In this hyper-aware world, the discussion of genre, and the omnipresent subject of how the internet has opened the floodgates for generic re-definition, has thrown out a seemingly fail-safe answer that genre now ceases to matter. With such a wealth of knowledge and technology constantly being enriched, why bother with genre? It's a tired concept, steadily being rendered defunct, and we should accept it as so.Yet, the idea that genre is not important seems baffling. Our ability to experiment with genre doesn't make genre unnecessary, it makes it a template from which to build something new, and this mind-set has come to define German house DJ and producer Henrik Schwarz. As one of the most revered figures working in house music, Schwarz's remixes of house, jazz, techno and even indie rock tracks have become borderline legendary, and Defected Records are set to honour this by making him the 20th edition of their House Masters series; a retrospective compilation spanning over a decade of collaborations, original productions and those beloved remixes.Ahead of the release of Defected presents House Masters: Henrik Schwarz, we spoke to Schwarz about the projects that have been keeping him busy over the past two years, the challenges of crafting the perfect remix, and the experience of having his work cemented in the electronic music canon.THUMP: How did the retrospective compilation come to be?Henrik Schwarz: It was actually Defected's idea, but when they came to me about it I immediately thought it was the right time to do it. Around two years ago, I had the feeling that I wanted to take a look at a couple of new things for me; just to learn again, and to find some new ideas. That's why I put my release schedule on hold. Now that phase is over, and I look back on this collection and it's given be a backing for everything I'm doing now.What have you been working on recently?Henrik Schwarz: It's all been music. New productions of my own. The starting point was when I was invited to work with an orchestra. I think they were expecting me to just add some beats to some classical music that was playing, but I wasn't at all into that. I thought that was the cheesiest thing I could do in that situation, so I made a serious effort with the project.How did you manage to navigate that kind of project, coming from an electronic background?Henrik Schwarz: Diving into that world took a lot of preparation. At the time, around three years ago, I couldn't really read sheet music or write notes. It was a real Pandora's box. In the end, I transcribed ten pieces of music into sheet music, and when they played 'Walk Music' with a twenty-five piece string section, I thought, "Man, this is really something you should go further and explore". I spend a lot of time now reading books about instruments, recording, and listening to a lot of classical stuff. Everything is recorded now with a big orchestra. That's going to be the big feel for my next album, which will be out this year.Will this work be performed in the near future?Henrik Schwarz: The orchestral project has been played in big concert halls in Zurich, Amsterdam, Tokyo and Berlin so far. We are planning to do it again, of course, but it's just such a huge production. It's difficult to set this all up, but there's a lot of excitement about it so I'm sure we'll do it again this year. I also have the feeling that I just want to make a proper 12" again that's not part of a huge production, and I'm also working on a solo album too. The material has been completed for about a year now, but I just got too involved in the orchestral work to release it. I just want to keep moving forward.I've always found your work has a distinct musicality to it, especially your remixes.Henrik Schwarz: When I made the remix of Coldcut's 'Walk A Mile In My Shoes', I was just coming back from Bordeaux in France where I was working with a jazz band, the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble. That was a big thing for me. It was early in my career, and this band has asked me to join them on stage. I thought "Oh my god, they are magicians". I didn't know how I could possibly contribute, and I was frightened, but I travelled there because I was interested. They were so open to anything. We played some of their stuff, and then they asked me if I had something. So, I played 'Leave My Head Alone Brain', and they wrote down the notes and asked me who wrote it. I said that was me, and they were really surprised.That must have been quite a moment for you.Henrik Schwarz: That was a magic moment, to have somebody writing down the notes of a production of mine. There was Cahill who was the band leader - one of the best kalimba players I had ever seen - and very energetic. They had this beautiful horn section too. When I came back from that experience, I was so filled with these kalimba sounds that I just started using the kalimba when I started the Coldcut remix. It came together very quickly, and it turned out to be maybe one of the most important remixes I had ever done.
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