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Philip Jeck (15 November 1952 – 25 March 2022) was an English composer and multimedia artist. His compositions were noted for utilising antique turntables and vinyl records, along with looping devices and both analogue and digital effects.[3] Initially composing for installations and dance companies, beginning in 1995 he released music on the UK label Touch.
Philip Jeck | |
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 Jeck performing in 2011 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 15 November 1952 |
| Origin | England |
| Died | 25 March 2022 (aged 69) |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Instruments | |
| Years active | 1980s–2022 |
| Labels |
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| Website | www |
Jeck was born in England in 1952.[6][3][7] He studied visual arts at Dartington College of Arts in Devon.[3][8] He became interested in record players after visiting New York in 1979 and being introduced to the work of DJs such as Walter Gibbons and Larry Levan.[9]
Jeck started exploring composition using record players and electronics in the early 1980s. In his early career, he composed and performed scores for dance and theatre companies, including a five-year collaboration with Laurie Booth.[3] He also composed scores for dance films Beyond Zero on Channel 4 and Pace on BBC 2.[10][11] Jeck was perhaps best known for his 1993 work Vinyl Requiem with Lol Sargent, a performance for 180 Dansette record players, 12 slide-projectors and two film-projectors.[3] Although he initially intended to perform it only once, he went on to organise further performances of the installation.[7] It won the Time Out Performance Award in 1993.[3][12]
Jeck signed with Touch in 1995 and proceeded to release his best-known works on the label, including Surf (1998), Stoke (2002), and 7 (2003). In 2004, he collaborated with Alter Ego on a 2005 rendition of composer Gavin Bryars's The Sinking of the Titanic.[3] His 2008 album, Sand, was named the second best album of that year by The Wire.[13] Many of his studio releases are pieced together from recordings of his own live performances and stitched together with a MiniDisc recorder.[3] His final music credit came in 2021 with Stardust, a collaboration with Faith Coloccia.[14]
He collaborated with artists including Jah Wobble, Jaki Liebezeit, David Sylvian and Janek Schaefer.[3]
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Jeck died on 25 March 2022, aged 69, following a brief illness.[15][8][14]
Studio and live recordings
- Loopholes (1995, Touch)[16]
- Surf (1998, Touch)[16]
- Live in Tokyo (2000, Touch)[16]
- Vinyl Coda I–III (2 CDs) (2000, Intermedium Records)[16]
- Vinyl Coda IV (2001, Intermedium Records)[16]
- Stoke (2002, Touch)[16][17]
- 7 (2003, Touch)[16][18]
- Sand (2008, Touch)[16][19]
- Suite. Live in Liverpool (2008, Touch)[16]
- An Ark for the Listener (2010, Touch)[16]
- Cardinal (2015, Touch)[16][19]
- Iklectik (2017, Touch)[16]
Collaborations
- Soaked with Jacob Kirkegaard (2002, Touch)[16]
- Live in Leuven with Jah Wobble and Jaki Liebezeit (2004, Hertz)[16][20]
- Songs for Europe with Janek Schaefer (2004, Asphodel)[16][21]
- The Sinking of the Titanic with Alter Ego and Gavin Bryars (2007, Touch)[20][19]
- Spliced with Marcus Davidson (2010, Touch)[16][20]
- Stardust with Faith Coloccia (2021, Touch)[16][20]
- Oxmardyke with Chris Watson (2023, Touch)[16][20]
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