Jyllands-Posten - 23. october 2001
Frontpage:
Jarre and the mills
Much evidence points to the French multiartist Jean Michel Jarre
next year are going to make a big audiovisuel show in a windmillfield in Northern
Jutland.
Page 1 of the Culture Section:
Jarre and the mills
The French multiartist Jean Michel Jarre have plans of a big
audiovisuel show in Northern Jutland
The answer is blowing in the wind
The worldfamous French sound- and lightartist, Jean Michel Jarre,
wants to give Denmark a green profile with an international show in a windmillparc
in
Northern Jutland. We have met the ecological artist in Paris.
By Jørgen Ullerup, Jyllands-Posten's korrespondent
Paris. On the other side of the table in the chic restaurant close to the
Arc of Triumph in Paris sits a frenchman who have sold 60 mio. records, and
who is worldfamous for arranging giant sound- and lightshows all over the
world from China to US and Egypt.
Now Jean Micheal Jarre have turned his eyes towards a windy
field outside of Aalborg, where the only special about it are 15 giant windmills.
They are
going to be the maincharacters in the next performance of the 52-year old
musician. The event are scheduled to two days in the beginning of September
next year, if it is possible to gather 3 mio. euro, about 22 mio. DKK, to
the project.
Why?
"I think that it is the right time to show all the values, which are typical Danish, and as you long have defended with discretion and modisty. It is time to share them with others", sounds the first part of an answer, which also draws tracks to the heros of the childhood.
"I have been fascinated by windmills, since my mother in
my childhood read me the story of Don Quixote. I have often dreamt of letting
the wind create
a musical piece, and that is also why I am so obsessed by this project".
Jean Michel Jarre offers to make windmills a logo for Denmark. He admires both Denmark and the Danes, who he have learned about through his Danish girlfriend, Elisabeth Sandager, who is directeur of B&O in France. Denmark's charisma expresses a form of spontanious charme, says Jean Michel Jarre, who seems unaffected by money and many years of fame.
"The show in Denmark must have an universal meaning and
show values as purity and respect for the environment. The message to the
whole planet will
be that these values are connected to Denmark. It is a rare opportunity. I
am ambassador of Unesco, and I have often had discussions in UN about how
to spread the message about positive values as peace and tolerance, when everybody
knows that war, violence and drugs have easier creating headlines
in the media. Therefore the target is selling the message about a clean environment
in a sexy way, with party ad poetry".
Interest
Jean Michel Jarre have already made several companies and the
government interested. Next summer Denmark takes over the chairmanship of
EU for 6 months, and the government have eye for, that the concert would make
an excellent way of creating attention to Danish heart issues. Jarre also
met
Queen Margrethe and Prins Henrik last year, and tells that they both were
very enthusiastic.
So far only 1/3 of the nessessary amount have been collected from Danish companies, among these companies not surprisingly are the windmillproducer NEG Micon. Several ministers, among these forreign minister Mogens Lykketoft, supports the project, but the State have not yet decided, if it will throw a part of the budget to the EU-chairmanship out in a field in Northern Jutland.
It is urgent with a decision, because it takes a long time to prepare the show. Muskelsvindfonden is already connected as a sort of practical pig within organisation and sales of tickets, and Danmarks Radio as a technical partner. The show is surposed to be transmitted to as many countries as possible.
"Of course 3 mio. euro is a lot compared to a traditionel
concert, but it is not much compared to what we talk about here. If a country
should buy 1½
hour of promotion TV-time to all the world, it would cost 100 times more.
So I think we can raise the money by working together with private and official
sponsors", Jean Michel Jarre hopes.
"The project is in line with our time. It gives a precise
image of the positive and special, which Denmark stands for. The image of
Denmark is purely abstract. France you know for the food, fasion the redwine,
in Holland we know the tulips and cheese, while it is harder to connect symbols
to Denmark. It is extremely interesting, that windmills can become a graphical
symbole for Denmark".
Again it hails with roses. According to Jean Michel Jarre he
himself comes from a country, which have the doubtful privilege to have the
worldrecord of
nuclear power. Denmark on the opposite belongs to the pioneers within areas
of alternative energy and design. The Danish vision rests on morale, environment
and thereby respect for life. Because if you do not have a ecological approach
to life, you must have a problem with your intelligence,
the artist thinks.
