Role

:

Composer

Country

:

United Kingdom

Birth

:

1970 in England

 

Janek Schaefer is a British composer, sound artist, and DJ who has made significant contributions to the field of experimental music. Born in England in 1970, Schaefer grew up in a musical family and began playing the piano at a young age. He later studied music at the University of London, where he developed an interest in electronic music and sound art. Schaefer's early works were heavily influenced by the ambient and experimental music of Brian Eno, as well as the musique concrète of Pierre Schaeffer and the tape music of Karlheinz Stockhausen. In the early 1990s, he began experimenting with sound collage and found sound, using field recordings and samples to create complex and immersive sonic environments. One of Schaefer's most notable early works is "Recorded Delivery," a 1995 composition that uses a series of found tapes to create a narrative about a woman's life. The piece was created by splicing together fragments of audio from various sources, including home recordings, answering machine messages, and radio broadcasts. The result is a haunting and deeply personal portrait of the woman's life, told through the sounds of her environment. In the late 1990s, Schaefer began incorporating more live instrumentation into his work, including guitar, piano, and percussion. He also began experimenting with spatial sound, using multi-channel speaker systems to create immersive and interactive sound installations. One of Schaefer's most acclaimed works is "Lay-by Lullaby," a 2001 composition that uses a series of field recordings made along a stretch of highway in England to create a sonic portrait of the landscape. The piece was created by layering and manipulating the sounds of passing cars, birds, and other environmental sounds, creating a dreamlike and hypnotic soundscape that evokes the feeling of driving through the countryside at night. Schaefer's work has been exhibited and performed at numerous venues and festivals around the world, including the Tate Modern in London, the Venice Biennale, and the Sonar Festival in Barcelona. He has also collaborated with a wide range of artists and musicians, including Philip Jeck, Robert Hampson, and Stephan Mathieu. In recent years, Schaefer has continued to push the boundaries of experimental music, incorporating new technologies and techniques into his work. He has also become increasingly interested in the intersection of sound and architecture, creating site-specific installations that explore the acoustic properties of different spaces. One of Schaefer's most recent works is "Unfolding Honey," a 2019 composition that uses a series of field recordings made in a beehive to create a sonic portrait of the life of bees. The piece was created by layering and manipulating the sounds of buzzing bees, fluttering wings, and other hive sounds, creating a rich and immersive sonic environment that evokes the complex and fascinating world of these tiny creatures. Overall, Janek Schaefer is a pioneering figure in the world of experimental music, known for his innovative use of found sound, spatial sound, and immersive sound installations. His work has challenged and expanded our understanding of what music can be, and his influence can be heard in the work of countless artists and musicians around the world.

More....