Nils Frahm (born 20 September 1982) is a German musician, composer, and record producer based in

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 ...

. He is known for combining classical and electronic music and for an unconventional approach to the piano in which he mixes a grand piano, upright piano,

Roland Juno-60 The Roland Juno-60 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the Roland Corporation between 1982 and 1984. It followed the Juno-6, an almost identical synthesizer released months earlier. The Juno synthesizers introduced Roland's digitally control ...

Rhodes piano The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, t ...

, drum machines, and

Moog Taurus The Moog Taurus is a foot-operated analog synthesizer designed and manufactured by Moog Music, originally conceived as a part of the Constellation series of synthesizers. The initial Taurus I was manufactured from 1975 to 1981; a less popular re ...

. In addition to his solo work, Frahm has released collaborations with such notable performers as

Ólafur Arnalds Ólafur Arnalds (; born 3 November 1986) is an Icelandic multi-instrumentalist and producer from Mosfellsbær, Iceland. He mixes strings and piano with loops and beats, a sound ranging from ambient/electronic to atmospheric pop. He is also the ...

, F. S. Blumm, Anne Müller and

Woodkid Yoann Lemoine (; born 16 March 1983), known professionally as Woodkid, is a French music video director, graphic designer and singer-songwriter. His most notable works include his music video direction for Katy Perry's " Teenage Dream", Taylor S ...

. With Frederic Gmeiner and Sebastian Singwald he records and performs as Nonkeen.

Biography

Frahm had an early introduction to music. His father, Klaus Frahm, was a photographer who also designed covers for

ECM Records ECM (Edition of Contemporary Music) is an independent record label founded by Karl Egger, Manfred Eicher and Manfred Scheffner in Munich in 1969. While ECM is best known for jazz music, the label has released a variety of recordings, and ECM's a ...

. He grew up near

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, where he learned the styles of the classical pianists as well as contemporary composers. At school he used mixing boards and was very interested in the quality of recorded sound. He studied classical piano for 8 years under Nahum Brodsky, the protégé of the protégé of

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

, who lived in a neighbouring village. In 2006, rather than pursue an orchestra career, Frahm moved to Berlin as a jobbing technician. Frahm's earlier solo piano works ''Wintermusik'' (2009) and ''The Bells'' (2009) gained him attention, but it was his 2011 release ''Felt'' that was met with critical acclaim. It was his first studio album on

Erased Tapes Erased Tapes Records is a London-based independent record label focusing on releasing avant-garde and experimental electronic music. History The record company was established by Robert Raths in early 2007 in London, with the release of Ryan ...

, which has released his music since. It was followed by the solo synthesizer EP ''Juno''; and by ''Screws'' (2012), recorded while Frahm was recovering from a thumb injury, and which was offered as a free download to fans on his birthday. His follow-up to ''Juno'', titled ''Juno Reworked'' (2013), featured guest reworks by

Luke Abbott Luke Abbott is an English electronic music producer from Norwich, Norfolk. He records and performs extensively under his own name, under the alias Earlham Mystics and as one third of electronic jazz group Szun Waves. His work has been describe ...

and Chris Clark. Frahm's album ''Spaces'' (2013) was made of live recordings from various venues spanning two years. In December 2013, Frahm released his first music book, ''Sheets Eins'' (Sheets One), published by Manners McDade. In 2016 the follow-up ''Sheets Zwei'' was released. In 2014, Frahm announced his new piano "

Una Corda The soft pedal (or pedal, ) is one of the standard pedals on a piano, generally placed leftmost among the pedals. On a grand piano this pedal shifts the whole action (including the keyboard) slightly to the right, so that the hammers which no ...

", specially designed and made for him by

David Klavins David Klavins is a German-Latvian piano maker. With his "Modell 370" (1987) he introduced the world's largest piano. In 2012, a digital version of the Modell 370 was published as a software instrument under the name "The Giant". Life In 1945, ...

. It weighs under 100 kg and has one string per key. (Standard pianos have from one to three strings per key.) His album ''Solo'' (2015), an improvised single take with no overdubs, was later recorded on the " Modell 370", a 370 cm high vertical piano also made by David Klavins. It was one of 19 records nominated for the IMPALA Album of the Year Award. A condensed version of Frahm's single "More" was featured in the trailer for the video game

Assassin's Creed Unity ''Assassin's Creed Unity'' is an Action-adventure game, action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It was released in November 2014 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, and in December 2020 ...

