ARTIST PROFILE - ROGER ENO
July 6th, 2006 by LenaK
Roger Eno was born in Suffolk, England and studied music theory at Colchester Institute. Following graduation, he worked in many jobs including as a music therapist for a local hospital in the early 1980s.
In 1983, his brother Brian invited him to take part in a project working with him and Daniel Lanois in Canada to produce the album Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks. This album would accompany a stunning movie shot largely in space by the Apollo moonshot.
Roger signed to EG Records and produced two albums, Voices and Between Tides, that reinforced comparisons made with Satie and Debussy. But he has defied categorisation through solo forays into uncharted territory and interesting collaborations. Among them, The Appointed Hour with Peter Hammill, Damage with Lol Hammond and 2004’s exquisite and other-worldly Opening Doors album with Remote partner Miro. He has also guested on albums by Tim Bowness, No-Man and Laraaji among others.
Never short of a musical style or two in which to work solo, Roger has also produced the folky Swimming with a full set of accordions and harmonium and the faux-classical album Music of Neglected English Composers (which he says failed to sell because listeners did not realise he was using pseudonyms to credit each of his own compositions).
Roger has also written music for several films, including Nine and a Half Weeks, Opera, and Warm Summer Rain, as well as scoring a popular series of 1993 Guinness commercials. He still lives in Suffolk where he records in his own studio, the Clerestory, in Bungay.
Always working on about five projects at once, his work has been never less than fascinating. He has recently released a 2-disc binaural recording of Roger playing late at night in Lincoln Cathedral with two video sections. His latest Burning Shed release, Fragile (Music), contains some of the most accomplished compositions and performance work.
Playing live in London in December 2004, he previewed a piece that he has transcribed from an ancient musical code found on a headstone in the Eastern Mediterranean. He introduced the piece as the most beautiful melody he has ever heard and claims that he has just completed his best ever recording to date. He may have a point and, as ever, Roger keeps the regular listener on tenterhooks in anticipation. The best is yet to come!
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