Op to 60.000 are expected to buy tickets to each of the two concerts. Jean Michel Jarre are going to write a new and original musical piece for the event. He will make use of Danmarks Radio's chorus and symphony orchestra and release all of it on record.
During the show lights- and video cannons will bombarde the 15 windmills and a row of monitors of 45 meters of height in the shape of kites, big parachutes, sails or shields with pockets, which the wind can pass through. The idea is to make the whole thing as light as possible.
Jarre wants to have Danish graphical designers and also hopes to get the movieinstruktor Lars von Trier to make a video. Further more he want to encourage the Department of Foreign affairs to encourage Danish school children for making drawings about the wind, the new energies and the future, which kan be integrated in the scenography. The target is to let the 15 windmills make the electricity to all of what is needed for sound, lights and video.
"Graphically the windmills gives a superb background. I have used my life by organising concerts, where the problem was to resist the wind. In this case I have decided to do the exact opposite", the frenchman says, who will give the wind permission to play with the monitors.
"There have been written a lot about water, but very little about the wind. It is present in the mythology, but much less than the water. When you fly with an airplane today, we are the passengers of the wind, talk in cellphones and thoudsands of soundwaves are transported through air like pollen and polution. The wind is also a mean of transportation for feelings, he says.
Brakethrough
Jean Michel Jarre got his brakethough in 1970, when he was asked
to write an electronical piece for the Opera in Paris. Internationally he
broke through
with the record Oxygene in 1976, which sold 12 mio. Since that his specialt
have become giant sound- and light shows.
"I guess I have made about 15 big performances. Each show is a little like a movieproduction and takes a year to prepare. This year I have made a show at Akropolis in Athens, by the turn of the millennium almost 2 billion TV-viewers watched my concert by the pyramids in Cairo. Earlier shows have been in China, in Houston, in my native city of Lyon with the visit of the Pope and twice in Paris in 1990 and 1998".
As one of the pioneers within electronical music Jean Michel Jarre was long viewed upon as a marginal within the music world. Therefore he is happy for the techno-wave, which have sweaped over the world dancefloors.
Electronical music
"I feel much more in wavelength today than 20 years ago.
Today many have decided to go to the core or family, and the electronical
music are heading
towards becomming an impression in itself. To me electronical music relate
to classical music as abstract art relates to figurative art. Electronical
music is a little as a chiefcook who blends in the pot to make a sauce. In
electronic music the musician have an almost sensuel relation to his instruments,
the opporsite of that impression, as many listeners have - that it is mechanical
and cold".
Therefore Jarre is all for the mix of different cultures. Like Picasso reused the African culture, Bach used Vivendi and Beatles Travinsky, the concert in Denmark wiall mix the most modern techonolgy with the past and also draw in the Northern mythology and Danish voices. Just like when Jarre with the show by the pyramids used the Egyptian singer Natasha Atlas.
"It is not going to be international, but an universal project. There is a big difference. When so many people are against the globalisation, it is because it is international - McDonalds is the lowest common denominator which can satiesfy all and none. To be universal is to find what once is special and alike for all of us. Therefore a Danish painting can mean something to a Chinese child, because it is something universal today. A play by Ibsen kan be played in Moscow or Rio, eventhough you don't understand Danish there, because it holds some universal values. Danish values is something very special with the respect of others and an extreme modern and avangardetic vision. It can be seen in Danish paitings and Danish design".
But why after all getting involved with windmills in a field
in Northern Jutland, when the world is coming to an end with terror in US
and war in
Afghanistan?
"Compared to 11. September you can say that an artistic
show in a windmillparc in Denmark is secondary. But the exact opposite is
the case. It was the same in Egypt, where I made my show after the attack
in Luxor, which destroyed turism. The show was a part of making the Egyptians
to make peace
with themselves, and to get turisme back. To talk about environment with a
show in Denmark is extremely relevant. We will show that the respect of life
have to be percepted as something more global that of anything economical
and military", Jean Michel Jarre signs off.
A big thanks to Dragonlady for the translation from danish :-)