Gamescom Gamescom (stylized as gamescom) is a trade fair for video games held annually at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Since 2018, it has been organised by ''game – Verband der deutschen Games-Branche'' (English: Associa ...

. In 2015, Frahm composed his first original film score, for the German film ''

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

'', a 140-minute continuous take directed by

Sebastian Schipper Sebastian Schipper (born 8 May 1968) is a German actor and filmmaker. Life and career Sebastian Schipper studied acting at the Otto Falckenberg Schule in Munich from 1992 to 1995. He got his first film role in Sönke Wortmann's '' Little Sharks' ...

. He also collaborated with Woodkid on the critically acclaimed short film ''

ELLIS Ellis is a surname of Welsh and English origin. Retrieved 21 January 2014 An independent French origin of the surname is said to derive from the phrase fleur-de-lis. Surname A * Abe Ellis (Stargate), a fictional character in the TV series ' ...

'' directed by JR which was released in October 2015. In the same year, Frahm created "Piano Day", celebrated on the 88th day of the year (due to the standard piano's 88 keys). The event's first project was the construction, with David Klavins, of the Modell 450 piano, the successor to the Modell 370. In February 2016, Frahm released ''The Gamble'', followed by its companion release ''Oddments of the Gamble'' in August 2016. ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' described the album as "charmingly patched together and messy as it is well-paced and dynamic". The material was recorded over eight years while the artwork was produced by Frahm's father. In 2016 Frahm curated ''Possibly Colliding'' at the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhi ...

in London, featuring a weekend of music, art and films.

"I'm interested in how human beings react in certain situations, and what music does to people's emotions. How we can change people's attitudes with tones. After I've played a good concert, people leave the room happy. This is something we can give back to the world. When people feel down and like it's all going to shit, at least we can give them some music and change their attitude so people don't think it's all shit... That's my religion." — Frahm

Equipment

Frahm is known for using vintage gear on his songs and live performances. This is a list of some of his main equipment: *

Binson The Binson Echorec is an echo machine produced by Italian (Milan) company Binson founded by Dr. Bonfiglio Bini, an early manufacturer of such devices. Unlike most other analog echo machines, they used an analog magnetic drum recorder instead o ...

Echorec 2 * Dynacord VRS-23 * Electro-Harmonix #1 Echo Digital Delay Guitar Effects Pedal *

Electro-Harmonix Electro-Harmonix (also commonly referred to as EHX) is a New York City-based company that makes electronic audio processors and sells rebranded vacuum tubes. The company was founded by Mike Matthews in 1968. It is best known for a series of gu ...

XO Germanium OD Overdrive * Ernie Ball Volume Pedal *

Fender Rhodes The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, th ...

* Korg PS-3100 *

Mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which pushes a length of magnetic tape against a capstan, which pulls it across a playback head. A ...

M400 * Melodium 42b * MFB-522 (drum machine) * Moog Memorymoog * Moog MF-102 Moogerfooger Ring Modulator *

Bass Pedal Synthesizer Version 3 *

Nagra Nagra is a brand of portable audio recorders produced from 1951 in Switzerland. Beginning in 1997 a range of high-end equipment aimed at the audiophile community was introduced, and Nagra expanded the company’s product lines into new markets. ...

IV-S * Oberheim Four Voice *

Roland Juno 60 The Roland Juno-60 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the Roland Corporation between 1982 and 1984. It followed the Juno-6, an almost identical synthesizer released months earlier. The Juno synthesizers introduced Roland's digitally control ...

* Roland RE-501 Chorus Echo * Roland SH-2 *

Studer Studer is a designer and manufacturer of professional audio equipment for recording studios and broadcasters. The company was founded in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1948 by Willi Studer. It initially became known in the 1950s for its professiona ...

A80 Tape Recorder * Universal Audio 1176 Blue Strip Fet Limiter * Vermona DRM1 (drum machine)

Discography

Solo albums

*''Streichelfisch'' (2005, AtelierMusik) *''Electric Piano'' (2008, AtelierMusik) *'' The Bells'' (2009, Kning Disk,

) *''

Felt Felt is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood ...

'' (2011, Erased Tapes) *''Screws'' (2012, Erased Tapes) *'' Spaces'' (2013, Erased Tapes) *''Solo'' (2015, Erased Tapes) *'' All Melody'' (2018, Erased Tapes) *''All Encores'' (2019, Erased Tapes) *''

Empty Empty may refer to: ‍ Music Albums * ''Empty'' (God Lives Underwater album) or the title song, 1995 * ''Empty'' (Nils Frahm album), 2020 * ''Empty'' (Tait album) or the title song, 2001 Songs * "Empty" (The Click Five song), 2007 * ...

