Você Tem Capacidade De Competir Com Esta Demo? Video

Can you compete with this killer demo?

This Ryan Tedder song was rumored to have been shortlisted for Rihanna. I am posting it here, so you can hear the quality of the “demos” that Ryan produces before he pitches his songs to A&R’s and artists. Again, your demos have to be at this level, if you want to be competitive with the best songwriters and record producers out there.A&R’s source songs from established songwriters and record producers first, so if you want to stand a chance, your demos have to be as good as their. Master-quality, radio-ready recordings that leave absolutely nothing to the imagination. Are you ready to join the club?

3 Etapas Para Evitar Que Sua Campanha No Kickstarter Fracasse

3 Steps To Avoiding The Mid-campaign Slump In Your Band’s Kickstarter

First of all thanks to Ian Anderson for this article.

The mid-campaign slump:  the middle 10′ish days of your Kickstarter campaign where just about nobody pledges.  Most Kickstarter projects have one.

Think about the agony of checking your project eight and a half times a day for 10 days only to see no new backers.

It isn’t much fun.

Many projects will eventually reach their goal but I think we can all agree that it would be better to forgo the mid-campaign slump.

Defeat The Mid-Campaign Slump In 3 Easy Steps

Like we just agreed, nobody likes or wants to go through a mid-campaign slump.

So how do you avoid it?

I had the privilege of running across Carl Banks and his Kickstarter project. His project started off with a nice bang and then maintained a consistent, positive trajectory for the rest of the project.

(Kickstarter Graph curtesy of CanHeKick.it)

I have viewed many (many, many, many, many) graphs that don’t look this good, so I was impressed when I saw Carl’s. I reached out to him asking about how he avoided the slump. What he said boils down to 3 simple steps.

Step 1: Be Personal

The fuel that makes a crowdfunding project run is BY FAR connections.

A connection is a link that brings outside parties into your project; often this is through knowing you or through identifying with the emotion of your project.

My initial mailing list only consisted of 20+ people, but those were people I targeted because I knew there was a high probability of them backing the project.

I felt that people’s email inbox was a little more sacred than social media so I limited the amount of email spam and opted instead to focus on social media.

And, by far, the majority of support came via social media.  There was a direct correlation between posting to facebook and obtaining new backers.

I spent the first week posting the page in general and then when I felt things slowing down a little bit I moved to sending personal messages to people… - Carl Banks

The place to start the process is the simple step of being personal with people.

DO NOT assume that email blasts and/or social media posts will suffice. These are appropriate parts of your strategy to reach people but should not be the only parts of your strategy.

Step 2: Invite People Into The Project

Whether or not a connection already exists, everybody wants to be “in” on something. It is always fun to be part of the Kool Kid Klub.

It is helpful in crowdfunding to remind people how their support helps in a very direct and real way.  People want to feel like they are in on something new and fresh, so using language that makes things feel very personal helps a lot in obtaining their support. - Carl Banks

Step 3: Ask for Support and Create Sense of Urgency

Once you have reached out personally and invited someone into your project, the only step left is tovery explicitly ask for support now.

…asking for their support as well as emphasizing how helpful sharing the project would be [is helpful].

Also, I noticed that when I was posting to Facebook putting a specific number of backers as a goal always seemed to help.  For example posting ‘I only need three more backers to hit 50, it could be you…’ would tend to lead to five or six new backers. - Carl Banks

We refer to this as the Call To Action: let the viewer know what to do, how to do it and when to do it.

This is an absolutely critical step in turning viewers into backers.

If you have done your job of being personal well then when you make your Call To Action asking people to pledge (or at least share), they will want to obligate themselves to you. It is part of the human condition. Saying NO to those we have a connection to is very difficult.

And notice that Carl stoked the fire by creating a sense of urgency. Many people will procrastinate unless you give them a reason not to. By asking for a certain number of backers or to hit a certain amount in a certain time, you give some incentive for the viewer to become a backer sooner.

The Takeaway

In order to avoid the mid-campaign slump, you can take 3 simple steps in the middle of your campaign:

1. Be personal
2. Invite people into the project
3. Ask for support and create a sense of urgency

These are best practices for your Kickstarter regardless of what point you are at in your project but are absolutely essential if you want to avoid the mid-campaign slump.

Evite Algumas Armadilhas Durante A Sua Produção

A Few Music Production Pitfalls to Avoid

first of all thanks to Mark Marshallfor this article.

Often when a song gets produced, it tends to be built from the center out. People regularly have a basic form and the strength tends to be between the first chorus and second chorus.

