather than only in terms of notes, and thus allowing the composer to become his own craftsman.

Having followed formal studies of harmony and counterpoint at the Conservatoire de Paris, he was inspired to reinvent music at its core, with his own singular vision, deploying the technology and tools of his epoch. This pioneering approach gave birth to worldwide hit albums such as: Equinoxe, Magnetic Fields, Zoolook, Rendezvous, Waiting for Cousteau…with over 80 million albums sold to date.

He also conceived a brand-new genre and format of concerts; breaking away from the traditional theatre and arena context, Jarre brought his music and vision outdoors to the masses. Often free and open-to-all, these state-of-the-art concert-spectaculars showcase the natural or urban environment in which they are performed – a truly singular sonic and visual “land-art” event, conceived and performed on a unique scale for a one-off experience.

Jarre’s legendary concerts have attracted Guinness Record-breaking audiences across the world. They take place in exceptional settings, marking extraordinary contexts: first western musician invited to perform in post-Mao Red China, Millennium at the Great Pyramids of Egypt, Houston City concert in collaboration with NASA in memory of the Challenger space crew, Concert for His Holiness Pope John Paul II, France’s Eiffel Tower in celebration of World Cup victory, Gdansk’s shipyard at the initiative of Nobel Peace laureate Lech Walesa, London’s Docklands, Beijing’s Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, the Sahara Desert…to the absolute record live audience of 3.5 million in Moscow.

Most recently, Jean Michel Jarre embarked on his first ever world tour which has already taken him to over 30 countries with over 220 performances.

In July 2011, HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco called upon Jean Michel Jarre to celebrate his Royal Wedding by creating and performing a concert-event in the Principality of Monaco which was largely broadcast on television and Internet worldwide to an estimated audience of 3 billion.

The French musician has a dedicated ongoing engagement to the United Nations via UNESCO, as Ambassador and spokesperson for Environment and Education.

Source: ewb.hct.ac.ae

Jean-Michel Jarre coupe le cordon

Par Jerome, 04 avril 2013

Jarre Technologies, qui fabrique du matériel Hi-Fi sous l’égide du célèbre Jean-Michel Jarre annonce l’Aerobluetooth un nouvel accessoire pour son enceinte au look atypique l’AeroSystem One. 

Comme son nom l’indique, il permet d’ajouter une connectivité sans-fil à son enceinte.

Il est alors possible d’y connecter n’importe quel appareil bluetooth et pour y envoyer sa musique. Cela sera par exemple pratique pour les possesseurs d’iPhone 5 ou de téléphones Android/Windows Phone 8 qui ne sont pas compatibles avec la prise Dock présente sur les enceintes et qui ne voulaient pas passer par l’entrée Jack.

L’objet utilise un jeu de 4 piles AA et promet une autonomie de 100 à 400 heures en fonctionnement. Il est vendu 149 euros et est déjà disponible chez les principaux revendeurs. On ne sait pas en revanche s’il est compatible avec le très abordable Aerodream.




Contenu relatif


Source: journaldugeek.

Jean Michel Jarre interview: French pioneer of electronic music talks marriage and the moon



Time Out Abu Dhabi,  


How come you’re here?

I just escaped from the recording studio to come here and contribute to the Higher Colleges of Technology’s 25th anniversary Education Without Borders event, as a United Nations ambassador for UNESCO. But it’s always a pleasure to be here.

In the ’70s your music was described as representing a vision of the future.

The main difference between when I started and now is that we’re always recycling things generation after generation. Rather than being focused on the future, we’re now a lot more focused on vintage brands and nostalgia.


You’ve been married to three famous actresses – Flore Guillard, Charlotte Rampling and Anne Parillaud-Jarre – are actresses your type of lady then?

Not anymore! It’s over now, it was a phase in my life – a long phase – but now I’m cured.

You’re quite a private person aren’t you?

I like organising parties, I have lots of friends, but I don’t feel close to the showbiz world, the music, cinema, celebrity thing. I’m not into this – even if I have been trapped by the media at times.

Are the reports that you considered a move to London as a tax exile untrue?

That is another episode. I love London, I love England. Charlotte Rampling the mother of our children is English, our three children are half-and-half by definition. What happened is I have contacts developing a new project in London, which is actually an academy of electronic music.

Do you have any plans to perform in the Middle East?

It’s been one of my dreams for a long time. When you think of doing an outdoor concert on a large scale, where else but here? For me the Burj Khalifa – this for me is not megalomania, it’s ambition to fulfil a dream. It’s very audacious and it’s also a very poetic symbol towards the [financial] crisis. You feel in the UAE that Westerners have a lot to learn, we should be less arrogant and have more humility about what’s going on in other parts of the world, not just economically but conceptually.

You’ve played to the largest audience ever, of 3.5 million in Moscow in 1997, and were the first Western musician to perform in Communist China. What next? How about a gig on the moon, maybe?

