''Selbstportrait'' is the third solo album by German keyboardist
Hans-Joachim Roedelius
Hans-Joachim Roedelius (born 26 October 1934) is a German electronic musician and composer, best known as a co-founder of the influential 'kosmische' groups Cluster and Harmonia. He also performed in the ambient jazz trio Aquarello, and relea ...
, best known for his work with
Cluster
may refer to:
Science and technology Astronomy
* Cluster (spacecraft), constellation of four European Space Agency spacecraft
* Asteroid cluster, a small asteroid family
* Cluster II (spacecraft), a European Space Agency mission to study t ...
,
Harmonia
In Greek mythology, Harmonia (; grc, Ἁρμονία / harmoˈnia/, "harmony", "agreement") is the immortal goddess of harmony and concord. Her Roman counterpart is Concordia. Her Greek opposite is Eris, whose Roman counterpart is Discord ...
, and
Aquarello
Aquarello was a musical group which blended ambient music and jazz. The trio included keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, based in Austria, and two Italian musicians, multi-instrumentalist Fabio Capanni, and saxophonist Nicola Alesini. They w ...
. The title is German for "Self Portrait", a title meant to reflect the gentle, introspective nature of the
ambient
Ambient or Ambiance or Ambience may refer to:
Music and sound
* Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgrounds
* Ambient music, a genre of music that puts an emphasis on tone and atmosphere
* ''Ambient'' (album), by Moby
* ...
and
new-age music
New-age is a genre of music intended to create artistic inspiration, relaxation technique, relaxation, and optimism. It is used by listeners for yoga, massage, meditation, and reading as a method of stress management to bring about a state of ecs ...
of the album. The original
Sky Records
Sky Records was a Hamburg, Germany-based independent record label specializing in krautrock/Kosmische Musik and electronic music. Some of their releases could be classified as progressive rock or art rock, experimental music, industrial, ambient, ...
release was subtitled ''Teil 1 Sanfte Musik'', German for "Part 1, Soft Music."
''Selbstportrait'' was recorded by Roedelius at his home in Forst, in the
Weser
The Weser () is a river of Lower Saxony in north-west Germany. It begins at Hannoversch Münden through the confluence of the Werra and Fulda. It passes through the Hanseatic city of Bremen. Its mouth is further north against the ports of Bre ...
Uplands of
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
between various
Cluster
may refer to:
Science and technology Astronomy
* Cluster (spacecraft), constellation of four European Space Agency spacecraft
* Asteroid cluster, a small asteroid family
* Cluster II (spacecraft), a European Space Agency mission to study t ...
sessions from 1973 until 1977 on his
ReVox
ReVox (on-logo styling REVOX) is a brand name, registered by Studer on 27 March 1951 for Swiss audio equipment.
History
The first Studer-designed tape recorders were branded Dynavox. After the first production series of Dynavox recorders, a new m ...
A77
reel to reel
Reel-to-reel audio tape recording, also called open-reel recording, is magnetic tape audio recording in which the recording tape is spooled between reels. To prepare for use, the ''supply reel'' (or ''feed reel'') containing the tape is plac ...
.
The music actually predates the two previously released solo albums: ''
Durch Die Wüste
''Durch die Wüste'' is the first full-length solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, best known for his work with Cluster, Harmonia, and Aquarello. The title is German for "Through the Desert."
The music on ''Durch Die Wüste ...
'' and ''
Jardin Au Fou
''Jardin Au Fou'' is the second solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, best known for his work with Cluster. The title is French for "Madman's Garden".
''Jardin Au Fou'' was recorded from April through July, 1978 at Paragon St ...
''. The final mix was completed at Gorilla Studio in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
at the end of April, 1979, with the exception of "Prinzregent" which was edited in Conny's Studio (owned by
Conny Plank
Konrad "Conny" Plank (3 May 1940 – 5 December 1987) was a German record producer and musician. He is known for his innovative work as a sound engineer and producer in Germany's krautrock and kosmische music scene in the 1970s. Plank was invo ...
) in 1976.
''Selbstportrait'' was originally released by Sky Records in 1979.
Phillipe Blache, writing the review for Prog Archives, describes the album, in part: "The music in itself is another exploration in electronic, pre-ambient 'picture' music but really orientated to the most 'mainstream' side of it."
''Selbstportrait'' and seven of 11 tracks from the follow-up album ''
Selbstportrait - Vol. II'' were reissued as a single CD by Sky Records in 1996 under the title ''Selbsportrait I & II''.
It was reissued in its original form on both LP and CD by the
Bureau-B
Bureau B (sometimes quoted as ''Bureau-B'') is an independent record label, music publisher and booking agency from Hamburg, Germany, founded in 2005 by Gunther Buskies (B for Buskies) as a sister label to Tapete Records. The label releases variet ...
label on December 3, 2010.
In 2017, "Fabelwein" was featured in the film
War Machine.
Track listing
#"In Liebe Dein" - 3:43
#"Girlande" - 3:47
#"Inselmoos" - 5:40
#"Fabelwein" - 5:05
#"Prinzregent" - 5:53
#"Kamee" - 3:59
#"Herold" - 3:32
#"Halmharfe" - 3:24
#"Arcona" - 5:05
#"Staunen Im Fjord" - 3:33
#"Minne" - 2:09
Personnel
*
Hans-Joachim Roedelius
Hans-Joachim Roedelius (born 26 October 1934) is a German electronic musician and composer, best known as a co-founder of the influential 'kosmische' groups Cluster and Harmonia. He also performed in the ambient jazz trio Aquarello, and relea ...
- Producer, composer, piano, keyboards
* Ernst Josef Seibl - Mixing (final cut)
* Jürgen Kraemer - Mixing on "Prinzregent"
* Udo Klemt - Mixing on "Prinzregent"
* Martha Roedelius that catg - Photography
Notes
References
* Album liner Notes
{{Authority control
1979 albums
Hans-Joachim Roedelius albums