Nicolas Demuth, known by his stage name Parra for Cuva (born in 1991 in

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...

) is a German

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

producer and DJ.

Career

Life and early career

Nicolas Demuth grew up in a small town close to

in the state of

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. When he was 11 years old he learned to play the piano and became interested in pieces of the French composer

Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...

. After his piano teacher changed, he started to be engaged with

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

improvisations, with a focus on the jazz piano.Featured Artist – Parra For Cuva…
Blog.rormix.com. Retrieved, 14 January 2015 In 2009, Demuth started to print out midi piano notes with the help of a simple program, and then mixed his first piano pieces with hip hop elements.Anne
''Parra for Cuva im Interview: “Es geht hauptsächlich darum, Gefühle durch die Musik auszudrücken”.''
Replaymag.de, 21 Juni 2013. Retrieved, 14 January 2015 After his A-levels Demuth moved to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

to study audio design. He first called himself "Natur-Klang" before he decided to choose the stage name "Parra for Cuva". His stage name originates in various Spanish words and means ''between the world / for / Cuva''.

2013–2014

Nicolas Demuth and

Anna Naklab Annika Klose (born 14 July 1993 in Göttingen), known professionally as Anna Naklab, is a German singer-songwriter. Naklab grew up in the town of Northeim in the German state of Lower Saxony near Göttingen, Germany. Singers and bands that i ...

grew up in the same town as neighbors and have been friends ever since their youth. Under the stage name ''Nianband'' they published different songs and had some local performances. Demuth took over the piano part whereas Naklab played the guitar and sang. The Nianband's musical focus was based on calm and rather relaxed compositions. In early 2013, Demuth and Naklab published "Fading Nights" on the French label Delicieuse Musique Records, followed by a joint production of "Something Near" on the label Well Done Music! from Berlin. In September 2013, the cover (remix) single "

Wicked Games "Wicked Games" is the debut single by Canadian singer the Weeknd. It was recorded at Site Sound Studios and mixed at Liberty Studios in Toronto. Producers Doc McKinney and Illangelo co-wrote the song and performed all instrumentation. Originall ...

" was released by Demuth and featured Naklab. The song is a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

Chris Isaak Christopher Joseph Isaak (born June 26, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional actor. He is widely known for his breakthrough hit and signature song "Wicked Game", as well as other songs such as "Blue Hotel", "Baby D ...

's "

Wicked Game "Wicked Game" is a song by American rock musician Chris Isaak, released from his third album, '' Heart Shaped World'' (1989). Despite being released as a single in July 1989, it did not become a hit until it was featured in the 1990 David Lynch ...

" and was published on the label

Spinnin' Records Spinnin' Records is a Dutch electronic music record label founded in 1999 by Eelko van Kooten and Roger de Graaf. In September 2017, Warner Music Group acquired Spinnin' Records for over $100 million. Background Van Kooten is the son of former ...

. "Wicked Games" was released on

Beatport Beatport is an American electronic music-oriented online music store owned by LiveStyle. The company is based in Denver, Los Angeles, and Berlin. Beatport is oriented primarily towards DJs, selling full songs as well as resources that can be used ...

, a U.S. based electronica website. A mainstream release in France in October 2013 was followed by a German release in February 2014. The song charted at number 6 in the United Kingdom. The song also charted in France, Belgium, Netherlands and other European nations. This popularity led to Demuth's international breakthrough. In November 2013, the instrumental single "Luhya" was released on the label Delicieuse Musique Records. November 2013 also brought the Aérotique and Parra for Cuva release of the EP (short track album) titled ''Unique'', with four tracks, on the label Sinnmusik. In February 2014, Demuth along with artist Egokind and Jona Mayr released an EP titled ''First Chapter'', on the label Lenient Tales. Soon after, Demuth, Ascii Code and Viken Arman released the EP titled ''Veiled in Blue'', on the label Traum/TRAUMV179.

