Future Music Spain, a lead publication about electronic music & instruments, has offered an interesting proposal to Fairlight Jarre’s highly talented musicians: It’s about to create a conceptual album based in a theme agreed by both the musicians and Future Music Spain. Together with the album, it will be published a brief interview with every musician who takes part in this project. Without doubt this is a great oportunity to expose widely the talent of our great musicians.

You can follow the evolution of this project in our FORUM or reading the following threads: (Link1) (Link2)

Some of the music the musicians involved in the Spanish Jarre scene can be heard in the Fairlight Jarre Music Station, which can be heard clicking in this logo:

Related Links:
Fairlight Jarre Music Station
Future Music Spain

Update 29/10/2008: Our friends of Future Music Spain have published a reference in their website about this interesting project that you can read clicking here. You can also read an online english translation.

Like most of you know, Jean Michel Jarre and Brian May are planning to make a concert in Canary Islands to celebrate the International Year of Astronomy, in 2009.

This collaboration started in the backstage of the Jean Michel Jarre concert in London at the Royal Albert Hall, when Dr. Brian May (from Queen) and his friend Dr. Garik Israelian went to greet Jarre after the show. Then May and Israelian, the real organizer of the project, proposed Jarre to collaborate in this concert-project.

Jarre, delighted with this idea, visited many times Roque de los Muchachos Observatory, the place where is intended to stage the event, and keeps permanent contact with both Dr. May and Dr. Israelian.

The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Institute of Astrophisics of Canary Islands) published a press note about this event, and some newspapers talked about the concert, so it seems that the negotiations are going in the right way.

In the past few days, Fairlight Jarre were in contact with some members of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Dr. Israelian among them, and in his own words “we still have to wait until we know if we have enough money to make the concert happen. If the politicians and some enterprises put money in, we can say that this concert will be the greatest ever staged in this planet. It will be one of the strongest events in the history of Spain (and in the history of the world). I’ve been working in this from 2001/2002 and it has been a lot of work. We have to wait for some weeks to see what happen with all this”.

Fairlight Jarre will try to keep you informed about all issues of this eagerly awaited event. We would like to thank to the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias and, specially, to Dr. Garik Israelian and D. Luis Martínez Sáez for their attention and kindness.

Although some fans say, Francis Dreyfus Music said us that the Houston DVD is not on sale and is not available on digital or real stores. This is the press note that FDM has sent to Fairlight Jarre:

Thank you for your enquiry about the “Rendez-Vous Houston DVD”. We had to hold this release for contractual reasons but do hope this issue will soon be solved.

However what you are saying about some fans in the UK who have received the DVD before cancellation is impossible because not one single copy of the DVD was shipped out of our office in Paris to our foreign distributors at the time the DVD release was put on hold. I don’t even have one myself, the stock is locked up.

Amazon.co.uk confirmed to us in writing that they had not sold any DVD to any customer who had ordered it, for the simple reason that they had no stock.

So either the UK fans are lying, or the DVD they have purchased is a pirate recording. As you can imagine, a pirate recording is a very serious copyright infringement and its quality is certainly very poor.

Saludos de Francia.

Danièle Feuillerat
Publishing Manager
FRANCIS DREYFUS MUSIC

Thankyou very much to Víctor “ZZERO” Maqueda.

Do you remember the man behind the drums in the mitical Jean Michel Jarre’s concert at Paris-La Defense, 14th July 1990? He was Christophe Deschamps, and he kindly gave to Fairlight Jarre this interview:

Fairlight Jarre (FJ): For the people who doesn’t know you, could you please introduce yourself??

Christophe Deschamps (CD): I’m a french studio drummer working mainly in Paris.

FJ: How did your collaboration with Jarre started for the Waiting for Cousteau album and for the La Defense concert??

CD: I don’t remember exactly, but i think he new me through communs friends and we had a meeting.

FJ: Could you tell us some memories about the recording of the album Waiting For Cousteau?? Did exists any songs that finally were not included in the final version of the album??

CD: Not that i know. I remember the session, that was in “Studio Guillaume Tell” and we just recorded Drums and we tried many groove to find the correct one, i remember a very dry sound, just like i like.

FJ: Is Jarre a good boss?? Did you know Jarre’s music before your collaboration with him??

CD: I knew a bit, just like everybody. Yes Jean Michel is a good boss, very directive, and very charming too. He knows what he wants.

FJ: Tell us about your memories of the spectacular La Defense concert…

CD: That was of course amazing, specially the rehursules, during the day, in the middle of the buildings where skypers, i don’t know how to say, where skryping the buildings whith their hands putiing white screens for the lightshow of Jarre’s show. and all the cars driving the tunnel under the stages where slowing down because they were watching the lights on the building, it became à huge traffic at night, that was very exiting. The catering was amazing too. 500 hundred people eating. I could eat at the same table that the skyskypers, my heroes.

FJ: We have the impression, watching the concert, that there were a lot of pre-recorded music in it, with a few exceptions, like the drums, bass and few synth parts… It’s all this true??

CD: It was a lot of security, but i couldn’t tell what was in the soundsystem.

FJ: Where and how did you rehearsed the songs played in this concert??

