Classical rock is a nascent
musical genre pioneered by one of the most adventurous and eclectic
contemporary conductors John Axelrod.
But what is classical rock? Tap
in the genre into Google and very little pops up, but once you add John
Axelrods’s name the links come thick and fast.
Classical rock is a genre in
the making, the conjoining of the twin towers of classical music and classic
rock in the same sonic template, all brought to life by the full might of an
orchestra.
And John Axelrod is a conductor
with a colourful past – one part former A & R man in the rock business, one
part wine expert and for the most part a celebrated conductor, schooled by the
likes of Leonard Bernstein and a conductor who has presided over 130 orchestras.
He’s also got an exciting future. For
Axelrod is a man on an innovative musical mission with enough streetwise cred to
know his way round A-Z of classic rock. As he says himself, he’s ‘probably the only conductor working in the world today who
was a director of rock 'n' roll for BMG and the head of a wine firm’.
Put simply, if there’s a
musical bridge to be forged between the influence of classical music on classic
rock, then surely the irrepressible John Alexrod is that person to lead the
way, being probably the only classic
music conductor with strap lines like ‘Beethoven, Beer and Barbecue’.
Pete Feenstra talks to
John Axelrod and starts with asking for a simple definition of Classical Rock?
Classical rock is the best
hits of classical music combined with the best hits of classic rock. It’s the
idea that classical music can help itself and build audiences by introducing in
a new soundscape some of its best hits in parallel with some of the best hits
of classic rock. And rock can help itself by returning to its roots.
Great thanks. I haven’t seen
the running order of the album yet, but do you juxtapose Rock with Classical pieces?
Exactly right. Classical rock
is a unique project that’s never been done before. For example, we go from the
classical repertoire of Wagner’s ‘The Ride of the Valkyries’ straight into
Black Sabbath’s ‘Iron Man’ with no space in between the two. Not only that, we
play the original arrangement of ‘Iron Man’ with all the heaviness of the
original, exactly as it was. Then there’s examples like Queen’s ‘Bohemian
Rhapsody’ which segues into Liszt’s ‘Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2’ and ‘Stairway
to Heaven’, which follows the sunrise from Strauss’s ‘Also Sprach Zarathrustra’
etc.
In previous recordings of
projects like this, the music has sounded like elevevator or background music,
so it’s very important that these arrangements can demonstrate the same
heaviness and the ‘in your face’ quality of classic rock. The aim is to show
that classical music can relate to classic rock on the same sonic level, so there’s
no sonic difference when they are joined together.
2 What makes you pair two
pieces of music from different musical genres together?
You have to analyse the music
and maybe ask yourself some questions like; ‘if Wagner had been around now
would he have been the heavy Metal of his day?’ and I think the answer is yes.
Similarly if Queen had been around years ago would they have composed an oratorio,
again I would say yes, probably. There’s so much common ground. The integrity
of classical music is presented at the highest level of performance. The
orchestral arrangements of classic rock hits are unique and musical. There’s as much virtuosity in the performance
of say Metallica and Radiohead as there is in a piece of classical music. And
really the difference between the good and bad in either genre is to be found
in its virtuosity.
You successfully raised
your funding for the project by Dec 2011. Was that to try and take the project
on the road?
What we are doing is exploring
a really independent way of doing things including funding the project. Some
people are very surprised when they hear the music. This isn’t anything like,
say the LPO plays The Beatles or a disco version of Beethoven’s 5th. We’ve already released the album on Nov 24 on the
internet and the money we generate is used to build awareness of the project
from the ground up.
Frank Zappa spent a lot of
his career earning funds with his rock stuff to subsidise his classical work,
but this is slightly different isn’t it?
Yes it is, we are concentrating
on the common ground between musical genres and the fact that one came out of
the other. The main difference is that we’re updating everything in a
contemporary sonic format.
Have you found any
resistance in the Classical community to your cross genre approach?
There’s been some yes but I
would have expected that. In fact I originally thought there would be a greater
uptake in the rock community. And that has proved to be the case. We put an
advert on both Classic Rock magazine and The Gramophone and though we had a
good response from both, the rock side of things was bigger. But then again when
you think about it the classical field accounts for only something like 2% of
the market whereas rock is up to 50%.
You also have a mission statement
for Classical Rock which is that the idea is to develop audiences for the
orchestra?
