Darren Tate Interview

1. Who is Darren Tate? Age and musical influences?

I am (unfortunately) now 40 years old. I can not really attribute my
writing to one or two producers or composers; it's a collective of music
that has sparked some emotional response that helped me get to where I
have (and that's still an ongoing process). I am however a fan of many
composers ranging from classical through to contemporary.


2. As an artist who has done many albums, where do you find
inspiration? What evolves your music?

It depends on the context. If I'm writing to film the inspiration is the
picture itself. Otherwise it just usually comes to me; either when
playing a piano, writing score or lying in bed. I do however listen to
some music and think "that's a great idea" or "that¹s a great motif /
chord progression / arrangement" etc. and that can also be inspiring. As
for the evolution I think that primarily comes from 1) trying to better
yourself 2) pushing the boundaries of technology 3) experimenting with new
technology (and investing in it) and 4) listening to the works of others
while being open minded.


3. What kind of music do you listen when not listening to club music?

It's more a case of what I don't listen to (which is usually contrived
pop). I can't stand putting on the radio and hearing "we've heard it all
before" cliched pop songs getting churned out by some half assed pop
making team looking to make a fast buck. Other than that I'm always
checking out the latest dance music, film music, classical, blues, jazz &
rock. It can all be inspirational.


4. Which artists do you look up to ?

Ones that are in essence "inventors" for their time. For composers
there's too many to mention; Beethoven, Bach, Richard Strauss,
Stravinsky, Ravel, Debussy, John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, Thomas Newman,
John Barry - the list goes on. For artists Stevie Wonder, Radiohead,
Kraftwerk, Moby, U2, Shirley Bassey, Diana Ross..

 
5. What do you think about electronic dancemusic being in the top of
the charts? Is it good or bad? Has it affected to your music?

It's good. We need electronic music to do well as it gives record labels
the confidence to invest in dance acts and producers. Otherwise we can't
make a living from making music apart from utilising production work to
get DJ gigs.


6. How do you feel about artists making digital only albums?

I'm sure given the option many wouldn't but it's usually a cost and time
thing. It's more expensive to produce a physical album and there's more
risks involved as there's the production costs which you can lose out on
if you don't make the sales. Digital has few risks; but it's less
desirable to people that enjoy getting the "whole product" (that extra
branding love that goes that bit further). But we live in a digital world
and as high street retailers close we move closer and closer to a totally
online music world.

 
7. If you had the power to do a song with any vocalist, who would it be?

I think right now probably Adele. Great voice.
I'll assume you mean living composer in which case probably .


8. What are your opinions about trance scene today? Going better or
worse?

Twelve years ago people made good and bad trance records. The same
applies today. However I'm going to go with worse and the reason is
simple. There is more focus than ever on the production being more
important than the content and there's is more similarity between records
than there used to be. Even though older records sound badly produced by
todays standards I miss the variation; the intent to create unique
records each time rather than just follow the fold. For that we now have
to look at other genres more.


9. My favorite song from you is probably DT8 projects Hold me till
the end. Put what is your favorite song from your own catalogue?

It's a tough call; I would probably say "Destination" as it contributed
to a lot of great clubbing moments in my life.


Thanks for the interview and good luck with the new album!