'' (2020, Erased Tapes) *''Tripping with Nils Frahm'' (2020, Erased Tapes) *''

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

'' (2021, Erased Tapes) *''Old Friends New Friends'' (2021, Leiter) *''Music for Animals'' (2022, Leiter)

EPs

*''My First EP'' (2008, AtelierMusik) *''Wintermusik'' (2009, AtelierMusik) *''Unter/Über'' (2010, Erased Tapes) *''Juno'' (2011, Erased Tapes) *''Encores 1'' (2018, Erased Tapes) *''Encores 2'' (2019, Erased Tapes) * ''Encores 3'' (2019, Erased Tapes)

Compilation albums

*''Screws Reworked'' (2015, Erased Tapes) *'' Late Night Tales: Nils Frahm'' (2015, Late Night Tales)

Soundtrack albums

*''Music for the Motion Picture Victoria'' (2015, Erased Tapes) *''ELLIS'' (2016, Erased Tapes, with Woodkid)

Collaborations

*''Dauw (Split)'' (2009, Dekorder, with

Machinefabriek Machinefabriek is the musical nom de plume of musician/sound artist and graphic designer Rutger Zuydervelt from the Netherlands. Biography Rutger Zuydervelt was born on 28 July 1978 in Apeldoorn, Netherlands. He started working as Machinefabriek ...

) *''Music for lovers Music versus time'' (2010, Sonic Pieces, with F.S. Blumm) *''7Fingers'' (2010, HUSH, Erased Tapes, with Anne Müller) *''Mort Aux Vaches'' (2011, Staalplaat, with Peter Broderick,

Romke Kleefstra Romke Kleefstra is a musician from the Netherlands. Currently he is a member of Transtilla, Piiptsjilling and The Alvaret Ensemble. Biography Romke Kleefstra was born on 28 July 1972 in Akkrum, Netherlands. From 1992 up to 2007 Kleefstra was ...

, Anne-Chris Bakker, Jan Kleefstra) *''Wonders'' (2011, Erased Tapes, as Oliveray with Peter Broderick) *''Stare'' (2012, Erased Tapes, with

) *''Music for wobbling Music versus gravity'' (2013, Sonic Pieces, with F.S. Blumm) *''Life Story Love And Glory'' (Erased Tapes, with Ólafur Arnalds) *''Loon'' (2015, Erased Tapes, with Ólafur Arnalds) *''Collaborative Works'' (2015, Erased Tapes, with Ólafur Arnalds) *''Trance Frendz'' (2016, Erased Tapes, with Ólafur Arnalds) *''The Gamble'' (2016, Durton Studio, with Frederic Gmeiner and Sebastian Singwald) *''Tag Eins Tag Zwei'' (2016, Sonic Pieces, with F.S.Blumm) *''

Bergschrund A bergschrund (from the German for ''mountain cleft'') or rimaye (from French; ) is a crevasse that forms where moving glacier ice separates from the stagnant ice or firn above. It is often a serious obstacle for mountaineers, who sometimes abb ...

'' (2016, Mass Appeal, with

DJ Shadow Joshua Paul Davis (born June 29, 1972), better known by his stage name DJ Shadow, is an American DJ, songwriter and record producer. His debut studio album, '' Endtroducing.....'' was released in 1996. Biography Early years (1989–1995) DJ Sha ...

) *''2X1=4'' (2021. Leiter, with F.S. Blumm) *''Rules'' (2022. Leiter, with Holland Andrews)

Theatre collaborations

*''Laughter in the Dark'' (2014, with Hotel Pro Forma)

Print

*''Sheets Eins'' (2013, Manners Mcdade/Erased Tapes) *''Sheets Zwei'' (2016, Manners Mcdade/Erased Tapes) *''Sheets Drei'' (2021, LEITER/Manners McDade)

References

External links

*
2013 interview
with ''

Interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...

''
Frahm on Erased Tapes's website

Frahm's music book Sheets Eins
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frahm, Nils 1982 births Living people Neoclassical composers German classical composers Musicians from Berlin German male classical composers German electronic musicians 20th-century German musicians 20th-century German male musicians Erased Tapes Records artists