大象传媒

Donald Macleod talks to record-breaking composer Max Richter about his iconic work, SLEEP.

German-born British musician Max Richter is one of the most influential composers of his generation. A streaming sensation with over 3 billion listens, he blends classical and electronic elements in his music and is just as at home on 6Music as on Radio 3. He鈥檚 a producer, pianist and serial collaborator whose trailblazing work ranges from ballets and orchestral works to major Hollywood scores and solo albums. At his studio in rural Oxfordshire, Donald sits down with Max to talk about his musical life, from making synthesisers in his bedroom, to Grammy nominations, writing the world鈥檚 longest lullaby and tackling some of society鈥檚 biggest questions through the medium of music. Across the week, we dig into Max鈥檚 eclectic back catalogue, and journey through one of his most popular works, his reinterpretation of Vivaldi鈥檚 Four Seasons.

Today, we journey into the dark and into other worlds, as Max talks about his obsession with space and night-time. We hear about one of his most ambitious projects to date, his record-breaking nocturnal opus, the 8.5-hour work SLEEP. Described as 鈥渁n exploration of music, consciousness and human connectivity鈥�. Max tells us about the experience of touring the work, and why he wants to puts the listener at the centre of his compositions 鈥� awake or not.

Sleep (excerpt)
Max Richter, piano
American Contemporary Music Ensemble

Erbarme Dich (from Ad Astra)
Air Lyndhurst Orchestra
Max Richter, celeste
Tom Foster, conductor

Journey (CP1919)
Aurora Orchestra
Nicholas Collon, conductor

Autumn (Recomposed by Max Richter: Vivaldi, The Four Seasons)
Daniel Hope, violin
Raphael Alpermann, harpsichord
Konzerthaus Kammerorchester Berlin
Andre de Ridder, conductor

Dream 3 (in the midst of my life)
Max Richter, piano, organ, synthesisers, electronics
Ben Russell, violin
Clarice Jensen, cello
American Contemporary Music Ensemble

Path 5 (delta)
Grace Davidson, soprano
Max Richter, piano, organ, synthesisers, electronics
American Contemporary Music Ensemble

Produced by Amelia Parker for 大象传媒 Audio Cardiff

(Photo credit: Mike Terry)