Who or what inspired you to pursue a career in music?
Nothing was planned, really. Spontaneously, one day I wondered what it would be like to try to make music. I only started for my own personal fun, but I was also learning how to do it. Technology and programs weren’t at the same level as they are nowadays, so it was harder to discover tips and tricks. There was not really an influence, only my mood to learn something new without having any particular ambition.
Who or what have been the most important influences on your musical life and career?
Arvo Pärt, the unknown, nature and the politically unfair situations. The rest is all about the way I live and my emotions that move like sand in the wind.
What have been the greatest challenges of your career so far?
I believe it was when Christian Löffler suggested I play the piano for his live performances. I was stressed about it, but it all went fine in the end and I was very happy to be a part of that.
Concerning my solo career, it was the moment I had to compose the music for a dance theatre piece for the choreographer Yaron Shamir. I learned a lot from this collaboration and I would do that again in a heartbeat.
What are the pleasures and challenges of working with other musicians?
I learn a lot of things from them, and that was my main goal when I started to collaborate with musicians. I always welcome a new way of thinking. Collaborating also makes some tracks more beautiful and interesting because every person thinks differently and that becomes obvious through their sound. Sometimes it takes two for a beautiful song, and personally it’s a way to develop my work.
How would you describe your compositional/musical style?
I would say cinematic. It’s mostly ambient surrounded by strings and piano. My new album, Blind Heaven, has many trumpet moments by my talented friend Christian Grothe. Somehow the soundtrack of my life. Thankfully my life is not as melancholic as my music is.
As a composer, how do you work?
In my home studio, especially when the weather is grey and rainy in Berlin. It’s the best environment for me to focus on what I do. Usually, I’m fast to finish an album but it takes more time to focus on the details afterwards. I’m not a perfectionist because I don’t believe in this idea but I do spend a lot of time listening over and over again to the tracks to fix or add to the production.
Tell us more about your album ‘Blind Heaven’…
The title is poetic and it’s really hard for me to describe exactly what I mean by it. In general, it describes the “paradise” that every human is looking for blindly. Things that we are taught by the political system to be a great success, or this need to be something without even knowing yourself. The sound is more electronic than my previous album, “Out of the dust” I believe every track is different and has its own character, and I’m really happy with how it came out.
As for the collaborations; Hania Rani, Masayoshi Fujita, Amber Ortolano and Fransesco Donatello were all involved in the album.
As a musician, what is your definition of success?
To be lucky enough to be able to spread your music internationally and make a living through it. When people are waiting for your next release it means something, I also consider that a success.
Hior Chronik’s new album Blind Heaven is available now
Born in 1974 in Athens, Hior Chronik (real name George Papadopoulos) has always been surrounded by music. As a child, he would listen to classical music and jazz on the radio and would write down his favourite tracks in his little notebook. But it was his work as a radio producer at the JazzFm station in Athens and as an editor of several music magazines that really accelerated his development as an artist, and led to him finding his true calling. Hior started to experiment with melodies and rhythms and so the first minimalist ambient piano patterns were born, which were later combined with electronica and vocals. “It was a process to discover my hidden charisma” he states.
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