One of the most trailblazing figures in world music, Giorgio Moroder, recently visited India for a live performance. ANANYA BORGOHAIN talks to him about his Oscar and Grammy-winning career and his taste in Indian music
Giorgio Moroder is arguably one of the most influential disco and electronica musicians of all time. After a hiatus from 1992-2013, he returned to spotlight in 2013 as a guest collaborator on the Grammy Award-winning Daft Punk album Random Access Memories (Album Of the Year).
Having worked with several big names in music, including: Elton John, Cher, Barbra Streisand, Janet Jackson, Freddy Mercury, Roger Daltrey, David Bowie, and so on, and with his biggest hit singles being Donna Summer’s ‘Hot Stuff’ and ‘I Feel love’, Kenny loggins’ ‘Danger Zone’, David Bowie’s ‘Putting Out the Fire’ and Blondie’s ‘Call Me’, Moroder performed
live yesterday at the Mehboob Studio at third edition of Johnnie Walker The Journey. In an interaction, he talks about how he makes music.
What are your observations about music in IndiaIJ
I liked the movie which won the Oscar (Slumdog Millionaire) where the composer won two Oscars (AR Rahman and Gulzar for Jai Ho ). I really like that kind of music.
What are your expectations from the third edition of Johnnie Walker The JourneyIJ
I love seeing people from different parts of the world react to my music — I change the set based on their reactions. My music is influenced by my surroundings and its sounds and traditions. I’m glad I’m finally making it to India for Johnnie Walker The Journey. It is going to be very exciting. I’ve played some great sets on my travels — can’t wait to feel the energy India has to offer!
You are considered to be a pioneer in the field of electronic music. How do you look at itIJ
I did what I thought would work. I experimented a lot and let’s say after 20-30 years, you get a certain name. If they call me the grandfather or godfather, that’s okay — it’s a nice feeling.
Disco today has a very retrospective aura. Do you think disco will be back as a contemporary, mainstream genre againIJ
I think it’s doing great because I remember four to five years ago you could not hear any EDM or dance music at all while now it’s almost 50 per cent EDM. The radio too is actually playing it. I am hopeful and appreciate it because I like dance music.
After all these decades of creating music, which instruments or elements are still the most crucial to youIJ
The most important factor for me while making music is the enormous amount of different sounds which nobody had used before. With the synth, you can create one sound from another and then you can create yet another one, so the number of things you can do is actually unlimited.
How do you keep experimenting with your music to avoid redundancyIJ
You just have to try to relax, sit down on the piano or guitar and just work — because nothing comes easily — it won’t come while you’re eating. The more you work the more you are ready to create.
You have been quoted as saying that you are most proud of ‘Take My Breath Away’, which won the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song in 1986IJ Could you tell us what it means to youIJ Any anecdote you might want to share with our readers from the timeIJ
The producers of the movie, Top Gun — Jerry Bruckheimer, Don Simpson — just asked if I was ready and willing to write a song for it. I watched the movie and there was one scene that I really liked. So I started to compose for that particular scene and the producers and director Tony Scott loved it and then we had to find the right singer. That’s when we asked the singers (from the Band Berlin) and they did a great job. It was a superb movie — an absolutely great love story with Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis, and I was fascinated by the way the love was portrayed and I was taken away! The movie actually took my breath away! So that’s how we came up with the title.
Why did you take such a long hiatus from musicIJ How did music change in these decadesIJ
I worked more on other projects — building a beautiful car, doing computer generated images for which I won awards, I was distracted by a lot of other stuff — but I was still listening to music, and playing a little here and there — like I played at the Olympics in Beijing in 2006. But I loved the hiatus — I loved to be away with the family, to be away and then Daft Punk came back, DJing too and now I’m back in business.
How different was working with lady Gaga from that with Britney SpearsIJ
Actually, I didn’t work with lady Gaga, beyond the fact that I just did a remix. With Britney Spears, everything is done through the Internet. She would sing a piece of a song, I would hear it, then comment and do a little remix and she would hear it, a lot of it is done over the internet or phone — and even social media! Quite different from the old way of working on music in the studio for several weeks at a time.
When do we see your collaborations with Rihanna and BeyonceIJ
I would love to see it soon, but we are in talks and nothing is happening as of now. Still waiting to see what will happen.
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