To Moscow and beyond

I am in the plane on my way to Moscow for a russian week. Lots of things to do.. Very curious to see how the city has changed since last time I was there.
Conspirators...

Fashion victim

Technophile

(posted on a mobile phone)

From Budapest to Prague

Budapest was the biggest venue of the tour and also the one I worried the most about, for good reasons.. We had a great audience standing behind a seated area in front of the stage, creating a difficult way to communicate with the fans.. For the audience further away, we had to use video screens on the sides for close ups for the first time and Thomas tried his best to get decent shots in spite of a light not designed for cameras. We also had a notable delay between the sound and the video, a bit disturbing for the sync on keyboards or percussions.

The previous day, walking in the streets of Budapest, in a small pedestrian area, I stumbled upon a hungarian musician playing a quite extraordinary instrument looking like a flying saucer. I spent some time listening to the quite unusual music he was doing and I asked him to join our band on stage the following day to play along on Variation 1. The result in the concert was probably the best moment of the show. His name is Norbert Pavel and his instrument is named a "Hang".

Prague yesterday night was probably the best gig of the last 2 weeks. Even though the venue was again very big, with around 10 000 people, the audience was amazing and came down to the front of the stage. The sound and the screens were really good this time, I had no problems with the instruments and we delivered a great energy. Playing in the Czech Republic, having been so well received in the much darker times of Tchekoslovakia, means a lot to me. After the gig everybody was quite excited which is good to end the first part of the tour. Next step Moscow on monday.

Thank you all, I have been really moved by all your messages in the blog..

Passing the border at 2AM in the space bus

There's something grandiose about roads

Alone at the deserted toll plaza

Our backup in case power fails on stage

Using the force in Prague Budapest (sorry)

(posted on a mobile phone)

Bus lightyear

On the way to Budapest in the tour bus, I am writing these few lines while everybody is sleeping. I love travelling in the bus. It's comfortable and fun with the musicians, Chris, Louis, Pierre..etc.

These days you can go around the world through the web, yet travelling like this, reminds you of real distance and how life is in Europe outside cities, a mix of beauty and desolation..

Bucharest was warm and sunny, charming people, warm audience, we played well and I broke my moog drum hitting it too strong..
I am going to sleep now. Good night.
(posted on a mobile phone)

On the road again

Dear all,

Here I am again on the blog. I have been pretty busy since my last message. After the success of the concerts last spring, we started the second leg of the tour because of the demand in different countries. I remember that Oxygene received such a warm feedback from all Eastern Europe. During the Soviet Union times this music was considered somehow as a symbol of freedom... evasion... sounds travelling beyond borders... This is why it was meaningful for me to bring this new Oxygene project in this part of the world.

After Roma which had the freshness of a premiere and Milano which has been really great in its fantastic Arcimboldi Theater, with a great audience (I love Milano!), we started to play in Eastern Europe. Because of the demand, the "problem" is that a concert which I designed for an intimate italian type of theater has to be performed in much bigger arenas. Ljubljiana, Slovenia in a basket-ball arena went very well and the energy was there even if I had a serious problem with the digisequencer before the show. The audience was realy warm and great.

Yesterday night we played in Belgrade in an even bigger arena (10 000 persons). We had to add sound and extra screens which I don't really like for this "analog" project. The concert because of its size and being a saturday night was crazy and "rock'n roll", as the audience was really hot.

This tour is a unique experience. Yesterday for instance, the concert started with a solo sequence of mine very minimalist in a total silence and ended with 10 000 people standing and dancing. It is really moving for me to feel such respect and understanding for a music sometimes quite experimental apart from the more popular songs.

Thanks to everybody!

And now we are in the bus on the road to Bucharest, a 12 hours trip on a rather bumpy road. I am the only one apparently to have slept rather well..

(posted on a mobile phone)

Me, trying to get in the bus.



The Belgrade arena

Tour manager Chris Rowley and fellow veteran Theremin





Patrick and Glenn during sound check







Francis and Dominique having a private lunch in Belgrade

Photos from Milano

Photos from Rome

New products!

It's time to unveil "JM JARRE TECHNOLOGIES" something JMJ has been working on secretly for several years now:
AeroSystem and AeroFrame.

AeroSystem is a great-looking hi-fi system/ iPod speaker base, with a strikingly original all-glass design, and an amazing precise, warm, powerful sound. Since it stands alone, it can fit anywhere in a room, and it projects a spectacular stereo soundscape through its two sound projectors.

AeroFrame is an elegant digital picture frame with a twist: it has a rechargeable battery, so you can lift it from its base to show pictures to friends on the sofa.

Aerosystem and Aeroframe are the first products of a brand new range of unique audio/visual concepts, affordable and of very high quality. The website is in french, as the initial launch is only in France at the moment. The entire range will be available in other territories in the near future. Apologies to the rest of you, please be patient.

Jean Michel Jarre will soon come back to you all to tell you more.