My friend [the science fiction writer] Sir Arthur Charles Clarke said, ‘You know, you could play on the moon’. I said, ‘It’s not reasonable,’ but with the help of Richard Branson, who knows?

 By Rob Garratt

www.jeanmicheljarre.com.

Source: timeoutabudhabi

You’ll always be someone’s devil

Adam Zacharias / 9 April 2013

From oddball outcast to record-breaking superstar, Jean Michel Jarre helped usher in the synth-heavy sound of the 1980s. Now the French electro pioneer is looking to change the world once again through his work with the United Nations


While preparing to interview Jean Michel Jarre, I stumbled across a top-rated YouTube comment lauding the musician’s brand of pioneering electronica, while blasting his modern-day counterparts.
“It’s a disgrace that people like Skrillex and David Guetta go on stage and literally push a play button when people like JMJ are doing this,” said commenter Jordannadroj20, garnering 36 upvotes in agreement.

The video in question – a live performance of Oxygène II in Poland which has more than seven million hits – captures Jean Michel’s manic stage presence, as the Frenchman leaps through a jungle of synthesisers to perform the otherworldly instrumental.

But as he sits across the table from me in an Emirates Towers conference room, the relaxed 64-year-old dismisses the suggestion that technology is replacing raw talent in a music world saturated by synthetic sounds.

“From generation to generation, technology has inspired the same ‘pushing a button’ phrase,” says Jean Michel. “When the organ was invented in the 16th century, people were burnt for playing an instrument that came from Satan. At that time, people were saying it wasn’t a real instrument and that it was just pushing a button.

“When I started, it was the same thing with oscillators on keyboards,” he continues. “People said, ‘They’re not instruments’ because culturally they were used to something different.”



 The talkative Lyon native has remained on the pulse of what’s currently happening in the assorted fields of electronic music. Undeniably influential on a swathe of artists in the past 35-plus years, Jarre says the pendulum also swings the other way.

“Some of the younger acts are also now a big influence for me – from Justice and Daft Punk to Chemical Brothers, Moby or the dubstep scene. There are so many interesting genres of music under the electronic umbrella these days. It’s all very rich and exciting.”

And he is unashamedly utilitarian in his musical outlook, insisting the ends can always justify the means.

“By principle, I would defend all those new ways of making music,” says Jean Michel. “It’s not about pushing a button – at the end of the day, it’s only the result that counts. Who cares if it’s done with a keyboard or a virtual instrument?

“The emotion doesn’t come from the instrument, it comes from the person wielding it. But you’ll always be someone’s devil.”

 SYNTH ODDITY

This fierce defence of today’s new breed dates back to his own time as an envelope-pusher – although in the mid-1970s, Jean Michel appeared to be fighting a losing battle in the era of glam rock and disco.

Born into a creative family in 1948, Jean Michel’s youth was divided between his mother and her own parents. He immersed himself in piano studies and painting, and developed an interest in jazz during his teenage years, before continuing his studies at the Conservatoire de Paris.



But perhaps the singlemost influential figure in Jean Michel’s transition to electronica was Pierre Schaeffer – inventor of the avant garde ‘musique concrète’ genre which mixed the late composer’s love of science and music.

“Pierre taught me this idea that music isn’t made of notes and harmonies, but sounds,” Jean Michel tells us. “Music is like cooking – it’s a tactile way of dealing with these sounds and frequencies.”
After a couple of failed attempts at launching a meaningful solo career, Jean Michel released the home-recorded Oxygène in late 1976. With its experimental sound, complete lack of vocals and an average song length of six-and-a-half minutes, he once more struggled initially to capture anyone’s attention.

“All the record companies refused my album,” he recalls, “eventually it was just a small independent label that released Oxygène. Plus there were lots of people sending their LP back to the store, saying there was a problem with the music, because it started with some white noise.”

Despite its inauspicious roots, the album became both an international phenomenon and a seminal recording of its day – helping usher in the synth-drenched era to come.

He followed this up in 1978 with concept album Équinoxe, and performed in Paris for a record-breaking crowd of one million people the following year to celebrate France’s Bastille Day on July 14.

(Jean Michel would go on to top his Guinness World Record for performing to an outdoor crowd three times – by playing to 1.5 million people in Texas in 1986, 2.5 million people in Paris in 1990 and 3.5 million people in Moscow in 1997).



AN ECO-ECUCATION

As well as selling an estimated 80 million albums in his lengthy career and gaining a reputation for his absurdly ostentatious stage shows, Jean Michel has also worked for UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) as a Goodwill Ambassador since 1993.

And it’s in this capacity that he came to the UAE last week, to mark the 25th anniversary of the nation’s Higher Colleges of Technology institution, as well as to contribute to local think tanks and meet leading educational figures.