This is natural — when you’re creating a song, you tend to come up with the body before the arms and legs. How often do you write an intro or outro before a verse?

For most, almost never. In most cases, the intro and outro come last. As an add on. Even bridges come late for some.

The Ditch

One production pitfall to watch out for is making sure the intros and outros don’t feel neglected. If you build too much from the center, the song is going to feel unbalanced. It wont build dynamically. You’ll paint yourself into a corner.

It’s not so important to initially compose this way. But, by the time you reach production, it’s important to consider the whole journey.

Flatline

I wrote an article a while back about song dynamics. Songs rarely stay at the same dynamic for their entirety. They have curves, twists and turns.

One of the obvious considerations in building a song’s production is the drums.

Early on, you have to ask yourself some important arrangement questions: When do the drums come in? How strong do they come in? Where is the high point of the song? Should the drums build dynamics in volume or by using different cymbals (ride vs. hi-hat)?

Barry White That Shit

The intro of a song really sets the mood for whats to come. You have to entice. A filler intro is likely going to be like looking at the heated prepared foods at 7-11. Sure doesn’t make me hungry.

Ask yourself: “Does this intro make me want to pour hot wax on my chest while nibbling on chocolate covered strawberries and sipping champagne in the Alps?” If the answer is no, I think you know what to do.

The same can be said for the outro. It’s like your last words on a date. You want to say something like “I really enjoyed our time together and hope to get to know you better”. Not, “Yo, I was hopin’ we would like bump uglies or something tonight after I dropped two Jacksons on dinner”.

Final words matter. Don’t make your intros and outros latchkey kids.

Saggy in the Middle

When James Brown says, “Take it to the Bridge”, you know something exciting is going to happen. Not every song needs a bridge. Don’t put one in unless your song needs one. But, if it needs one, make something special happen. Don’t disappoint James!

How do you know if your song needs a bridge? One way to assess this is if your song feels redundant. A bridge is very helpful in cleansing the palette. It creates enough change to build excitement upon return to a familiar section.

If your song doesn’t feel that way, there is a good chance you don’t need one. Don’t put one in just because songs have bridges.

And if you do put one in, don’t make it a throw away bridge. I’ve had to be on bridge patrol a few times. You know, I have to ask for paperwork, reason for visiting, duration of visit, etc.

I hate wearing that hat and having to get all official. To prevent this, put time into the bridge if your song meets the outlined requirements. Word is there is a shortage on permits. So, do your homework.

Sour Apple

Ok, I guess I’m going to come clean and admit a pet peeve of mine is throwaway bridges, where the melody isn’t memorable and you know they just went to the IV chord because they can.

It’s a real Debbie Downer for me. I mean, I’m not the appointed president of the song writing approval association, so my words don’t have that much clout. But, for the love of humanity (we need it now), be kind to my ears!

What Are Ya Some Kinda Jerk?

Yeah, yeah, I know, I’m being a real smart ass. If that was a profession, I might actually make some money. I’m trying to bring up a good point though. Every section of a song should be held in the same regard. Each section needs the same level of composition.

This is gonna sound real corny and new age (get ready for it), but you have to listen to what your song wants. Damn, that felt weird even saying that.

I am kind of serious though. Arrangements create tension and release. You have to have both in a song. Each section is a lego block connected to the next.

Try to always look at your arrangements from start to finish. Get an idea of when you need tension and for how long. You also don’t always need to resolve the tension. It depends on the story of the song. Both in writing content and in the production.

Paste This

One last comment about building arrangements. Be careful of cutting and pasting parts. In fact, avoid it! Nothing flatlines a song like a rhythm guitar part played at the same velocity for its entirety.

The rhythm should build just like the drums (don’t cut and paste them either). They are intertwined with their dynamics. It’s for this reason that I rarely cut and paste anything. I’d rather have different performances for each section. Even if the variations are subtle.

This will really help your arrangements and linking together different sections with dynamics.

Os Altos E Baixos De Se Tocar Ao Vivo

The Upsides & Downsides Of Playing Live

First of all thanks to Steve Banik for this article.

Whether you’re new to playing live or you’re a gig veteran, you’re not immune to some of the common pitfalls of playing live. In this post I’ll describe how to avoid some of the downsides of live engagements. I have assembled groups and booked gigs, but I have primarily played keyboards as a sideman in the 25 or so bands I’ve been a member of since 1994.

I have played regularly in Indianapolis, Nashville, Chicago and Madison WI, and I currently play regularly with 2 jazz groups in the Madison area.

