Metalized

THE DARK CENTURIES

Composer, pianist, artist and visionary personality within both classical and jazz, Yelena Eckemoff, released her latest album, Scenes from The Dark Ages, at the end of March. As a child, she dreamed back to a time she never experienced, and now she revisits it as an adult with decades of musical experience behind her. On the occasion, Metalized had a chat with Eckemoff about her musical background, the fascination of a 1,000-year-old time, and how she has let her childhood live on on Scenes from The Dark Ages.

Here at Metalized, we deal with a sea of ​​rock and metal bands. but now we need to move a little away from the dingy rehearsal rooms, cans and the eternal discussions about who can’t count to four. My first question to Yelena Eckemoff was therefore if she could tell us a little about her project as a whole.

• My musical journey started in the classical world, but as a teenager I became interested in rock and pop, and played in some prog rock and jazz rock bands. These new influences have left their mark on my playing and writing style, she says and continues:
• After I immigrated to the USA, I started working in my MIDI studio, among others with Kurzweil K-2000, which gave me a lot of opportunities. Most of the music I produced at that time had a touch of prog rock. With one of these projects, I paid homage to the fascination with the Middle Ages. I had as a child. and gave it the working title ‘Medieval Symphony. The album was supposed to be released in the early 2000s, but I realized. that in my solo projects there were no real drums and rich people. Many new projects came and went. and I played with a lot of musicians, many from Copenhagen actually. In the end, however, I decided to go back to my medieval project to record it with a band. I changed the songs, added some new material and gave it some jazz improvisation. It still has the prog rock feel because I invited some musicians who I trusted to realize my ideas.

A KEY PUZZLE

With my next question, I tried to lead Yelena a little more into what this album means to her personally.

• Personally, you could say. that this fairytale view of the Middle Ages represents myself as a romantic who sees the world from its best sides, she says and elaborates:
• The way I see it, an album is like a puzzle. where all the pieces have to fit together before you can see the whole picture. When you make an album, the pieces are the music itself, all the musicians, the studio, the producer, both the pre and post production periods, the album’s concept, the artwork and the promotions. It’s extremely important to me that all these components are performed as well as possible, and I think that all my records, including Scenes from the Dark Ages, represent me as a musician who is really serious about my musical position. Scenes from the Dark Ages is a daring album that merges many different genres, so also represents myself as a composer and producer who is not afraid to take chances.

THE FIRST STEPS

As she mentioned earlier, Yelena Eckemoff’s musical journey started from a young age.

• My mother was a professional pianist and teacher, so I was exposed to a lot of music from a young age. I started playing by ear when I was four, and when I turned seven, I went to a special school for musically talented children in Moscow, she explains.

It’s not just music. that played a big role in the home. Books and stories about the good old days has always held a special place in Yelena Eckemoff’s heart, even though she is well aware today that everything was not sunshine and rainbows in the Middle Ages.

• I have been surrounded by books for as long as I can remember and I grew up with stories and fairy tales. Most of them have their roots in the Middle Ages, and it has stuck and created a picture of a world I wish I was born into. In my childhood, I imagined myself in these fairy tales surrounded by castles, horse-drawn carriages, kings and princes. As I got older, I learned of course that the Middle Ages were a hard and disgusting time to live in, but in this project, I have followed my childhood point of view, which still lives on in my heart.

Since 2010, Yelena Eckemoff has released over 20 albums. It’s almost on a Buckethead level.

• Music is constantly running through my head, and as soon as an opening comes up, I write down the melodies and ideas. I have folders of handwritten music, and more is coming, so when I make music it’s not just because it makes sense to me, but also because it makes my world go round.

LEAP OUT INTO THE UNKNOWN

If we ignore the princess and half the kingdom, we are still left with a long album that, in terms of genre, is a bit distant from much of the other good music you can find in this magazine. That’s why I asked near the end of the interview how Yelena Eckemoff would encourage those who are more familiar with Mustaine than with Mozart to expand their musical horizons.

• Music is always evolving with styles. that rub off on each other. and create genre intersections that enrich the sound, and make the music more meaningful. It’s something. I feel deeply as a composer, and I think. that it requires an open mind to move towards the unknown. When I first heard Pink Floyd’s ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond’ at a school dance, I couldn’t stand the music at all. But later, after I expanded my musical horizons, I began to understand the other ways music could sound, she says. and concludes with the following words:
• I hope that those who are fans of hard rock and heavy metal will give my music a chance. It doesn’t really fit into a specific genre, but rather a mixture of many. I hope that my music can stir something in you.

Original Danish:

DE MØRKE ÅRHUNDREDER

Komponist, pianist, kunstner og visionær personlighed indenfor både klassisk og jazz, Yelena Eckemoff, udgav i slutningen af marts sit nyeste album, Scenes from The Dark Ages. Som lille drømte hun sig tilbage til en tid, hun aldrig fik oplevet. og nu genbesøger hun den som voksen med årtier af musikalsk erfaring på bagen. I anledningen fik Metalized en snak med Eckemoff om hendes musikalske baggrund, fascinationen af en 1.000 år gammel tid, og hvordan hun har ladet sin barndom leve videre på Scenes from The Dark Ages.

Af

Her på Metalized beskæftiger vi os med et hav af rock-og metalbands. men nu skal vi bevæge os lidt væk fra de snuskede øvelokaler. dåsebajeme og de evige diskussioner om. hvem der ikke kan tælle til fire. Mit første spørgsmål til Yelena Eckemoff lød derfor på. om hun ikke lige kunne fortælle lidt om hendes projekt som helhed.