Well the role of the
orchestra is an essential one in this project because classic rock is
influenced by classical music in the first place. So the whole thing is really
a tip of the hat to those connections. When you think about it, there are lots
of links between the two genres, like Led Zeppelin, Queen and The Who with
opera. The Beatles and Genesis were influenced by classical music, Yes was very
orchestral and they composed 20 minute suites while ELP actually played
classical music. And it’s the same with most classic rock up to and including Radiohead.
There’s a real influence from classical music through to classic rock and I’m exploring
the common bond between both worlds.
And you think this is
especially so in the history of the recording industry?
Very much so; when you look
at the history of recorded music, you look at Toscanini’s pioneering orchestral
efforts, Leibowitz’s soundcapes, von Karajan’s wall of sound for example, and
then the next step was simply to compress the sound to record it
We used to have FFRR (full frequency
range recording) as an industry standard in the 40’s
and 50’s and then later there FFSS (full
frequency stereo sound) which pushed things more towards a “live
sound”, and one that is heard in the concert hall, with less isolation and
more ambience. By the time we got stereo in living rooms there was an
emphasis on depth of sound and reverberation and there was experimenting
going on in the studio, be it the likes of Steely Dan in rock or Glen Gould in
classical and a push towards hearing more intensive audio detail. Rock was doing
well at this point especially in concert halls etc, but while classical music
was till being listened to in the new outlets and formats the concerts weren’t
doing well. What I’m doing is juxtaposing classic music and rock to create a
new genre and a new sonic paradigm based around original arrangements
It was rock & roll that
originally compressed the sound with an ‘in your face’ quality whereas. The isolation of instruments and vocals with
inspired ensemble playing resulted in a new paradigm of sound for popular
music. Classic music was essentially based on the distance between the listener
and the performer, which reflected the reverbation and space in the concert
hall. So there was a real distance between the crowd and orchestra, which in
turn didn’t leave much room for the kind of interaction between performers and
crowds at a rock show. I don’t believe classical music audiences should
necessarily sit still during a performance.
So this would seem to be part
of your definition of the orchestra as a rock band?
Yes very much so. The power
of an orchestra helps you to hear what was actually composed and the aim of my classical
rock project is to recreate that experience through 21st century
sonic exposure, rather than in a 20th century recording paradigm
with the limitations of audio and speaker quality which led to compression,
especially in rock. We’re looking towards a fresh sonic language to accommodate
both genres of music.
Do you have to come to Europe in particular to fully realise the role of an
orchestra?
That’s an interesting
question. I guess the answer is that I went for the best opportunity I could
find in the evolution of this thing. I was working as a conductor in Europe so I already had a start. And the idea of the
Maestro X moniker was a kind of rock and roll thing.
You established the
experimental Orchestra X in 1997. Was that the start of your interest in things
beyond the normal Classical confines?
I was back in Houston Texas
then and the project became hugely successful, it involved younger people and had
the idea that of utilising orchestra as a rock band so it led on to new areas. It was also partly the idea of looking for a
new audience for an orchestra.
You’ve also been described as a champion of modern music, but isn’t combining both
the best bits of Classical and Classic rock merely regurgitating old stuff for
an older audience?
Well there’s an obvious core
audience of baby boomers for whom this music will be a step back to a great
time of their lives, maybe nostalgic even. But given the restricted outlets for
music back then, that same audience was probably just as exposed to some
classical music as it was to rock music. Nowadays an audience has millions of
potential outlets from 500 MTC channels to Youtube, the internet etc. And while
we can’t expect that core audience to flock to the concert hall in the way they
did, in the past (much like the way church congregations have diminished),
there is a big potential for an increased exposure of the common denominator
between classic and rock music. So our research has told us that inevitably the
people who have been downloading the music are younger and this is in parallel
with industry trends. But while that is the case, we’ve also found that the
fastest growing segment of the internet usage is between 45 and upwards and
given that this age group also has disposable income to spare we hope they will
become part of our musical crossover.
Do you think your
background on both the business side of music as well as being involved in both
Classical and Rock side gives you a unique input into a project like this?
Absolutely. I’m the only
former A& R person involved in anything like this. In fact I’m the only
person crazy enough to do something like this (laughs). I was talking to a respected
classical critic in London
recently, who said to me, Bravo for doing this, but it’s not for me. And I can
understand why they might feel that way. But this whole project is a unique
expression of who I am and it’s simply a case of being true to myself. It’s the
exact opposite of the usual thing of the industry telling you what to do. After
all it’s only when people take a chance that music has moved forward. But for
me it isn't so much taking a risk as having fun.
