Christopher James Chaplin, born in Switzerland in 1962 as the youngest son of Charlie Chaplin, studied the piano before moving to London to become an actor. In 2005, he returned to music and composition. In the following years he wrote music pieces for several European theater projects and composed orchestral multi-movement pieces such as “String Quartet no 1” and “Scratch the Surface”. After being asked by Roedelius to record and remix some of his material for a BBC broadcasting their collaboration subsequently continued and in 2013 Roedelius + Chaplin released an album on Sub Rosa called King of Hearts.
Facts
We come into this world with one breath in, we leave it with one breath out
Trust your ears
Don’t trust your brain
Questions
What is the biggest inspiration for your music?
The element of surprise
How and when did you get into making music?
In my teens, from hating piano lessons to loving them
What are your 5 favourite albums of all time?
Prokofiev: The 5 Piano Concertos – Vladimir Ashkenazy / AndrÈ Previn
Stravinsky: Violin Concerto in D – Cho-Liang Lin / Esa-Pekka Salonen
Night’s Balck Bird by Harrison Birtwhistle
Laughing Stock by Talk Talk
Bitches Brew by Miles Davis
What do you associate with Berlin?
I have yet to go to Berlin… So for now, it will have to be the Philharmonic, and the Berliner Mass by Arvo Part.
What’s your favourite place in your town?
Sadlers Wells. It’s a great place for contemporary dance, and contemporary dance often provides interesting music.
If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
Some tarmacing
What was the last record you bought?
The Minotaure by Harrison Birtwhistle
Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Apart from Joachim ? …a good librettist
What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
Out of the three gigs I did as a performer, it was the second one.
How important is technology to your creative process?
Very, I couldn’t function without it.
Do you have siblings and are they proud or jealous of you?
I have 7 very talented siblings. I would like to think they are all very jealous.
Our Favourites:
More Ohr Less
King of Hearts
vimeo.com/50596893
Links: Soundcloud | christopherjchaplin.com | Facebook | Interview with Christopher Chaplin by Digital in Berlin
