Till 2004 Claude Samard is a key person on every Jean Michel Jarre project. Claude kindly gave this interesting interview to Fairlight Jarre.

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We are in summer time but Francis Rimbert doesn’t stop working. With the first leg of the tour with Jean Michel Jarre ended, Francis kindly offered this exclusive interview to Fairlight Jarre and www.francisrimbert.es

- Once you’ve finished the first part of the neverending In>Doors Tour with Jarre, don’t you feel tired or bored about playing the same music for 2 years?!?!? (I mean, this is an extra-large tour, and we’ve tour dates for March 2010!!)…

It’s not that much wearying to perform these tracks because most of the time the orchestration has been modified and in the other hand  various parts are attributed with constant change. We evolved alot my friends Claude, Dominique and Jean-Michel, on the concept of  LIVE performance. Trying to return to a direct approach of the music ; I.e. to use as much as possible the synthesizers of origin rather than to sample them. Even if it entails to endanger because technically speaking we should recognized that a ARP 2500 is much less safe than a FANTOM ROLAND. It is this way of thinking, this kind of philosophy which makes me feel good for each new adventure. And I am quite impatient to come back on stage in 2010 with some others “oldies” € ! I was speaking about synthesizers ! and not about people on scene ! ….. (lol)

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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