In part 1  I discussed my experience with leading a band, booking shows, promoting, working with live sound engineers, getting paid and writing contracts. In part two, I’ll take a closer look at money (again), co-writing, guest players, substitute players and travel/accommodations.

With that, here are some key concepts followed by some comments based on my experience:

Are you really a cowriter?

Watch out for the sneaky tricks some artists might try to pull off. In Nashville I toured with a major label artist that used the band to help cowrite a song but never gave any of the band members co-writing credit. That song was released on the artist’s next album and the band received no publishing or mechanical royalties whatsoever.

To make matters worse, after the song was written it was recorded on tour at an arena sound check without the band’s knowledge, and that recording was used as the demo and the guide track for the session musicians cutting the album track. In this case the touring band musicians were shorted in a number of ways – no recording session pay, no co-writing credit, no publishing/mechanicals – and they had no idea this was happening until after it happened.

Who’s Playing this Gig Anyway?

Some band leaders like to bring other players up to the stage to play a song or two on your instrument. I have found that some band members don’t have a problem with this while others do. For me, it depends on the situation. I don’t have a problem with it unless I feel like the gig is turning into a jam session. After all, I spent a lot of time practicing my instrument, learning the tunes, rehearsing, and transporting my gear to and from rehearsals and the gig.

I didn’t do all of that so that someone I don’t know could take the stage and play my instrument. On the other hand, as the full time band member you’re getting paid for the gig whereas that guest player likely isn’t paid at all. If you don’t welcome guest players and you find yourself in this situation, try to turn it into a positive experience.

Enjoy the break and take the opportunity to walk around the room and listen to the band. Concentrate on how your instrument sounds through your equipment.

When you return to the stage, make the appropriate adjustments to your setup – adjust the volume on your amp, adjust EQ, etc. If you’re a keyboard player, try using a different piano/Rhodes/Wurlitzer/B3 patch.

Know Your Schedule Keep Your Calendar Accurate

I once loaded all my gear into a restaurant for a gig that wasn’t scheduled. It was a weekly gig, but I showed up to the restaurant on one of the rare weeks we didn’t play. It was my fault for not keeping my calendar accurate. It’s not the end of the world by any means, but it’s quite a pain to travel and load all of your gear in and out for nothing.

Call for Help When You Need It

Get to know other players in your city that play the same instrument as you. Watch them play a gig, and if you think they’d be a good sub for you, keep in touch with that person. Also get to know other musicians that don’t play the same instrument as you so that you can help a bandmate find a sub. You never know when you’ll need to call up a sub, but don’t call on a sub to take a lower paying gig from you so that you can take a higher paying gig on that same date.

I have seen players do this and it’s not a good thing to do for reasons that should be obvious.

Beware of the Empty Tip Jar

I’m on the fence with the idea of a band putting out a tip jar. In Nashville, tips are sometimes your only source of money, but in other cities tips reflect a smaller portion of the pay. Like any tipping profession, sometimes the tip jar remains empty at the end of the night while other times you end up with far more money than you expected. You definitely don’t want to rely on tips. Focus your negotiations on base pay.

Do I Need a Contract?

Contracts are important but are not absolutely necessary for casual dates. If you don’t have a contract and the venue screws over your band, the word spreads. The venue’s music reputation is at stake. There are plenty of free online legal resources if you have questions about contracts you’d like to draft or if you’re reviewing a contract that has been presented to you. If your questions aren’t answered by reputable sites online, contact a lawyer.

First Class Cabin

If you’re doing a fly date and you drive your personal car to the airport, ask the artist’s management to cover your parking fees. If you’re an independent contractor and you already track these types of charges in your business expenses for tax purposes, you might not want to ask for this, but I have found that it’s nice to have one less receipt to track in your bookkeeping.

For more information about entertainment tax services, I recommend taking a look at www.musiciantax.com. For pro gigs, air and hotel accommodations can be all over the map. I once flew first class both directions from Nashville to NYC for a Good Morning America gig.

We stayed at the W in Manhattan, not cheap digs by any means. The next week we were back on Southwest airplanes and staying at budget hotels. Make the best of these top flight travel arrangements because it won’t last.

Crazy Booking Agents

A couple of years ago I was in a jazz trio that played a private dinner event for a group of neurosurgeons at a major university. The booking agent had asked us to play for 3 hours. This was certainly not a problem, as we had routinely played gigs this long and sometimes longer. However, in this case the band collectively made a basic, common assumption that did not jive with the booking agent. After playing for one hour, we decided to take our first 10 minute break.