“I like the link made in Dubai between education, technology and environment. It’s an interesting triangle,” says Jean Michel.

“At the end of the 20th century, I think we lost our vision and our hopes for the future. It’s time to recreate that vision, and cities like Dubai are providing that sort of heroic fantasy.”



At present, the father-of-two divides his time primarily between Paris and London, where he’s in talks to launch an academy of electronic music in the city’s East End. Jean Michel is also eschewing his typically heavy touring schedule to record a new album “about reemerging DNA” with musicians from around the world.

But the musician also remains eager to ensure he’s helping to provide a more robust and optimistic future for the planet and its inhabitants.

“When I started with Oxygène, not many people were involved in ecology,” says Jean Michel. “No political parties were interested in this neo-hippy dream. Now more or less everyone on the planet today is aware of the importance of the environment.

“It should work that way for education. More than one billion people are illiterate – it’s only through education that we’ll be able to understand anything from extremism to financial crises to global warming. That message shouldn’t be addressed to governments only, but also to people in the street.

“It’s through education that you can balance pragmatism with a vision for the future.”

Source: khaleejtimes

08/04/2013

Jean Michel Jarre - Industrial Revolution Part 2 & 3

                      

Revolutions is the sixth overall studio album by Jean Michel Jarre, first released in 1988. The album spans several genres, including symphonic industrial, Arabian inspired, light guitar pop and ethnic electro jazz. The album reached number #2 in the UK charts, Jarre's best chart position since Oxygène. The Destination Docklands concert in London coincided with the release of the album.

One of the definitions of the word "Revolutions" is that it is a change of ideals and practices, this should always be in the forefront of your mind when listening to the album because it not only describes the albums musical story, it describes the story of the musical change made by jmj from light hits such as oxygene/equinox to revolution.

There are two versions of the album, each containing a different version of the track "Revolutions". On the original release, the introduction to the tune is played on a Turkish flute, whereas the later reissue of the album uses an Arabian string orchestra for the introduction. This version also has a different vocal accompaniment, as sung by an Arabian vocalist.[citation needed] "Revolutions" contains reworked samples of an unpublished composition by Turkish Kudsi Erguner, which Jarre had acquired from ethnologist Xavier Bellenger. Erguner took his case to court and won a modest indemnity. Jarre removed the ney flute part from new releases of the record and from live performances.

The song "London Kid" was a collaboration with Hank Marvin. Hank was living in Perth, Australia at the time and he and Jean Michel composed the song with each other over the phone.

As noted in the liner notes, the track "September" is named after and dedicated to South African ANC activist Dulcie September, who was assassinated in Paris on 29 March 1988.

Jean Michel Jarre - Oxygene Part III

    

                

Oxygène - 1976

Jarre's 1976 solo album Oxygène was responsible for his rise to international stardom. Oxygène comprises six numbered synthesiser tracks that make strong use of melody, rather than rhythm or dissonance. Oxygène makes use of the Dutch Eminent 310, Electro-Harmonix Small Stone phaser on the Eminent's string pads, the Korg Minipops drum machine and liberal use of echo on various sound effects generated by the VCS3 synthesiser.

All those ethereal sounds on Oxygène IV come from the VCS3 ...It was the first European synthesizer, made in England by a guy called Peter Zinovieff. I got one of the first ones. I had to go to London in 1967 to get it, and it's the one I still have onstage 40 years later
—Jean Michel Jarre,

A minimalist concept album recorded at his home studio, on a small budget, Oxygène initially proved difficult to sell. Jarre was turned down by several companies, until Schaeffer's fellow student, Hélène Dreyfus (at the time her husband Francis's artistic director), persuaded her husband to publish the album on his label Disques Motors. The first pressing of 50,000 copies was promoted through hi-fi shops, clubs, and discos.

I just had three or four synthesizers and was using a Scully eight-track and a mixture of Ampex 256 and 3M tape. The whole album was done on just one eight-track and you can hear that in the piece — it's quite minimalist and I think that contributes to its timelessness
—Jean Michel Jarre,

By April 1977 Oxygène had sold 70,000 copies in France. Interviewed in Billboard magazine, Dreyfus director Stanislas Witold said "In a sense we're putting most of our bets on Jean Michel Jarre. He is quite exceptional and we're sure that by 1980 he will be recognised worldwide. Oxygène has since sold an estimated 12 million copies—the best-selling French record of all time. It reached number 2 in the UK album charts, number 65 in Canada, and broke the top 100 in the US. The album contains his most recognisable single, "Oxygène IV"'which reached number 4 in the UK single charts.

JEAN MICHEL JARRE - 2001




Jean Michel Jarre - Interview - Muse (23/03/2000)


When it comes to electronic music, there is a godfather and his name is Jean Michel Jarre.  

Jocelyn Clarke talks to him about joining up the dots.