Message from Jean Michel Jarre management : RE DVD Houston

WE REALISE HOW MUCH YOU WERE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO THE HOUSTON CONCERT BEING AVAILABLE ON DVD, HOWEVER THE UPCOMING RELEASE BY FRANCIS DREYFUS MUSIC HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

DUE TO THE EVIDENT POOR QUALITY OF THE FILM, WHICH HAS NOT BEEN RESTORED OR UPGRADED TO TODAY'S DIGITAL STANDARDS, NOR AT ALL TO A LEVEL OF A PRODUCT THAT JEAN MICHEL JARRE COULD BE ARTISTICALLY SATISFIED WITH, THE DVD, AS F.D.M. PLANNED TO RELEASE IT, WOULD HAVE DONE MORE HARM THAN JUSTICE TO WHAT REMAINS A MILESTONE EVENT.

A MERE DVD COPY OF THE VHS FORMAT, WHERE THE ORIGINAL IMAGES AND SOUND ARE FAR FROM OPTIMUM, WHERE NO BONUS NOR EXTRAS ARE PROPOSED, WITH ARTWORK THAT LACKED PUNCH...WOULD HAVE LED TO A LESS THAN MEDIOCRE PRODUCT SOLD AT NORMAL PRICE.

MOREOVER, IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERLINE THAT JEAN MICHEL JARRE WAS NOT CONSULTED OR INFORMED OF THE RELEASE BY F.D.M., THIS IN ITSELF IS SUFFICIENT TO OPPOSE IT.

AS YOU KNOW, JEAN MICHEL JARRE TAKES TOO MUCH PRIDE IN HIS WORK AND CARE IN HIS CREATION, TO ALLOW IT, AND YOU, TO BE EXPLOITED, WITHOUT THE NECESSARY INVESTMENT OF OFFERING THE BEST STANDARD POSSIBLE.

WE THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR YOUR CONTINOUS SUPPORT AND UNDERSTANDING, ESPECIALLY IN THIS CASE.

AERO PRODUCTIONS

Interview

While Jean Michel is pretty busy, here is a link to an interview he gave at the paris music show. The interviewer is from LAG, who crafted all the custom-made instruments of Jean Michel's early concerts. They ran into each other, and since he was conducting artist interviews, they hit it off and improvised, which explains why the journalist has no prepared list of questions. Of course it's in french, but Nico kindly provided an english translation in the comments for this post.
Video Here

Photos from Beijing

We're starting to get a decent photobase on Fotonauts (the wikipedia of photos), and soon you will all be able to contribute, once they open up their system. Here are a few more behind-the-scenes photos from Beijing, in 2004.

JMJ is on Fotonauts!

While JMJ rests a bit, we started uploading photos to Fotonauts. Soon you'll be able to add your own pictures, rate, comment and organize them collectively. In the meantime, some pictures from Marigny.

Fwd: new and def : blog 04-08-08

Some news before going on vacation for a few days .

In July, I went back to the Canary Islands . The Concert project is progressing well. I'll tell you more about this project soon.

I spent some time with Daniel Troberg from Elektron, exploring the machinedrum. Few days ago, I have got a very nice surprise from Daniel and all the Elektron team.

I received as a present for my birthday (in advance ..!), a special version of the monomachine ,specially prepared for me with a Diploma from Elektron for my contribution in electronic music world wide.

It is an extraordinary instrument and such a generous mark of appreciation coming from a brand, which has already marked our times in the synthesizers world.

It was like Christmas and I spent the whole week-end playing with it..

I also spent some time with the new Analog factory experience from Arturia. It is a good instrument to work in the "analog way" with your lap top. We are supposed to meet with Frederic Brun ( the founder of Arturia) beginning of september.

I also found in Amsterdam through JC, 2 Eminents 310 and a very rare Eminent 510 (same as the 310 but with longer keyboards). Patrick is restoring them at the Studio and it is going to be very useful for the next tour.

I am also currently working on a new tour concept for 2009.

Last thursday, I had lunch with Mark Teissier du Cros, one of the founder of Record Makers originally with Air,a very good french record label (Sebastien Tellier, Turzi...). We had some good time and I felt that we are on the same wave length on a lot of things. We said that we should meet with Sebastien sometime in September. He also told me about the next Turzi project..

I watched Wall-E, the movie, which I really enjoyed. The animation and the whole concept are great. The sound design is brilliant and certainly makes fifty percent of the emotional aspect of the characters..

I also watched "Let's get lost" the Bruce Weber movie on Chet Baker. I really liked it, even if after all I am not sure about what Bruce Weber wants to say.

But I really liked it because Chet Baker belongs to my personal recollections.

During the last world-war, my mom used to be a great active member in the french Resistance against the nazis.She went into a deportation camp, she escaped, she is been caught 3 times by the Gestapo...and once in jail she met Mimi Ricard, another resistant who became a great friend of her.

After the war, Mimi Ricard opened " Le Chat qui pêche" (the fishing cat), which became
the most influential jazz-club in Paris,welcoming Don Cherry, Archie Shepp, John Coltrane, Chet Baker...

Then, when I was a child, I used to go with my mother to visit Mimi at the club during week-ends. During the afternoon I was hanging around in the bar listening to these great musicians, ignoring who they were at the time.

Amongst them, my favourite was Chet Baker and I remember that for my 10th birthday, Chet, sat me on the upright piano and played in front of me, so close, that I can still feel the blow of his trumpet on my chest, writing these lines.

This is why the unique sound of Chet's trumpet is part of the tones of my life...

Have a good time in august..