As we ended the song and set our instruments down, the agent angrily approached us and told us the music must not stop at any point in the three hours and that we were to pick up our instruments and keep playing. At first we thought she was joking, but she wasn’t.

Needless to say, we were dumbfounded. How could this agent not understand the concept of taking a break to use the restroom or get a drink of water? It didn’t matter, she was adamant that we didn’t stop playing at any time during the three hours.

To keep her happy, two members of the group played one song together while the third band member took a break. We repeated the same break process for the other two players. The takeaway is that things aren’t always what they seem.

You don’t need to discuss every tiny detail of each gig with the agent, but if we would have spent some time speaking with her before the gig we might have realized what she expected from us, or at the very least we would have realized that we were dealing with someone that had obviously never booked a musical group before.

The lesson learned was that we had to find a way to simply deal with the situation on the fly and continue the gig in a professional manner and laugh about it later.

What Assuming Makes out of You and Me

I was once asked to sub for the keyboard player on a string of west coast dates for a well known country artist on a major label. I agreed to do it because I wasn’t on tour at the time, this was a high profile artist and I like doing west coast dates because the weather is usually great. I knew the band’s regular keyboard player well – we had previously toured together and we had also subbed for each other in the past.

I told him I could do the gig, so he asked me to contact the bandleader to make travel arrangements and to get the artist’s CD so that I could learn the tunes. I contacted the bandleader (who was also someone I had known from previous tours) and he was happy to hear that the regular keyboard player had chosen me for the dates.

The bandleader said I could purchase the CD and send him the receipt for reimbursement. I purchased the CD and immediately started working on the tracks he identified, spending hours learning the keyboard parts as written.Here’s where I made a mistake – I got the CD and started working on the tracks before the bandleader and I talked specifics about travel arrangements.

With regard to payment, I already knew my pay for that run would be the same as the regular keyboard player’s pay. After several days passed and many hours were spent working on the keyboard parts, I decided to contact the bandleader (two days before the first gig) to find out when and where the bus was leaving for the first date.

He wrote back and said that he decided to use another keyboard playerfor the dates. Needless to say, I was quite surprised and was not happy to hear this. The guy he used was a friend of his who was out of work and really needed the job…as if I didn’t need the job.

The bandleader and I had agreed that I would do the dates, my word is my bond and I assumed his word was his bond as well. I had budgeted for the significant amount of pay from these dates because I knew the bandleader and I thought I could trust him.

That’s a lesson I’ll never forget: you can get burned at any time. Letting it roll off your shoulders is a must. That won’t happen overnight but you have to learn how to get over it and move on.

I told some close friends this story and they couldn’t believe it because they would have done the exact same thing that I had done. I later found out the bandleader had some serious issues with recreational drug use while on tour and that he had gone through rehab, sobered up and went on to tour with bigger acts. However at the end of the day, he still screwed me over and it was a hard lesson learned.

He is a phenomenal player of his instrument as well, one of the best I have ever toured with. Again, the moral of the story is “you live and you learn” and the only thing you can do is learn from it and move on. If you don’t, you’ll wind up angry and full of resent.

Closing Thoughts

Live performances are full of ups and downs. Take the good with the bad. Some gigs pay very well and others don’t. If you know what you’re worth, you can decide for yourself if you want to take a gig for “exposure” or if money is your primary motivator. Just keep in mind that people have died from exposure. I have played a range of venues from the corner dive bar through the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The high profile gigs were a result of touring with major label artists.

Before I moved to Nashville, I could only dream of playing the Grand Ole Opry. Now I’m not exactly sure how many times I played it. Many years back when I played drums in a rock band, we often took dive bar gigs because we wanted to take every opportunity to play. It’s a good idea to create goals for yourself.

Do you want to form your own group or are you content joining a group that has already formed? What type of music do you want to play, and is there a local market for it? If not, are you willing to create one? How much are you willing to travel? The answers to these questions will become evident as you gain experience performing live.

I hope this helps you understand some of the upsides and downsides of playing live. Feel free to contact me with any questions you might have. Thanks again to Greg Savage for posting this and for continuing to provide valuable information for composers seeking to work professionally in the music business.

CBS Radio E Intercom Se Fundem Criando Uma Gigante De 244 Estações

CBS Radio, Intercom to Merge, Creating Industry Giant With 244 Stations

CBS Corp. and radio station owner Entercom Communications said Thursday that they have entered an agreement, by which Entercom will combine with CBS Radio in a tax-free merger.