 
On his new album, "Metamorphoses", Jean Michel Jarre uses the stuttering electronic interference of a mobile phone to underpin the rhythm track of the song "Tout Est Bleu". It's a technological prank from a maveric composer who has defined and redefined electronic music over the last 25 years, ever since the release of his seminal and groundbreaking album, "Oxygene". The mobile phone gag, along with the sample of a chattering lawn sprinkler ("Miss Moon"), the vocal appearances by Laurie Anderson ("Je Me Souviens"), Natacha Atlas ("C'est La Vie"), and Jarre himself ("Gloria", "Lonely Boy"), not to mention the eclectic cross-pollination of music styles and references (from Algerian rai and Irish fiddle to the signature sounds of Underworld and Orbital) mark a new and innovative direction in Jarre's musical career. And of unexpected accidents.
"This mobile sound happened because my mobile phone was close to a speaker and each time I tried to record this bloody song, the phone went off and interfered with it. Then I realised it might be nice to involve it. It's also nice to integrate a bit of humour into technology as well. Accidents are the basis of any arts form, even songs. When you are composing a song on the piano, what makes you find the next note vis a vis the previous one is an accident in a sense. I love to exploit any kind of accident." 

With "Oxygene" (1976), "Equinoxe" (1978) and "Magnetic Fields" (1981), Jarre liberated electronic music from its domination by wireheads and academics - think of the early IRCAM performances with boffins twiddling knobs on stage - and brought it to the forefront of popular culture. All three albums sold several million copies each, and Jarre was voted Man Of The Year in People magazine. With his first outdoor Place de la Concorde concert in Paris for Bastille Day in 1979, and the later 1986 Rendezvous Houston and 1987 Destination Docklands concerts, Jarre brought an unparalleled showmanship to electronic music, combining video projection with laser displays into uber-spectacles which transformed cities into arenas - both Paris and Houston set records with attendances of one million plus. 

"When I discovered the idea of electronic music, I didn't think that it was just an odd or eccentric way of doing music, but one which could become a style or a genre in itself. I always considered that electronic music, the fact that music was made with electronic instruments, was not the goal in itself. I really tried to explore how electronic music could be an alternative because I was always convinced that it would be a true alternative to rock & roll, and by also exploring how to perform electronic music with instruments that were not devised for stage performance. That's why I have been involved in an experimental way with these big shows, and by trying to integrate visual techniques with the music, I have tried to find the right vocabulary and grammar to translate and convey electronic music on stage. 

"Our grandparents used to say that they were going to listen to somebody playing in a theatre or a hall. These days, we say that we are going to see somebody. It means that because of CD and mindisc technology, we are listening to music at home, in our cars and even on the internet, so when we go to see artists performing, it is with a different expectation - of something more on the visual point of view. The main difference, for me, between electronic music and any other kind of music is the fact that you can deal not only with notes or arpeggios or chords but also with sounds. I always considered electronic music to be like cooking, about mixing all the ingredients. And then when electronic scene exploded in the Nineties, it was really like a lot of people joining a tribe with this very intuitive, organic tactile approach to music. And each time electronic music acts tried to express themselves from a performance point of view, they used projection, video screens, lights lasers, either on stage or in clubs. It's now become a real grammar for electronic music." 

Though he defined the technological and visual grammar for electronic music with his early albums and live performances, after the underrated and experimental "Zoolook" Jarre's musical output (1984), took a turn for the bland. He began recycling musical ideas from his earlier work for his large-scale spectacles that emphasised the visual at the expense of musical-his Houston and Lyons albums were little more than soundtracks for the eye. The late Nineties found him at a curious crossroads, with Jarre both the subject and sample source for club and rave acts - the remix album "An Odyssey Through O2" - and revisiting his own past with a sequel album, "Oxygene 7-13" with which he tried unsuccessfully to "complete" the original "Oxygene". 

"Metamorphoses" is therefore a new adventure for Jarre. "After having revisited the past with the previous album and not being too happy with it, I really wanted to open a new chapter by having a more sensual and organic approach to the electronic sounds, concentrating on the groove and the drumbeat, and involving vocals of my own and of other people, processed or not. "Metamorphoses" came from the idea of change, and the changes I wanted to express were coming from my own feelings. I wanted to express them and myself in a different way" 

While long recognised as a formative presence in the electronic music scene, Jarre is happy to acknowledge its influence on him on "Metamorphoses" - the Orbital dubbiness of "Bells" and the Underworldly "Hey Gagarin". Equally in its cross-pollination of musical styles and cultures, Jarre, notoriously against the "neo-colonialism of World Music", embraces the polyglotism of dance culture with its eclectic sampling, notably with Natacha Atlas on "C'est La Vie". On "Metamorphoses", Jarre reaffirms his stature as the eminence gris of electronic music while still retaining his maverick credentials - he once famously shocked the music world during its hysterical "Home Taping Kills Music" campaign by telling the public to pirate. 

