richard garet l'avenir

Question and answer by David Velez with Richard Garet
04-19 2008

Following up is a series of questions I asked Richard regarding his latest release:

Q What do you feel are the biggest differences between your previous release INTRINSIC MOTION and l'avenir?
A Well, the compositions of IM were made at different periods and out of different circumstances. Basically I presented NVO various pieces for reviewing from which they made their pick. It was really great that they liked the work and offered me a solo release. There was only one track that I could not release and then I composed only one piece specifically for IM. That piece was "Ascending" and had to do with my trip to the Alaska's glaciers in August 2005. Intrinsic Motion is very important because not only was it my first solo release but it also shows different angles of my work. l'avenir was more deliberate and ambitious because I worked on the piece with the intention of having it released. So considering these aspects l'avenir as release is more orchestrated lets say than consequential. Also the duration of the work is quite significant since it is my first really long work and that was very challenging--scale is very challenging indeed.

Q What is the importance of this particular release in your process as an artist?
A This is the present--the latest thing. So it has all my attention at the moment like IM had all my attention when it came out. So the work is important because is out now and people will listen to it. I think that as an artist that connection between the work and present is what matters. To make something that you really mean and put it out there when you are supposed to -that's huge in my book. I worked on l'avenir for on and off for almost a year and even if there were days that I did not touch it I still managed to just listen to it. I wanted to hear if there was anything new that I had not heard the days before. One day it just felt right and I stopped working on it. That connection with the constant present is very valuable for me. Additionally, while I worked in l'avenir I also worked on other sound pieces, videos, and photos. So this work not only was created while other things were being made but somehow it became the base of a general landscape of things. Therefore, it influenced other things I did and other works influenced l'avenir as well. That's what happens when several things are taking shape together as a group.

Q If you have to point out what was the most important learning experience after composing and recording l'avenir what would that be?
A To be patient. A long piece like this it requires a lot of patience and trust in it as well. I mean trust in the material and in time--it is important not to rush things. I remember that when I finished it I listened to it for months without wanting to show it to anyone. When that happened I did not know if the piece was good or not, I just knew that what I heard was real and what I meant. However, listening is always first.

Q You think there are elements like places, movies, records, cities, buildings, people... that you can directly or indirectly link to the process of creating l'avenir?
A To some extent. However, I don't wake up in the morning with a cleaver idea and then just make it. For me making is like carving and finding as I go along with my day--I'm intuitive and empirical. I try to find the things that are in front of me so I try to pay attention to everything that is in front of me. That's how I discover things and they become part of my work. Also when I work it is about the work too in a concrete and autonomous manner so to speak. When I'm working I get in this very intense focused state and my mind just clears. That thing is what's in the moment--mindfulness. Reason and ideas come usually after. When I sit and listen to, for example I analyze what I have done, I start thinking what I could do to make it better. That gets me started the next day and so on. Eventually everything just takes shape. For example, the work (the sound) is that thing I hear and change but then there are the things that reveal themselves to me as well, and I always try to figure out what kind of role they play in what I'm doing and find a sense of connection and response. That's how the piece became l'avenir and Derrida's definition became part of the piece.

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I am not a big fan of qualifying adjectives or rankings, they can be too subjective and could lead to prejudgments.
All I could say is that L'Avenir is a release that deserves attention: many will find enormous inspiration on it and those wo will get to listen to it will indeed have an incredible experience.
Personally few albums have had such a strong impact on me over the past five years. Now listen and judge by yourselves.

reviewed by David Velez, 04-19 - 2008 in earlabs