What did your role as an
A&R man teach you about the music business?
It’s the same thing about
believing in your gut instincts. I recorded Jellyfish, signed up Mark Cohn,
Bruce Hornsby, Tori Amos and The Smashing Pumpkins. I worked with Atlantic
records in ‘88/’89 and was A&R for RCA/BMG between '90 and '92. And when I
was in the studio with a band or whatever, I'd always fall back on searching
for the authenticity and virtuosity of the artist. There was always pressure
from the label and recording industry in general to imitate and come up with
(in those days) the next Guns & Roses. And of course money is important; it’s
a business after all. But you have to be your own person and do what you
believe in.
Was it struggle to sign
The Smashing Pumpkins?
So what happened back then
was I wanted to sign the Smashing Pumpkins because I loved them and more
importantly the co-president of the label liked them too and he thought they
were the future. But the bottom line was that the company wasn’t patient enough
and he got fired. So now we had a new
president who came from the country division of the company, and back in the
90’s country was big. So we had an A&R meeting and he said; ‘The Smashing Pumpkins,
that’s the worst name I ever heard for a band’. Anyway Joe Shanahan from Metro
Chicago sent me a single of the band and it was the first time I heard Billy Corgan
play. This had the same effect as when I first heard Wagner's 'Tristan &
Isolde'. He was taking Hendrix to another level. I said to Billy what’s it like
to play guitar like that and he said, “It’s like a bullet to the brain”. I knew
right then he was the real deal. So I told
the label I believe this band will be successful by building up a fan base from
the ground up, but they still wanted to drop them.
But my A&R experience just told me to be true to
yourself. I understood all the aspects of performance and recording techniques.
And it’s that same connection between the performance aspects of Classical
Music with the engagement of rock that I wanted to connect with.
You’ve also performed Leonard
Bernstein’s music, a composer who attempted to develop New American Classical
Music by incorporating diversity of (American) life into his music. Do you
attempt to do the same with your projects?
Yes I do. Leonard Bernstein
was my teacher and was the greatest example of someone who would bring
different musical words together. He was
a very flexible person who understood the need to communicate and educate.
After all he was able to bring in different music into his repertoire from jazz
to film music.
I still try to incorporating
different music into the repertoire, and remember that classic rock is a
basically British invention – I mean bands like The Who, Led Zeppelin and
Sabbath etc – so that’s quite a
departure to start with.
Did you find any
resistance to your adventurous programming at the Lucerne festival?
Well I was Chief Conductor of
the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra from 2004 – 2009 so I was in a position to do
something.
And you also have to realise
that our success at the normally very conservative Lucerne Festival was
groundbreaking. They essentially needed a new audience so we created classical
rock and to this day it's still the most successfully attended concert in the
history of the Lucerne Festival.
You’ve already invited people to give you suggestions for Volume 2 of
the Classical Rock album. How did you go about this yourself at the outset and
have you had any interesting feedback so far?
The
key for me is the artist approach to the whole thing. There’s obviously so much
to choose from in both the classical and rock fields. But it seems to me the
key is to find classical hits that have a programmatic connectivity to classic
rock hits. So you can pair Dukas’s ‘The
Sorcerer's Apprentice’ with The Who's 'Pinball Wizzard' for
example, or Rhimsky Korsakov’s 'Sherezade’ with Zeppelin’s 'Kashmir' and ‘Sabbath’s’
Iron Man’ with Wagner’s ‘Ride of The Valkyries’. But since we’ve asked for
suggestions for 'Classical Rock Volume2', we’ve already had some great ideas,
for example Stravinski’s ‘The Rite of Spring’ paired with Steppenwolf’s Born To
Be Wild’, and Hendrix’s 'Purple Haze' with a section of Berlioz’s 'Fantasia’.
Interview © January 2012 Pete Feenstra
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK
Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.
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David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 7 April 2024.
UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 2 April 2024.
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Power Plays w/c 15 April 2024
ENMY The Ledge (FiXT)
KAROBELA Get Hard (indie)
KATH & THE KICKS Neptune (indie)
THE BEE TELLERS River Poem (Black Sand Records)
LAUREN FREEBIRD Like A Bomb (indie)
Featured Albums w/c 15 April 2024
09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023
14:00-16:00 KATARINA PEJAK – Pearls On A String (Ruf Records)
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