Even more than with a band, the creative work of a solo artist is the direct and unadulterated reflection of recent experiences, a mirror of the soul, an undiluted reaction to their current life situation. This formula has always applied to German electronic music artist, composer and producer Klaus Schulze, and even if the astonishing number of albums recorded and released by him is virtually impossible to pinpoint (experts estimate the number of releases featuring Schulze to be at least 200, but more probably 500), his latest offering Silhouettes is no less special for the 70-year-old.
The four pieces on the album were created between summer and autumn 2017 following an extended period which was – due to health problems – very quiet and for this reason very meditative at times. Schulze: “The result automatically was a phase of reflection, of retrospection, of pure contemplation. In the wake of your 70th birthday you naturally find yourself looking back at the past – so the result is a reorientation, a renewed awareness of what is really important.” Schulze describes the music on Silhouettes as a “reduction to the essential things” and has consciously worked only very sparingly with solos and vocal elements. He explains: “No great distractions, nothing to force your attention in a certain direction, no major effects or gimmicks, no frills or dominant rhythms. It was important to me to paint the pictures in the depth of the space, the sonic fields of tension and atmosphere.”
Sonic images that inspire with their meditative ambience, their compositional elegance, their gentle advance into expanses and depths. “Although that’s not something you consciously decide to do – it just happens if the music wants it to happen and you listen to where the journey wants to take you,” Schulze describes his basic creative philosophy. “The result may appear to be unspe....... more
Even more than with a band, the creative work of a solo artist is the direct and unadulterated reflection of recent experiences, a mirror of the soul, an undiluted reaction to their current life situation. This formula has always applied to German electronic music artist, composer and producer Klaus Schulze, and even if the astonishing number of albums recorded and released by him is virtually impossible to pinpoint (experts estimate the number of releases featuring Schulze to be at least 200, but more probably 500), his latest offering Silhouettes is no less special for the 70-year-old.
The four pieces on the album were created between summer and autumn 2017 following an extended period which was – due to health problems – very quiet and for this reason very meditative at times. Schulze: “The result automatically was a phase of reflection, of retrospection, of pure contemplation. In the wake of your 70th birthday you naturally find yourself looking back at the past – so the result is a reorientation, a renewed awareness of what is really important.” Schulze describes the music on Silhouettes as a “reduction to the essential things” and has consciously worked only very sparingly with solos and vocal elements. He explains: “No great distractions, nothing to force your attention in a certain direction, no major effects or gimmicks, no frills or dominant rhythms. It was important to me to paint the pictures in the depth of the space, the sonic fields of tension and atmosphere.”
Sonic images that inspire with their meditative ambience, their compositional elegance, their gentle advance into expanses and depths. “Although that’s not something you consciously decide to do – it just happens if the music wants it to happen and you listen to where the journey wants to take you,” Schulze describes his basic creative philosophy. “The result may appear to be unspe....... more