"Sometimes people ask me if I have considered myself as having been an influence on some bands in the electronic scene. Frankly I think that all this talk of "godfathers of techno" and all that is marketing bullshit from record companies, because I have no claim on that. I think it is rather ridiculous. You do things on your own, and people can be influenced by what you are doing. People such as the Chemical Brothers, Underworld, Aphex Twin, Leftfield, Orbital and Air are all people who have been very influential on my music. I think that music is about sharing. People forget that music is about the sharing of emotions and feelings. Music is about recycling emotions and remixing ideas. If I have any legitimacy to do electronic music, I think it's because I have always done it. I wouldn't do a record if it was not with the ambition of trying to contribute to the electronic music scene by doing something personal or different." 

"Metamorphoses" is out now on Epic Records.>


     

Jean Michel Jarre - Virgin webchat (10/02/2000)



Jean Michel Jarre Jean Michel Jarre

The rise in popularity of dance music and club culture over the last 20 years has been phenomenal. We secured an exclusive live chat with Jean Michel Jarre, widely recognised as one of the founding fathers of the electronic soundscape. Jarre is best known today for his epic laser-embellished live concerts, but his first commercial hit came in 1977 with the album Oxygène. The record was way ahead of its time, forming a template that has influenced many of the popular DJs and dance music producers of recent times. Check out the official JMJ website and the fan site, Revolution, for a comprehensive discography.
In 1979 he held the first in a series of massive open-air concerts in Paris, the million-strong crowd earning him a place in the Guinness Book Of World Records. Amazingly he topped this figure in 1990, with over 2.5 million fans converging to see him perform a Bastille Day concert.
He's back with the latest instalment in a pioneering career that has spanned three decades. Now you know the history, here's your chance to read the transcript with the Godfather of Trance...

Stephen Taylor I think the change in approach with the new album is refreshing for 2000. Lyrics in a Jarre song?!! Is this going to be a permanent change for you to write tracks with words, or is Metamorphoses a unique project?

JMJ I have no idea, it's like being in the middle of a metamorphosis, you never know how it will end. I have had a lot of fun doing this project. It has been quite refreshing for me. When you start to integrate words, you start to be in a narrative process; you find emotions, you find words, you find a way of being less abstract. Also all of this was created entirely on a computer, everything has been done with new software called Prototype, so it is all very different. I would really like to explore more of this idea of mixing electronic music with words, and the statement that electronic music is linked with instrumental concerts. It is nice to explore different styles and I would really like to explore more.

wulumulu You've played concerts in some great places, Houston, China, Russia, Hong Kong... Where in the world would you like to play assuming there were no technical restraints? (by the way, Wooloomooloo has grown on me!)

JMJ I think for me, Egypt was that in a certain sense. My next outdoor project will be tailor-made for cyberspace. I never know when I am going to do all these rock shows and outdoor events again. I think my next project of performance will be in smaller clubs.

TeeJ Bonsoir, Jean Michel. Were you disappointed in the Cairo gig, with the weather et al?

JMJ The fog contributed to the mystery of the whole night, a sort of Egyptian Woodstock. It was an unforgettable moment. At the end of the night, we had a bit of rain and snow; the best omen in Egypt is to start a new year with snow.

Marcos Mr. Jarre, do you have plans to bring your show to South America (Chile) someday?

JMJ I am quite committed to do a tour at the end of this year in South America.

Jan Henriet You said in an interview for Dutch radio, "I do like singers, as long as they keep their mouths shut". What changed your mind?

JMJ I don't remember saying that, but for some of them, it is definitely true.

Lucas Gonzalez Ojeda Do you see Metamorphoses as the Zoolook of this 2000 year?

JMJ Not really, no. Zoolook is an album with Laurie Anderson, involving vocals in a different way. It's not for the meaning of the words, but for the sounds, playing in a phonetic way. Metamorphoses is an album where the lyrics are approached in a minimalistic way, but the meaning of the words are important.

miltex On your latest album (Metamorphoses) most tracks have the lyrics in the cover, but not Bells, why not? Everyone is wondering what is said in that track, is it possible for you to tell us?

JMJ It is called playing with words, playing with the name Isabelle and Is a Bell: very smart. I was not as proud as that to print this on the cover!

Finlay Shakespeare In the past, you have seemed to be a man who likes to work largely alone. Have you found that your recent collaborations (with TK, Laurie Anderson, Natasha Atlas etc) have been more rewarding and productive?

JMJ I have always been involved with lots of people, I never felt that I was ever lonely or just on my own. When you are doing a song or are part of a band, you do it more solo, but the idea... electronic music is something different. It is like cooking, when you are in front of your oven, you don't want to share your recipes.

Fire Tours involve much work, do you still have time to develop new music in your studio?