• Min musikalske rejse startede i den klassiske verden, men som teenager blev jeg interesseret i rock og pop, og spillede i nogle prog rock og jazzrock bands. De her nye Tdflydelser har sat sit præg på min spille og skrivestil, fortæller hun og fortsætter:
• Efter jeg immigrerede til USA begyndte jeg at arbejde i mit MIDI studie. blandt andet med Kurzweil K-2000’eren, der gav mig en masse muligheder Størstedelen af den musik, jeg producerede dengang. havde en snert af prog rock. Jeg hyldede med ét af disse projekter den fascination af middelalderen. jeg havde som barn. og gav det arbejdstitlen ‘Medieval Symphonf. Det var meningen, at albummet skulle udkomme i starten af 2000’erne, men det gik op for mig. at der i mne soloprojekter manglede rigtige trommer og rigt•ge mennesker Mange nye projekter kom og gik. og jeg spillede med en masse musikere. mange fra København faktisk. I sidste ende besluttede jeg mig dog for at gå tilbage til mit middelalderprqekt for at indspille det med et band. Jeg ændrede på numrene. tilføjede noget nyt materiale og gav det noget jazzimprovisation. Det har stadigvæk progrock følelsen. for jeg inviterede nogle musikere. som jeg stolede på. kunne realisere mine ideer.

ET ALTAFGØRENDE PUSLESPIL

Med mit næste spørgsmål forsøgte jeg at lede Yelena lidt mere hen på, hvad det her album betyder for hende personligt.

• Personligt kan man sige. at denne her eventyrlige opfattelse af middelalderen repræsenterer mig selv som en romantiker, der ser verden fra dens bedste sider. fortæller hun og uddyber:
• Som jeg ser det. er et album ligesom et puslespil. hvor alle brikker skal passe sammen, før man kan se hele billedet. Når man laver et album, er brikkerne selve musikken, alle musikerne. studiet. produceren. både pre og postptoduction perioden. albummets koncept, artworket og promoveringe’ Det er yderst vigtigt for mig. at alle de her komponenter udføres så godt som muligt, og jeg synes. at alle mine plader, herunder Scenes from the Dark Ages. repræsenterer mg selv som en musiker, der virkelig er seriøs mit musikalske ståsted. Scenes from the Dark Ages er et vovende album. der fusionerer mange forskellige genrer. si den repræsenterer også mig selv som en kompomst og producer. der ikke er bange at tage chancer.

DE FØRSTE SKRIDT

Som hun nævnte tidligere, startede Yelena Eckemoffs musikalske rejse allerede fra bamsben af.

• Min mor var en professionel pianist og underviser, så jeg var eksponeret for en masse musik fra bamsben af. Jeg begyndte at spille efter gehør, da jeg var fire, og da jeg fyldte syv kom jeg på en specialskole for musikalsk talentfulde børn i Moskva, forklarer hun. Det er ikke kun musikken. der fyldte meget i hjemmet. Bøger og fortællinger om de gode, gamle dage. har nemlig altid holdt et særligt sted i Yelena Eckemoffs hjerte, også selvom hun i dag godt er klar over. at alting Ikke var solskin og regnbuer i middelalderen.
• Jeg har været omringet af bøger lige så længe, jeg kan huske. og jeg voksede op med historier og eventyr. De fleste af dem har rødder i middelalderen, og det har sat sig fast. og skabt et billede af en verden. jeg ville ønske. jeg var født ind i. I min barndom forestillede jeg mig i de her eventyr omringet af slotte. hestevogne. konger oq prinser. Da jeg blev ældre, lærte jeg selvfølgelig at middelalderen var en hård og modbydelvg tid at leve i. men i det her projekt har jeg fulgt mit barndomssynspunkt. som stadigvæk lever videre mit hjerte.

Siden 2010 har Yelena Eckemoff udgivet over 20 plader. Det er jo nærmest på Buckethead-niveau.

• Musik kører konstant i hovedet på mig. og så snart der lige kommer en åbenbanng, skriver jeg melodierne og ideerne ned. Jeg har mappevis af håndskrevet musik. og der kommer kun mere. så når jeg laver musik. er det ikke kun fordi. det giver mening for mig, men også fordi, det får min verden til at dreje rundt. “Når jeg laver musik, er det ikke kun fordi, det giver mening for mig, men også fordi, det får min verden til at dreje rundt.”

SPRING UD I DET UKENDTE

Hvis vi ser bort fra prinsessen og det halve kongerige. står vi alligevel tilbage med et langt album, der rent genremæssigt ligger en smule fjernt fra meget af det andet gode musik, du kan finde i dette blad. Derfor spurgte jeg næ« interviewets ende, hvordan Yelena Eckemoff ville opfordre dem. der er mere bekendte med Mustaine end med Mozart til at udvide deres musikalske horisonter.

• Musik er io altid i udvikling med stilarter. der smitter af på hinanden. og skaber genrekryds som beriger lyden, og gør musikken mere meningsfuld. Det er noget. jeg mærker dybt som komponist, og jeg tror. at det kræver et åbent stod at bevæge Sig over mod det ukendte. Da jeg hørte Pink Floyds ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond” for første gang til et skolebal, kunne jeg slet ikke Ilde musikken. men senere. efter jeg havde udvidet mine musikalske horisonter, begyndte jeg at forstå de andre måder, musik kunne lyde på, fortæller hun. og afslutter med følgende ord:
• Jeg håber at de, der er fans af hård rock og heavy metal, vil give mzn music en chance. Den passer ikke rigtigt ind i en bestemt genre, og er snarere en blanding af mange. Jeg haber, at min music kan rore noget i jer.

 “Når jeg laver musik, er det ikke kun fordi, det giver mening for mig, men også fordi, det får min verden til at dreje rundt.”

Yelena Eckemoff, komponist