Emmer surprises with neo-classical album
The album is called Maison Melody, as a tribute to his home, or more precisely his study, where he writes and composes. This is done entirely in voluntary seclusion, according to Emmer (62), son of former news presenter Fred Emmer, who died in December.
“I actually started working on Maison Melody here last year,” he says. “Although it is interesting that I intuitively felt at the time that I needed to start working on this. What you need to know is that the mandatory staying at home of the past few months hasn't fundamentally changed my life. I was already used to being alone; I don't socialize much anyway, and I always skip the neighbourhood barbecue. Work-wise, it is currently no different for me than usual; I just keep composing. And I am very aware that that is a privileged position in this crisis. But it did produce the situation I had wanted to create for a long time: one in which all external stimuli are gone and you really have to make something of it all by yourself. And if you don't go outside, there is only one place you can go, and that is inside, to yourself. That is how this started.”
Well, not entirely, it turns out when we press further. For how does a man like him, who in the past has already thrown himself into diverse genres such as pop, soul, and spoken word, end up with neo-classical music? “Then I refer first of all to a quote by Miles Davis: ‘Whoever wants to keep creating must keep changing.’ Miles, but also artists like Elvis Costello and Sufjan Stevens, are just as capricious as I am when it comes to genres. Very different from a band like Bon Jovi or someone like Bruce Springsteen, who stay within their own lines. Record companies and their marketing departments don’t find it convenient that you can’t recognise my music by its genre, but I see it this way: I’m in school and going through all the classes one by one,” he describes. “Although, of course, there have already been people who really hear me in Maison Melody as well. Purist classicists who point out that there are jazz chords in it.
” With a grin: “I like to do genres some violence.” Continuing his story: “I made the move to neo-classical music after a concert by the Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannson at Paradiso. He made Hollywood-style soundtracks, but what struck me was that a music nerd just like me was performing in the pop circuit with nothing more than a piano and strings. I also noticed the positive response he received, particularly from young people. That someone like him drew full houses with such evocative, instrumental music… I recognised myself in that.” Somewhat sternly, he continues: “In my view, the term neo-classical doesn't even cover it anymore, considering everything that is lumped under it. Take someone like Ludovico Einaudi; he represents the lazy, the simple side of the genre. It just meanders along with almost childlike repetitions… Personally, I connect more with composers who draw inspiration from Debussy and Ravel, like Federico Mompou with his music of silence. Just as I once found punk too simple, but new wave very challenging.”
That challenge is important to him. “That is what it’s all about. To begin with, it is inherent in the instrumentation with just piano, strings, and a computer. That limits me, whereas I am used to stacking a lot in my music. Less is more was the aim with Maison Melody. Baring it all, with only the bare essentials. Composing is a craft. It is about getting to the core with the help of craftsmanship.”
Location also played a role this time. “What you see on the cover is my study, with nothing more than a grand piano and a computer. Colleagues like Gustav Mahler and Eric Satie used to isolate themselves in such a place to unwind. Where I used to work, a junkie would occasionally come in with an axe, wondering what kind of noise I was making. Where I live now, that doesn't happen anymore.
Although the project therefore fits very well with these times of crisis, there is only one thing that is truly ‘corona’ about it, he concludes: “I have labeled this as a free project.” In other words: I completely agree with the American musician Moby that it doesn't feel right right now to ask for money for something from a position of wealth. Maison Melody can therefore be requested from me free of charge or played on streaming platforms like Soundcloud. A different gesture for a change compared to a collaborative song, isn't it?
[De Telegraaf - Bart Wijlaars]
Listen to Maison Melody on your favourite platform here
Or buy the digital version of Maison Melody here