ALWEST
AlWest, a composer/producer/engineer with a unique ability to blend traditional and modern musical styles with his hallmark spacial manipulation.
Biography
AlWest is an artist who has deliberately stayed out of mainstream music creation until now, not through want of opportunity (having been signed with Universal and played live at such places as the Montreux Jazz Festival) but rather as a deliberate policy of personal and artistic development.
AlWest began learning music at the age of six, starting with classical training on the piano and broadening his training to include the violin, singing and composition. He performed in orchestras and choirs, giving his first solo recital at the age of nine. With his own compositions beginning to emerge around this time, he soon felt that the classical arena could not provide the tools that he needed to fulfill his imagination. He therefore began to teach himself the intricacies of synthesis, sound engineering and computer technology. This culminated in his membership of the IRCAM, an advanced research institute for acoustic and electronic music in Paris, France.
Raised with a blend of cultures and also trained as a scientist, AlWest has an innate curiosity that has led him through many spheres, including the environment, energy and water in both the private and government sectors. He spends his time working deep in the countryside and researching, but also has a nomadic streak that leads him on various expeditions around the world. His incisive mind is constantly seeking new stimulation and inspiration.
So why the sudden presence? The answer to that question is not important. We can be sure that AlWest has his own motivations and, whilst his life may seem somewhat chaotic, there is undoubtedly logic and reason behind it. He has created a unique blend in his life, one of science and art, of tradition and experimentation and of instinct and discipline; an extraordinary fusion that is clearly apparent in his musical creations and productions.
Clients
Artistic commissions:
Polygram Editions: remix of Amado et Mariam "C'est la Vie".
Mercury: remix of Pills "Fun K Tronic".
Sony/Trema: remix of Enrico Macias "Le Mendiant de l'Amour".
Warner/Erato Detour: Remix of Hamid El Gnawi "Merhba".
Most Records: remix of Smadj "Fat Words".
All Other (Music): Remix of Amadou et Mariam "Poulo".
Odessa Filmes/Watoomama: Music for motion picture "Les Parasites".
Independent: remix of Rapid Fiction "Pristine18".
All Other (Music): Album of remixes of Hamid El Kasri.
Sunnyside Records: engineering of Eric Laksine "Channel Zero".
Monkey Puzzle: Engineering and sound design of work by a new artist (forthcoming).
Commercial commissions:
M6 (France): music for national news at 12h50.
M6 (France): Music for national current affairs program 13h10.
M6 (France): Generic music for television station (current project).
Canal+ (France): Music for national advertising campaign of football season.
Credit Agricole (France): Music for corporate identity for use in future advertising campaigns and in current communications.
Novaprod: Various musical commissions for advertising and television.
Past Projects
Album:
Project Pi
Completed:
2004
Style:
Concept/Fusion
Status:
Unreleased
The album is a story of observation, based around one person's perception of the darker side of human nature. This is perhaps rather evident from the titles of the songs but one should not let the surface be the last port of call. As with all AlWest creations, there is a complexity that is not immediately apparent at first glance and, in this case, the concept went so far as to offer the work of Grenville Croll, a talented mathematician working to crack a 2000 year old code.
Sample Tracks: This Beautiful World; The Lie
Album:
Untitled
Completed:
2006
Style:
Fusion Gnawa/Electro
The key to a true fusion between traditional and modern lies in making the acoustic more electronic and the electronic more organic. Add to this the complex rhythms and melodies of traditional gnawa music and you have the potential makings of an extraordinary album. This is what was asked of AlWest by the label of Hamid El Kasri (All Other) towards the beginning of 2005. This represented a singular challenge that required considerable sensitivity towards the original music.
Thus it was that AlWest started to work on the tracks, infusing traditional gnawa music with modern electronic sounds, rhythm and structure. He had been given considerable artistic licence and so permitted himself some significant innovation in the construction of some of the tracks. Elements that lay dormant sprang to life and a new fusion was born. The result is an album where the Gnawa and Western cultures form a marriage that is as surprising as it is unique.
Album:
The Light Fantastic
Completed:
1993-2004
Style:
Various
Status:
Released
One of the strengths of AlWest is his versatility as a musician and as a technician. Much of this is derived from his prior experimentations when, thanks to an intelligent approach by his colleagues, he was given free reign to explore the world of music without consideration of commercial goals. However, he was first really discovered when performing live music from the project Pitz, a project set up with his long-time friend, Eric Pierre, who had his roots in funk and jazz drumming.
Having been given licence to experiment, AlWest then moved on to create the concept album "The Light Fantastic". Never intended for sale, this album told the first part of the story of a soldier at some point in a possible far far future. It was a project of extreme imagination involving work in some extremely Spartan conditions but ultimately leading to AlWest gaining recognition with composers of both electronica and contemporary music alike.
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