JMJ For Metamorphoses, I went to the south of France on my own. It was the first time I did this, I tried to be isolated for a while and tried to develop ideas, without phone calls and interruptions.

Maz Monsieur Jarre, what do you think of the electronic music today (like trance, breakbeats etc) compared to the early Nineties and the Eighties?

JMJ What is exciting with electronic music is that you have so many different styles. It is like when jazz or rock'n'roll started; you have a fresh approach with sounds, with electronic sounds. It is something new, dealing with sounds, something different - it really is something else, you have so many sectors, and it's very exciting.

Daniel Stevens Surely you have a favourite track on Metamorphoses. Which one is it?

JMJ It is a very unfair question because I love them all; I wrote a lot of music and I kept what was relevant. Some of them are definitely history and some of them may be developed for other projects. I would say Je Me Souviens has a very organic approach to sounds, a series of generic words, and I think Laurie is brilliant at that.

Bignath Just one small question about Millions Of Stars... What do the letters mean?... Notes or stars' positions?

JMJ It is simpler than that. They are just name of notes: for example, D6 is the note, D6 is played. It is creating an audio link with stars and visualising the notes which are going to be played on the keyboard.

Signe Are you still not single:-)))))))

JMJ What do you mean by that? I am exploring at the moment and obviously the Web is very practical for that, the main activity of the Net is based on meeting people.

Low-ek JMJ: about the second single, your fans have chosen Hey Gagarin on a poll. Are you going to follow us or let Sony choose the track they want?

JMJ This is a tricky question, we are going to decide this tonight, so it is a very appropriate question. Hey Gagarin will have to be single-ified, it's not an appropriate length at the moment. I am working on three tracks at the moment that could possibly become the next singles.

Sim Jean Michel, I recently heard on the Radio 2 interview that you intend performing an Internet-only concert - can you elaborate on that?

JMJ Yes, that's right. I am quite interested in trying to explore new ways of performing. But I'm not sure about doing concerts that can only be broadcast on the Internet, because many people are still not connected with the medium.

Polly F Your new album evokes the feel of HiNRG and Disco such as New Order (Give Me A Sign) and the Pet Shop Boys? Can you recognise their work in yours?

JMJ Not consciously, when you start to have electronic sounds and vocals, people can think about influences, but music is about sharing. I'm sure people such as New Order or Underworld have also influenced me. That is what music is all about, mixing...

Joost Lommers Many "electronic" musicians only compose for their CD releases, they never perform live. Do you find that composing music that must be performed live constrains you in any way? Is it different than purely composing for the record only, and in what way?

JMJ I have always composed music for records only, I never think about concerts when I am creating. Then afterwards I think about how it can be performed. I attempt to find a solution of how to perform electronic music on stage, electronic music is not the sexiest music in the world when performed live, so you have to invent a technical grammar, create a spectacle.

Jackie Hello, Jean Michel. Jackie from Spain here. What do you think you will be composing when you are 65 years old?

JMJ I hope that nobody can predict this in their own lives. I don't feel that way, I even have no idea what the next record will be.

ptta Is it coincidental that "Love Love" was sung by Christophe and that "Tout Est Bleu" sounds a little bit like "Les Bleus Au Coeur"? Is it a coincidence or is it done to remind you about the time when you wrote the lyrics for Christophe?

JMJ To explain this, I used to write lyrics a few years ago for some rock singers, like Francoise Hardy and famous artists in France. I like to play with words; if it sounds similar, it was unconscious.

Graham Pop songs are often covered, classical music is played by various orchestras and used in modern music, but electronic music is rarely covered. It's rare that you see interpretations of your compositions, for example, by another famous artist. Do you know why?

JMJ Yes - it is because, with electronic music and technology now you do not need scores anymore. Nowadays with electronic music you can be like a painter. Electronic music doesn't need to be covered, it can be mixed. There is no need for it to be played by other people because you have the original.

Fosi Are you going to sell new tracks on your website?

JMJ New tracks on my website? Yes, to panic my record company I think I am going to do it in the next few months, just by injecting new songs regularly. The beauty of the Internet is to use it as an artist and to show that after all we have control of what we are doing.

GaryJJJ Jean Michel, I am a record producer/re-mixer (working under titles such as Motiv 8). Many people like myself have been heavily influenced by your work. Do you ever choose who re-mixes your work yourself?

JMJ Yes, and we have big arguments with John Best, the guy behind the camera. He is responsible for half of this!

Bignath JMJ, is the rumour of you acting in a movie true?

JMJ Acting in a movie? It is probably true! Yes, it is a Belgian project, a very funny story about a Romanian guy looking for a musician, and I played a role in this film. It was with a very talented cartoonist, there are two guys, Benoit and Francois and they had developed a very interesting world, all their characters are developed in a surrealistic way. Very Magritte.

Yost Mr. Jarre, is there an artist that you never collaborated with yet, but that you really would like to work with in the future?