The transaction will create a sector giant with a nationwide footprint of 244 stations, including 23 of the top 25 U.S. markets, as well as digital capabilities and a growing events platform.

CBS Radio owns 117 radio stations in 26 markets, including all of the top 10 radio markets as ranked by Nielsen Audio. Philadelphia-based Entercom is the fourth-largest radio company in the U.S. with 127 stations in 27 top markets. The combined company’s pro forma revenue on a 12-months basis is approximately $1.7 billion, which would make it the second-largest radio station owner in the U.S., the firms said. 

The companies said the deal will create a company with a market capitalization of over $2 billion, "a strong balance sheet, significant free cash flow generation and an attractive dividend, positioned to drive shareholder value."

CBS Radio was previously scheduled to be spun off in an IPO. CBS shareholders will own 72 percent of the new combined company, with Entercom shareholders owning the rest after the transaction, which will be tax-free for CBS and its shareholders.

"This agreement is great for shareholders and achieves our previously stated objectives by separating our radio business in the best possible way,” said Leslie Moonves, chairman and CEO of CBS Corp. "Entercom is a superbly run company, and together with CBS Radio’s powerful brands and remarkable people, we are creating an organization that will be even better positioned to succeed in this rapidly evolving media landscape.”

Andre Fernandez will continue as president and CEO of CBS Radio through the closing of the transaction, which is expected during the second half of the year.

David J. Field, president and CEO of Entercom, who will lead the combined company, said: "These two great companies, with their impressive histories, complementary assets, and premier content and brands, are a perfect strategic and cultural fit, enabling us to deliver local connection on a national scale and drive accelerated growth. We look forward to welcoming our talented new colleagues at CBS Radio, and we have the utmost respect for their significant contributions to the industry.”

Added Field: "Radio reaches more Americans than any other medium, and offers advertisers outstanding ROI and local activation. This transformational transaction creates scale-driven efficiencies and opportunities to compete more effectively with other media to better serve our listeners and our advertisers. The combination of a compelling strategic fit, an excellent balance sheet, and robust free cash flow generation, position us to create significant shareholder value for our investors.”

As Confissões De Quem Vota No GRAMMY

True Confessions of a Grammy Voter: An Industry Insider Spills the Truth on Beyonce & Adele's Chances

A leading songwriter and longtime Recording Academy member checks the boxes for Drake (won’t win) and Chance (a lock), and says it’s the kids vs. the alte kakers at the academy.

Who’s On First?
If you’re Neil Portnow and Ken Ehrlich, you open the show with Beyoncé. You open with Beyoncé, but you bring out Chance the Rapper during her performance. You stack the deck. It’s very “F— you, Trump.” And isn’t that what everything will be about? The speeches will be chock-full of that. And everyone will be “overrated” in his tweets the next day.

Business As Usual
As this business continues to evolve and crumble, it’s funny that it still feels so incredibly corporate at the top of the Grammys. The big four album of the year nominations are certainly deserving, but they all feel industry-generated. And the fifth “prestige” nom, Sturgill Simpson, feels like the beneficiary of a big label push.

Free Lunch
It’s hard for me to understand who the Grammy voter really is because I don’t know if most of them have aged out... died, that is. At the end of the day, the Grammys are a TV show. They realize that they need to pull in that young audience and nominate popular artists. I picture representatives from The Recording Academy standing outside studios, signing up a 21-year-old kid who has his first 3 percent of a Rihanna C-side. But the older guard doesn’t want to give up their free annual lunch at the academy.

Album Of The Year
I voted for Drake, but Lemonade will win. Drake’s the most influential artist in music today. And I’m rewarding a billion Spotify plays, or whatever the amount is. But Lemonade is a political record, which feels dangerously appropriate right now. Adele’s her biggest competition. And while I think [Adele’s] stuff is beautifully constructed and the vocals are impeccable, it’s harmless, you know? And everyone knows 25 isn’t as memorable as 21.

Record Of The Year
I voted for [Twenty One Pilots’] “Stressed Out,” but it’s not going to overtake “Hello.” Here’s the thing with “Hello” -- and I know it’s sacrilege not to praise this one -- but it felt like the fourth single from the previous record! I didn’t get it! I still don’t get it! What I loved about both “Rolling in the Deep” and “Rumour Has It” were the tempos. Leading with a tempo record is more exciting. “Hello” isn’t exciting.