2015: ''Majouré''

In January 2015, Nicolas Demuths debut album ''Majouré'' (French for "superior force") was released on the label Lenient Tales Recordings. It contained twelve songs, with iTunes offering a bonus song. The song "Devi" featured hip hop artist Nieve; the title track "Majouré" featured Casey K; and the song "Champa" features Monsoonsiren. All songs feature distinct foundations of electronic music mixed with a variety of musical influences of other genres.

2016: ''Darwîś''

After finishing up their semester at university, Nicolas and Jonas – or Parra for Cuva & Senoy – packed their vehicle full of gear for a roadtrip to Spain where they recorded a new album. Inspired by the natural beauty of Spain's Mediterranean coast, the two were able to make enough content for an album. The duo spent the rest of the year back in Germany, mixing and arranging the pieces they had created. During the recording of the title song, the percussion track was accidentally left to loop, resulting in a trance-inducing meditative sound that gave them the idea for the title.

2017: ''Mood in C''

In 2017, Parra for Cuva released the EP ''Mood in C''. Following the album ''Darwīš'' together with Senoy on Project Mooncircle, the release is a collection of songs that were created in and around the previous year. The title song "Mood in C" was composed after the Ethiopian pentatonic scale that is deeply intertwined with both the spirituality of the people but also the war-torn and deeply trenched history of the country. Furthermore, it combines guitar effects with synths and all sounds were recorded analog with the help of effects units. The song "Unfinished Colours" together with "Others" is the first collaboration of a future joint project of the two friends. All percussion was either recorded on journeys and travels or at home with everyday objects to give the EP a unique sound.

2018: ''Paspatou''

Parra for Cuva released ''Paspatou'', in 2018.

2020: Parra for Cuva and Trashlagoon

Parra For Cuva and Trashlagoon collaborated on "Hotel Moonlight". It was buoyed by groovy and emotional textures that further reveal themselves with each subsequent listen.

2021: ''Juno''

His new album ''Juno'' was released on 16 July 2021, with the single "Ordel" that already accumulated 2Mio+ streams. For the remix of "Her Entrance" Parra for Cuva teamed up with Innellea who was named best newcomer by ''Groove Magazine'' in 2017 and took the scene by storm with releases on Innervisions and a recent Cercle set at Jaisalmer Fort. Innellea´s interpretation of "Her Entrance" was shaped by his desire for extensive and intense club nights.

Music style

The songs produced by Nicolas Demuth combine elements of

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

and pop music, piano compositions and

downtempo Downtempo (or downbeat) is a broad label for electronic music that features an atmospheric sound and slower beats than would typically be found in dance music. Closely related to ambient music but with greater emphasis on rhythm, the style may ...

. Many of his electronic pieces find their origin in piano music through sketches or with the help of complete solo pieces. Artists such as

Ludovico Einaudi Ludovico Maria Enrico Einaudi OMRI (; born 23 November 1955) is an Italian pianist and composer. Trained at the Conservatorio Verdi in Milan, Einaudi began his career as a classical composer, later incorporating other styles and genres such as ...

and

Bonobo The bonobo (; ''Pan paniscus''), also historically called the pygmy chimpanzee and less often the dwarf chimpanzee or gracile chimpanzee, is an endangered great ape and one of the two species making up the genus '' Pan,'' the other being the comm ...

are Demuth's sources of inspiration next to many others. His set ''Plains of Ostara'' starts with Einaudis' piece ''Andare''. Next to the piano many other instruments such as a

kalimba Mbira ( ) are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal tines, played by holding the instrument in the hands and pl ...

, steeldrums, carillons, guitars and

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

s can be found in Demuth's productions.

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Singles

Notes

References

External links

Parra for Cuva on Twitter

Parra for Cuva on Facebook

Parra for Cuva Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parra for Cuva Living people 1991 births Musicians from Göttingen German DJs German electronic musicians Electronic dance music DJs