JMJ Yes, a lot of people, the list is too long. Mozart, but probably a bit difficult.

john2 Do you still talk to Ms Rampling?

JMJ Every day. We spoke in the taxi three hours ago.

Alan Antrobus I was also wondering how you feel about Sony releasing your other great works, ie repackaged and re-mastered. Do you feel that you are just another Sony product?

JMJ We should stop these kind of very contemptuous condescending attitudes and being cautious about record companies, this is a cliché. It depends on the record company and the artist. Everything should be discussed prior to the release, but there isn't always time. When your record is released, like it is the case this week where it is released in a lot of countries at the same time, it isn't always the responsibility of the record company. But I am happy with my relationship with Sony so far...

Joost Lommers This is probably a very undiplomatic question, but how much artistic freedom do you have? What is decided by you and what by Sony? Would you do things differently if your music did not need to be released by a big commercial record company like Sony (or Polydor)?

JMJ I think that Stanley Kubrick had a very good line - I am doing my film for my fans. Well I am doing my music for my fans. I have never been told what I should do since I began in this business.

wulumulu Mr Jarre, in 12DOTS, some people have mentioned a 13th dream... what's that about?

JMJ A 13th dream? It is referring to the 12 dreams of the Sun, the Pyramids. It is something that was discussed and was on the Internet. The 12 Dreams of the Sun was performed between 10.30 and 12.30. It was initially planned that I would come back again in the morning, and that was thought of as the 13th dream.

Bells Mr. Jarre, is it true you're planning a concert for the Pope?

JMJ Two weeks ago I was in Poland and all the TV stations asked me about this concert I was going to do for the Pope in May. I am not aware of it, it is a rumour.

ptta Jean-Michel, are you aware that your records are not very well distributed in Belgium?

JMJ No, I hope the record company in Belgium is listening! It seems that it is working quite well in Belgium. Are they going in record shops or somewhere else? You can order the record by Internet anyway.

DanielM When I listen to your music, it conjures images in my mind. When you write it do you have a sort of mental picture of what to create, or does the melody occur to you rather than a visual image of the feeling?

JMJ It was quite different for Metamorphoses. By using words it had a much less abstract feel, not quite telling stories, but a kind of narrative process.

Jonathan. J. Bradley With the ever-expanding world of music, one can still trace musical statements, figures and motifs back to their classical ancestors. Were you inspired by any of the great French contemporaries and if so who and why?

JMJ Musicians? I have been a big fan of Debussy and Ravel, it's quite impressionistic music and it is very French in a sense, but I think I am always influenced by them. My major influences come from the cinema.

Bells Mr. Jarre, are you on the jarre@clic.net mailing list?

JMJ Maybe, yes.

miltex Jean Michel, I know that you like movies: which is your favourite movie at the cinemas right now, and your favourite ever?

JMJ At the moment I really enjoyed Being John Malkovich and All About My Mother, those two were my favourites. Also anything by David Lynch and Stanley Kubrick.

Nino Aurrichi I am a composer, and have been writing for 13 years and I have trouble creating fresh new work. How do you manage to come up with fresh ideas after writing music for over 30 years?

JMJ I think it is a difficult question, based on the idea I am not really satisfied with what I have done, and am always trying to escape from the label that people give me, or that I could put on myself. The best help I can give though is: try to find what Brian Eno calls "transvessel thoughts", try not to use the same instrument as last time, or the same lighting. A good way is to break the routine, try something else.

Smirnov Who else apart from people like Orbital, Underworld, Chemical Brothers would you love to work with? Have you considered working with Brian Eno or Philip Glass? Keep up the good work!

JMJ Aphex Twin, Air. No, I haven't considered working with Philip Glass, though I am not saying that I don't like him!

wulumulu Mr Jarre, I would say that some parts of Chronologie (C3) sound almost operatic. Have you ever wanted to write a great opera or something like that?

JMJ I have been confronted with the format of an opera - music mixed with the visual technology of the 19th century are the carpenters, painters and tools of today: satellite, video, Internet, they are the grammar of electronic music. All that is very close to opera.

wulumulu In fact, if you didn't make music, what would you do for a living?

JMJ Architect probably - I really like architecture. Or dealing on the Internet, because then you can stay in your bed.

Agni Theologu I have followed all your work since Oxygene. You seem to experiment with trance vibes that are more into the club scene. Have you ever thought of experimenting with drum'n'bass or other types like garage music?

JMJ Yes, I worked with some very interesting musicians and the Apollo 440 drummer. A friend of mine called Paul Coghis was one of the first drummers to invent a jungle feel, a totally different feel to drum'n'bass, very refreshing. The gig I did for the closing ceremony of the World Cup involved a lot of drum'n'bass.

Harold Is the rumour about a Webcast 2001 concert with you (my favourite composer since 1978) and Arthur C. Clarke (my favourite sci-fi author) true?