CD: In a “not glamour at all” room in the tunnel under the stage.

FJ: The tracklist of La Defense concert was really awesome, but there were any songs planned to be played in that concert but finally didn’t appeared in the tracklist??

CD: I couldn’t tell today. Too far away from today.

FJ: About the cancelled concert in México in 1991, were you in the list of musicians to play at that concert?? If yes, do you remember the songs to be played in that concert??

CD: Yes i was and i was very desapointed. The idea was so exiting. No, i don’t remember the tracks list.

FJ: Why you stopped your collaboration with Jarre after La Defense concert??

CD: I don’t remember, i think because he didn’t called me again.

FJ: Do you follow Jarre’s work actually?? If yes, what is your opinion about it??

CD: I don’t follow him but i know what he does because one of my best friend Claude Samard direct the band on tour with him today.

FJ: Have you got any favourite Jarre’s song?? And Jarre’s favourite album??

CD: The one with the sound of Ping Pong game.

FJ: Could you tell us about your current projects??

CD: I made a band with some DJ’s and i play live drums when dj’s play electro music, house, tek, soul and i love it. It’s called Hi-hatZ and I have a rock band too Miss Ils.

FJ: Have you ever played in Spain??

CD: Never. and I’m a Alonso fan.

Thankyou very much for your time and your kindness, Christophe.

Official Webpage: www.christophedeschamps.com

Hi-HatZ: www.myspace.com/hihatz

Miss Ils: www.myspace.com/missils

(Click image to enter in the Musical Station)

On Fairlight Jarre we have inaugurated a new musical station called Fjarre Music Station where you can listen many compositions and versions created by the great musicians of our Forum. We hope that you will enjoy with their music.

Jean Michel Jarre has entered in partnership with myfab.com introducing a series of audio & vision electronic devices created after ideas of Jarre himself. Now they have released two products, but they will release a few more soon:

- AeroSystem: Is a stereo hi-fi/iPod device with a superb and powerful stereo and bass sounds, with an unique, brilliant visual design that fits on everyplace.

- AeroFrame: Is an electronic photo frame. It can be unattached of its base to carry it everywhere. You can see and share photos everywhere using the USB port or a memory card.

A web page has been created to see all products, order them, contacting with the suppliers, etc…

Aero Productions announced recently that the release of the DVD version of the Houston concert was going to be canceled.

However sources close to Fairlight Jarre have just informed that some people have received Houston DVD from Amazon as you can see in the following pics…

… so there’s a contradiction between what Aero Productions said and reality. This is the WTF of the week: What’s really happening????

Pics: JeromeTV

From Space of Freedom Forum we have been informed that the Rendez Vous Houston DVD which were going to be edited by Dreyfus Music has been officially cancelled. We are waiting for more news concerning this issue, so we will keep you informed.

Update (14/10/2008): Aero Productions, via www.jarreuk.com, have issed this statement concerning the cancellation of the Houston DVD:

“We realise how much you wer all looking forward 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 Francis Dreyfus Music 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 an sound are far from optimum, wher no Bonus nor Extras are proposed, wiht artwork taht 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 Francis Dreyfus Music, 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 continuous support and understanding, especially in this case.

AERO PRODUCTIONS“

Francis Dreyfus Music will be releasing a reedition on DVD of the concert that Jean Michel Jarre performed in Houston on April 5th 1986. We say that is a “reedition” because it will be the same edition of the video of this concert that Dreyfus released a few years ago on VHS through the Polygram label, and with the same running time (almost 53 minutes). The difference is that the DVD will feature subtitles in English, German, French and Spanish. This DVD will be released in UK on October 13th 2008 and in the rest of Europe on November 10 2008.

The DVD is now avaliable for pre-order from these stores: Amazon UK, Amazon France and HMV.

There are some rumours about a possible edition on DVD of The Concerts in China on November 2008, but we don’t know if this information is true or not yet.

While all the Jean Michel Jarre fans still have fresh in mind the successful first stage of the “Oxygene in Concert” tour that Jean Michel Jarre performed in some european countries earlier this year, now we know the confirmed dates for the second stage of this tour:

- 05/11/2008 Rome, Italy. Gran Teatro

- 06/11/2008 Milan, Italy. Teatro Arcimboldi

- 07/11/2008 Ljubjlana, Slovenia. Hala Tivoli 2

- 08/11/2008 Belgrade, Serbia. Belgrade Arena

- 10/11/2008 Bucharest, Romania. Sala Polivalenta

- 12/11/2008 Budapest, Hungary. Papp Laslzlo Sports Arena

- 13/11/2008 Prague, Czech Republic. O2 Arena

- 17/11/2008 Moscow, Russia. Kremlin Palace

- 19/11/2008 St. Petesburg, Russia. BKZ Oktyabrsky

- 21/11/2008 Moscow, Russia. Kremlin Palace

- 23/11/2008 Riga, Latvia. Arena Riga

- 25/11/2008 Vilnius, Lithuania. Siemens Arena

- 28/11/2008 Bratislava, Slovakia. Sport Hall Pasienky

- 29/11/2008 Kosice, Slovakia. Steel Arena

- 01/12/2008 Warsaw, Poland. Torwar