Catherine Duc
Musician
Catherine DucSharing Her
Visions & Dreams
www.catherineduc.com
Special: Interview with Catherine Duc Below!
Author: Tom Pratt, PRWeb. Revised by Janine Slayton
Australian musician Catherine Duc is uniquely talented and in a category all her own. Duc, a classically trained musician, ventures beyond her classical roots to create a sound and a vision uniquely her own, allowing her to stand out in a sea of other talented musicians. Duc's blending of classical, world music, and electronica creates a sound that elicits feelings of the ancient world while still remaining contemporary and new.
Duc's newest album, Visions and Dreams, finds Duc exploring even further with her music. On Visions and Dreams Duc harmoniously blends ancient Celtic melodies and a contemporary electronica sound creating New Age music for a new day. While some New Age music serves simply as background music, Duc's goes far beyond that. Her music and sound grab the listener's ear and refuse to let go. The layers of instrument and sound create not just songs, but experiences for the listener, transporting them to another, perhaps more beautiful, place and time.
Duc, who won the electronica prize in a national competition in 2002, composed and performed all of the tracks on Visions and Dreams. Of her music and the new album, she says "Fusing world music with electronica has become quite popular. Often artists choose Middle Eastern or African Themes. I was interested in the possibilities of mixing Celtic motifs with ambient, trance, and electronica."
Duc's experiment seems to have paid off. The response to Visions and Dreams has been extremely positive. Arsenio Orteza of the "Times for Acadania" notes "...the verve that Catherine Duc brings to a genre that's now more than a quarter century old." Duc is not one to just stick to the standard of what has been done, she is willing to step out on a limb to create a new and unique sound for today, that will hopefully touch people throughout the world. Duc is someone to take note of, because surely we will be hearing much more from her in the future.
You are listening to "One Autumn Day" by Catherine Duc
from her Visions and Dreams CD.
For Music and Details go to www.catherineduc.com
Catherine Duc Interview
Interview by Janine Slayton
TFW: Your music has a very interesting blend of sounds and styles. What attracted you to the genre and style of music you create? What is it about the Celtic sound that attracted you to it?
Catherine: My music is a blend of the styles I listen to and I enjoy listening to a lot of different genres - Celtic and World, classical, ambient, chill out and even trance. I like working with different styles and fusing them together.
I like the Celtic sound because of its purity and the images it evokes. I first became interested in Celtic music through Enya, Riverdance, and The Corrs - this music had a unique sound that was different to what was on the Top 40 charts. I then started listening to more traditional Irish music.
TFW: Who or what are some of your greatest inspirations for creating music?
interview continue next column...
Interview by Janine Slayton
TFW: Your music has a very interesting blend of sounds and styles. What attracted you to the genre and style of music you create? What is it about the Celtic sound that attracted you to it?
Catherine: My music is a blend of the styles I listen to and I enjoy listening to a lot of different genres - Celtic and World, classical, ambient, chill out and even trance. I like working with different styles and fusing them together.
I like the Celtic sound because of its purity and the images it evokes. I first became interested in Celtic music through Enya, Riverdance, and The Corrs - this music had a unique sound that was different to what was on the Top 40 charts. I then started listening to more traditional Irish music.
TFW: Who or what are some of your greatest inspirations for creating music?
interview continue next column...
Interview Continued...Catherine: My biggest musical inspiration is Michael Cretu of Enigma. The first Enigma album was very innovative, otherworldly and didn't have a mainstream sound, yet one of the singles became Top 10 here. I really like his use of ethnic instruments such as shakuhachi mixed with electronica beats, ambient atmosphere and interesting use of percussion (such as the sounds of a match being lit and a water droplet forming part of the beat).'
I'm also inspired by movies - usually of the historical epic (Braveheart, Titanic) or fantasy genre (Lord of The Rings, Narnia) and also nature and travel documentaries such as The Blue Planet. The storyline, landscapes, and soundtrack music all inspire me. I'm inspired by travel too - I like to take in the atmosphere of each place I visit and use that mood for my future compositions.
TFW: There is clearly quite a variety of instrumentation in your music. How many instruments can you play, and of those do you have a favorite?
Catherine: Keyboard was my first instrument, then I went on to learn the piano and synthesizer. I can also play organ, recorder, Irish low whistle and tin whistle. I was recently given a Chinese dizi flute which I'm attempting to play. I also like the sound of the Irish bodhran (hand held drum) so I'd like to get one.
TFW: What made you decide to pursue a career in music
Catherine: I enjoy composing music so much that I would write music anyway even if no one else heard it. I find writing music is very relaxing. I'm really glad to be able to share my music with other people and am happy we're in the digital age where musicians can easily share their music with people all around the globe.
TFW: What famous musicians do you admire?
Catherine: Too many to list them all here, but my favourites are Enigma and Deep Forest for ambient; James Horner, Hans Zimmer and Harry Gregson-Williams for soundtracks; Debussy for classical and The Corrs and Bill Whelan for Celtic. My favourite vocalists are Miriam Stockley and Loreena McKennitt.
TFW: How do your surroundings influence the music you create?
Catherine: I like looking at peaceful and inspiring landscapes such as beaches, mountains and forests and I think this is reflected in my music as people tell me it uplifts and inspires them.
TFW: What has been your biggest triumph as a musician?
Catherine: Winning the instrumental music category in the LA Music Awards. I was only notified four days before the awards night so I couldn't actually attend it as I'm in Australia.
TFW: And your biggest challenge?
Catherine: The fact that Australia is so far away from the USA and Europe - sometimes I see interesting music conferences or networking events in music newsletters that I'd like to attend but they're mostly in the USA and I can't just dash away for the weekend.
Note: Catherine Duc is also featured at
thefabulouswomannetwork.com