JMJ We are talking about it, nothing definite, maybe. It is actually something that, well... I have always been close to Arthur C. Clarke, he is a big influence in my life.

DragonLady How often do you change your hairstyle and why? I draw your portrait several times during a year for The Danish Jean-Michel Jarre Magazine "Magnetic Fields", and each time the drawing is "hairstyle"-outdated.

JMJ I've managed to avoid so far the bald concept.

wulumulu Mr Jarre, do you read Internet message boards and newsgroups where your fans post? Do their opinions influence your music? Would you like to do more "real-time chat" similar to this?

JMJ Yes, the best system I found is to be arbitrary on these issues. When I opened my website I tried to read all the messages, and it took me an entire day and then I realised that if I wanted to answer all these people it would take all my time. The best way would be to pick letters/emails at random. I try to absorb everything, I am like a sponge.

JArtiste Jean Michel, are you planning to perform in the USA someday?

JMJ Yes, though I am more interested in the East rather than the West these days. So far I have been involved with the Middle East; this afternoon I have been talking about specific projects in the USA and would like to do something special there.

Remixer Jean Michel, over the past few years quite a few of us have noted that your style has become more "commercialised". Rumour was this was because of pressure from your record company, whereas other people are saying you are trying to stay ahead of the crowd... How would you answer this?

JMJ If it has been more commercialised, I would congratulate my record company. I don't think that Metamorphoses is more commercialised than anything else. It doesn't fit necessarily into the regular format that the record company are expecting; it is very subjective. When you see independent labels, I love that. I am with Dreyfuss, which is in fact one of the last independent companies in France; but it is distributed by Sony in France and has a record deal with Sony Worldwide. I am one of the few artists faithful to an independent label - but as with all record labels, their dream and their fantasy is to sell their label as high as possible to as big a company as possible.

Spikey Which of your previous songs or albums gives you the greatest sense of achievement, and why?

JMJ None of them, or a very tiny percentage. It is the reason why I am continuing to try and improve myself.

Christophe Ketels What is your favourite sound?

JMJ The sound of the moon or also the cry of a fish - a goldfish particularly.

Low-ek And what about your "dream" of a concert on the moon ?

JMJ No, it is just... people keep asking me this, I think I will have to do it one day.

YaXoMoXaY Jean Michel, is it true you are planning a Metamorphoses tour? If yes, will you return to Italy or Milan?

JMJ Yes, I am returning to Milan on Monday morning, very early flight, and I am planning on doing something special in Milano or Venice.

Tim What is your favourite tune to play live?

JMJ Hey Gagarin

Tim Do you listen to your own work, and if not, what do you listen to?

JMJ No, I try to avoid that. What I am listening to at the moment is the Nine Inch Nails.

polaris Dear Mr Jarre, half of the Jarre@clic.net list hates Robert Miles - what do you think about his music and dream/trance in general?? It was influenced also by your music... is it possible it could influence you now?

JMJ I have no opinion. Might have been a big hit with Children, it was just a dream music hit. I am not feeling necessarily close to this, but what has been positive about this whole thing, it has created activity in Italy and given the opportunity to countries outside to have international exposure.

Milan Csaplar How does it feel to play for such masses of people? What are your first thoughts before such concerts?

JMJ I don't think about all this - it makes you feel humble and tiny.

Sim Can you tell us more about the Jarre special to be aired on BBC2 next week?

JMJ It is not going to be very interesting because it is not going to happen next week. You should watch out for it next month!

miltex Jean Michel, I've heard some plans to collaborate with Danish hi-fi manufacturer Bang & Olufsen. What is this all about?

JMJ Yes I am in contact with Bang & Olufsen for various things. I really like the company; being always ahead of its time, being the only company with high tech hi-fi. I think aesthetics are crucially lacking nowadays. Hi-fi's are usually so ugly-looking, dull, grey, but Bang & Olufsen try to concentrate on both the quality of the equipment and the aesthetic side.

New_Age_dude Will you finally team up with Vangelis some day?

JMJ No particular plan, I like Vangelis a lot, he is working in Greece and it would be nice to collaborate with him in Greece.

J. Manuel Martinez-Mattar As a big fan of yours in Mexico, I was very disappointed when local authorities didn't let you perform here in the Teotihuacan Pyramids. Now that we all saw your performance at the best New Year's Eve concert in Egypt, in the name of all your fans in Latin America, I ask you to consider scheduling a live concert here. Do you still want to come back?

JMJ Absolutely, this project in the Aztec Pyramids, was a great project. Unfortunately it didn't happen for technical reasons on the Mexico side, but I would love to try to do it again.

Elin Nylander What are your hopes and dreams for the future? Is there anything you haven't done yet but wish to do?

JMJ To be able to give people hopes and dreams for the future through my work and music.