Pantha du Prince Loves Classical Music New-ish and Old

Hendrik Weber is back. After a long hiatus, the German producer (who performs as Pantha du Prince) returned with The Triad, his first solo album in six years. Since dropping the record this May on Rough Trade records, the producer has embarked on a global tour with numerous festival stops throughout Europe and the UK. Later this year, he'll make his way to the United States for a small tour along the country's East Coast with stops in Brooklyn and Washington D.C.

Despite his status as a master and legend in the German electronic scene, Weber's personal musical tastes lean more toward the culturally conventional. When we spoke to Weber in June about his most recent purchases, his choices were a far cry from many of his peers.

"What else did I listen to? What else did I download? I'll have to check on my phone," Weber said through Skype on a Friday afternoon. Many of his most recent purchases have been downloads to "take" the physical music he owns with him wherever he goes.

His most contemporary purchase is the album Dissolver by Younghusband, a UK indie rock band. Unfortunately, the music hasn't spoken to the producer as much as he initially anticipated. "It's a British band, but I'm not listening to it a lot. I have to be honest," Weber said. "I downloaded it because I thought it's very interesting, like a new way or new interpretation of shoegaze music."

Besides indie rock, Weber is a big fan of classical music. His most recent purchases–"Für Alina," created by Estonian composer Arvo Pärt and "Weihnachtsoratorium," the six-part oratorio by J.S. Bach–reflect this secret interest.

"I enjoy a lot of classical music but I only have the records and what not," he said. "Yeah, that's basically it. So that's two classical pieces and one guitar pop record. That's pretty unusual I guess for an electronic artist." Unusual indeed.