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Jean-Michel Jarre has written his first book – and its a love letter to rare synths and the history of electronic music
Jean-Michel Jarre – the Legendary French composer and producer who played electronic music for an estimated 3.5 million people in Moscow one night in 1997 – is releasing his first book.
It’s called Machines: A History of Electronic Music, and it’s written through the lens of his vast, unmatched collection of music-making apparatuses.
The volume contains images of over 130 electronic and electro-acoustic instruments, from classic modular synthesizers to machines that were only manufactured one time. In the book, Jarre will use each one to represent the techniques that led to electronic music becoming the powerhouse it is today, as well as the cultural movements that supported its rise.
The story begins all the way back in 1913 with The Art of Noises, Luigi Russolo’s Futurist manifesto that argued for a bold new approach to music-making. Moving on, other historical benchmarks covered include the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, with the book ending on modern advancements such as AI.
As Jarre has been a pioneer of the genre for over 50 years (he is now a UNESCO Ambassador for Education, Science, and Culture), the book also goes deep into his own storied career from his fascination with reel-to-reel tape machines as a child, to his earliest official teachings under Pierre Schaeffer at the Groupe de Recherches Musicales in Paris, to performing live stream events during the pandemic.
But many of his peers contribute as well. Trance legend Armin van Buuren, Vince Clarke of Depeche Mode, Gillian Gilbert of New Order, Nicolas Godin of Air, techno icon Richie Hawtin, Johnny Marr of The Smiths, and Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran all share their thoughts on electronic music throughout the book.
‘Machines: A History of Electronic Music’ will be available 24 November via Thames & Hudson. Head to Thames & Hudson USA to preorder for $65.
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