Christoph Berg 'Field Rotation' Interview

Nov

2009

Articles | Interviews

Written by Maja Habajec

Field Rotation was founded in 2008 by the electronic music composer and producer Christoph Berg in Kiel, northern Germany. Experimenting with electronic and classical elements, this project combines floating soundscapes with electroacoustic colours to create minimalistic soundtracks renouncing of visualisation but interacting with the listener's emotions and feelings.

For the beginning, would you please introduce yourself? Tell us a few words about the persona behind the Field Rotation project. When did you get interested in music and how did it all start?

Well, there’s not that much to tell about me personally. My name is Christoph Berg and I’m living and working in Kiel, northern Germany. As my parents are both musicians I think I started to be interested in music a few months before I was born – it has always been part of my life. So I started to learn classical piano and violin at the age of seven. 2006 I started to be interested in electronic music production and sound design – so I started the Field Rotation project to combine the things I have learnt so far and of course to broaden my mind.

What are your tendencies in music expression? Till now you combined electronic and classical elements and since you are a violinist and pianist, can we expect a more acoustical note in your sound in the future?
Indeed, I have planned to focus more on the acoustic way of music expression in future. Natural sounds and acoustic instruments have a wider range of frequencies, dynamics and atmosphere, so I want to tap the full potential of sound sources all around me – of course also including the piano and violin.

Your next album is going to be released during the year 2010 on Fluid Audio. On the last EP you found inspiration in lights and shadows. What is the background tale of the upcoming release? Where do you get your inspiration from in general?
My first full-length album will be released on Fluid Audio in 2010 or 2011 – it depends on the way my life will change the next months after having finished my studies at university. But I think the upcoming album won’t have a predetermined background tale, I’m trying to create a rough script that has to be filled by the listener’s emotions and feelings, maybe directed by some special add-ons we will deliver with the album. By the way, I’m admiring the work of Dan and Jess from Fluid Audio – they don’t look at me as a client but they involve me as a friend and I am really honoured by this.

Well, you asked for my inspiration in general. I think, there is no general source of inspiration. To be honest, I don’t know. I often start without any idea, just creating sounds. This is a very inspiring work – but of course I’m always influenced by my favourite musicians and composers, so I would say they are the main source of inspiration.

I’ve read you started producing music in the year 2008 and as you already got a big support of established artists in the genre, is there perhaps any collaboration on the way? Are you musically involved in any other projects?
Well, I’m not able to talk about the upcoming collaborations right now. But there will be different collaboration projects to be started during the next weeks – and I’m sure Chillbase won’t miss them.

Your track ‘Regenzeit’ appears on the Hope compilation. There is a beautiful concept behind this compilation – half of the profit goes to charity. As a musician, how do you think you can contribute to more consciousness in the society? How do you think the music can affect it in a positive way?
‘Hope’ has been a wonderful project and it has been a pleasure for me to be part of it. Donating 50% of the profits for a charity project has been the one side of the concept – the other side has been the eco-conscious disc manufacturing and printing only using recyclable substances and a CO² balanced production. A rising label starts their work with rising and established artists in a project like that: I think this has been a fantastic sign, a sign for ecological innovation concerning an established “lifestyle”-article like the CD (established for about ¼ century now). As musicians we only can work with signs like that, I think. When you’re listening to music you don’t want to be parented or educated ecologically, so musicians can only work with subtle elements. And a musician should take part in the cultural exchange – one of the most important things to affect society in a positive way.

What are the random top ten releases that you are listening to at the moment and would like to recommend some?
I don’t have a ranking or something like that. But I love the work of Jacaszek, Alva Noto, Murcof, Erik Truffaz, Bersarin Quartett, Esbjörn Svensson Trio, Dmitrij Shostakovich, John Williams, Stars of the Lid, Chihei Hatakeyama, Aus, Peter Broderick, Ryan Teague, Sigur Rós, Pink Floyd, Emerson Lake & Palmer, just to mention a few.

If there is anything else you would like to add, please do share...
I just want to thank everyone who supported me during this first year of the Field Rotation project – especially Dan and Jess from Fluid Audio and Vince (Aes Dana) from Ultimae. Thank you.

Links:

Christoph Berg

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Thanks Majah I've had the Hope compilation for a while now but haven't really heard too much of Field Rotation otherwise.

woodzee , November 07, 2009

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EP (Parallelwelten) is available free for download and can be found on his page http://www.fieldrotation.de so check it out smilies/wink.gif

MaJah , November 07, 2009

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a very nice interview. smilies/wink.gif

Nimbus , November 07, 2009

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thnks mla

if i recall corectly, you introduced me to his music right before the hope compilation was out.

MaJah , November 07, 2009

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hehe might be - i remember i heard tiefflug and fell straight on my ass. i still do from time to time... smilies/tongue.gif

Nimbus , November 07, 2009

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yeah, that was the track!

MaJah , November 07, 2009

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I looked up the translation of Tiefflug, Google said it means "Zero Altitude Flying".

iTranscendence , November 08, 2009

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yeah, it's literally 'low flight', meaning a flight on lower altitudes. it started off being used as a military term for a craft which is moving in a great nearness to the ground for a longer period of time. it referred to air crafts that fly low (up to 30 m) in order to avoid radars, but with the latest stealth technology, the meaning sort of switched. plane landings and take offs therefore aren't considered as low flight, since they don't use it for the same purpose. voila! smilies/wink.gif

christoph probably had his own idea about the name (and maybe he'll comment himself), but this is what it literally says - at least from how well i remember german... smilies/tongue.gif

i'll keep my own interpretation of it for myself though, hehe... smilies/wink.gif

Nimbus , November 08, 2009