Bey Vs. Riri
I’m ADHD. Actual diagnosis. With that in mind, I love that “Formation” is so skittery and jumpy, because that’s how my brain works. It has the best 45 seconds ever at the top of the song. Lyrically, it’s great. That said, I just don’t think it’s melodically memorable enough for song of the year. Beyoncé is an incredible artist. But song-wise, she’s a bit overrated. She’s so iconic at this point that it’s become less about songs. I’ll take Rihanna’s singles over Beyoncé’s every day.

The Nader Vote
Chance is a lock. My personal favorite is Anderson Paak, but I don’t think he has a shot. I voted for him. It was like voting for Ralph Nader. Chance is an absolute movement. And it’s an indie record, which is even crazier.

Parting Thought
If the Hollywood Vampires don’t perform, then the night is a success.

Com Indicação Ao GRAMMY Jean-Michel Jarre - Pai Da Musica Eletrônica - Prepara Turnê Nos EU

With Grammy Nomination Electronic Music Godfather Jean-Michel Jarre Preps First North American Tour

CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 13: Jean-Michel Jarre attends the 'I, Daniel Blake' premiere during the 69th annual Cannes Film Festival at the Palais des Festivals on May 13, 2016 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)

Now four decades into his storied career French artist Jean-Michel Jarre is considered the godfather of electronic music.  In all that time though, he has never toured North America, until this year. He’ll kick off his first ever North American tour May 9 in Toronto and end it May 27 in Los Angeles.

The tour was planned last year, but it got a tremendous boost when Jarre received a Grammy nomination in December for Best Dance Album for Electronica 1: The Time Machine, a series of collaborations he did with artists who, to him, influenced electronic music. The range of artists on that album is wide, from the Who’s Pete Townshend and Moby to Air, M83 and noted horror film director John Carpenter.

For Jarre, the nomination means more awareness for the tour. “I think that’s a sign that some people in the U.S. and younger generation also, having discovered electronic music through EDM, it’s creating a link with what electronic music is all about,” he says. “I would say that rock and roll is born in America and invaded the world. And electronic music was born in Europe and invaded the world. So there is a true link between electronic music and Europe and it’s nice to create a link with the Grammy award and the academy.”

In this day and age where collaborations are often pre-recorded between artists who never meet, instead sending files over to each other, Jarre purposely went the old-fashioned route, traveling around the world to work in person with his collaborators on both Electronica 1: The Time Machine and its sequel, Electronica 2: The Heart Of Noise. The result is a pair of albums more than four years on the making. To have his ambition and hard work rewarded with a Grammy nomination was so much sweeter because of the effort he put in.

“I’m really happy about the nomination obviously because this project is something I had in mind for quite a while and gathering around these people who have been such an inspiration to me and gathering people who have come from different generations and lead directly and indirectly to electronic music,” he says. “So I’m really happy also for all the people involved in the project.”

The news of the nomination came just as he was wrapping up the European leg of the tour. It capped off one of the most prolific years of his four decades in music. “Actually it was a very good surprise to me; it’s been a very busy, positive year for me because I released, in one year, more or less three albums, Electronica 1, Electronica 2 and Oxygene 3, and also I am very happy about the beginning of my world tour in Europe,” he says. “It’s a very special project, I’m going to bring it to the U.S. in May and it’s a mixing of the classics Oxygene, Equinox and my classics with the new Electronica albums and quite exciting type of 3D graphics. It’s something quite new.”

When Jarre and I spoke last year he discussed the idea of recreating the Electronica albums live with several of the guests on stage. He now admits that given the scope of the albums and the fact it took four years to put the albums together trying to bring everyone together on stage might be too ambitious, even for him.

“At the beginning my idea was to involve some collaborators and I realized it would become a real headache to try to make a tour with collaborators day by day,” he says. “Then I started to think about the tour with two and a half hours of music, it was quite easy for me to try to find a way to do a tour without necessarily the physical presence of the collaborators, but more, from time to time, having some collaborators joining us as guests depending on the availability.”

In addition, he has since released the third and, what he sees now, as the final chapter in his Oxygene series. So that will also be a big part of his first ever North American tour. He says the fortieth anniversary of the first Oxygene album last year spurred him to write new music.

“Last year when the record company said it was going to be the fortieth anniversary of Oxygene this year and we should think about doing a nice box, I said, ‘Wait a minute, it could be quite interesting to use this anniversary as a deadline to create the kind of final chapter of Oxygene,’” he says.

It all means that when Jarre finally hits North America this may, fans who have four decades to see him in the States and Canada will be greeted with a wealth of material.