Bernard Szajner

Bernard Szajner
Born	27 June 1944
Genres	Electronic music
Years active	1970s – present
Website	szajner.net

Bernard Szajner is a composer, musical theorist, visual artist^[1] and inventor of the laser harp which he has also patented.

Early life[]

Szajner was born in Grenoble on 27 June 1944, into a family of Polish Jews who had been exiled due to the rise of Naziism and anti-semitism in Poland.^[2] He was given the name "Wolf" and spent his earlier times hidden in a cellar. During his childhood, he'd heard of the stories of his uncle who had been sent to Auschwitz concentration camp and had disappeared. His experience would go on to influence his musical composition later in life.^[2]

Musical and artistic career[]

Between 1979 and 1983, Szajner released five albums of innovative and Avant-garde electronic music. He became renowned as a light and visual effects technician with artists such as Magma, Gong, Stomu Yamashta and The Who.^[3][4]

During the 1970s, he became a pioneer in the field of using laser technology as an artistic tool. As a measure of his success, he became renowned by his work with companies such as Cartier and Renault. In 1980, inspired by the novel, Nova, by Samuel R. Delany, he first created the Laser Harp. This instrument inverts the classic relationship between music and light, where the second is in service to the first. With his laser harp, music and light are effectively on an equal footing. This instrument, which offers greater musical freedom than a synthesizer as it allows a greater number of octaves, as well as providing a visual performance. The combination of audio and video provide a unique inter-dependence. The laser harp became so successful that Jean-Michel Jarre ordered a version from Bernard Szajner for his tour of China. Despite all this, Szajner would only occasionally use this instrument in his own performances. He has stated that he would rather the public not know him solely for his work on the laser harp, and that it not be allowed to take precedence over his work in musical composition that it enables. This is also why he continues to develop other instruments which use other innovative methods of interaction, such as tactile or holographic.

Towards the end of the 1980s and disgusted with the music industry, he chose to abandon music entirely, and shifted his focus towards digital and visual arts, and theatre.^[5] Nonetheless, his work in electronic music remains as a benchmark, and he is recognized as being a pioneer in that field. In 2012, he returned to his roots, with his association with the artist, Yro.

Discography[]

• 1979, Visions of Dune, pathe/EMI.

  His first album was inspired by the novel, Dune, by Frank Herbert and introduced musicians such as Hahn Rowe and Klaus Blasquiz.

• 1980, Some Deaths Take Forever, pathe/EMI.^[6]

  Inspired by the experiences of two prisoners on Death Row, part of this album was used as a soundtrack to a short film by Amnesty International. Klaus Blasquiz and Bernard Paganotti also collaborated on this work.

• 1981, Superficial Music, IRC.
• 1981, Back to the Burner / Back to Siberia, Epic.
• 1982, Wallenberg, Hypothetical records.
• 1983, Around the World, Epic.
• 1983, Brute Reason, Island Record.
• 1984, The Big Scare, New Rose.
• 1986, Indécent Délit, New Rose.

Performances[]

• 1981, Laser Harp performance at the Festival of Science-Fiction and Imagination, Metz.
• 2012, No Concert or C-Tunes, a collaboration with Yro.
• 2013, The Conference of the Birds, a further collaboration with Yro.

References[]

External links[]

• Official website