Worakls is a French electronic artist that played at Delta Festival on Friday 27th August in Marseille, France. As he has different musical projects on stage, he came here with Worakls² so as a duet with Antonin, his cellist. With his album “Orchestra”, the artist mixes electronic music with classical music to create tracks that transmits a lot of emotion. He accepted to have a talk with us just before coming on stage. We could talk about his discography, but also about his values and the artist he likes, like Hans Zimmer.
How do you feel about playing in France in front of a big audience after so much time?
Great! It feels pretty much much as if nothing happened. It’s really nice to be back here at Delta Festival, and I just hope it will be for a long time and not just for now. Let’s cross fingers.
You will have a big tour this summer and you played in some festivals in Europe like Fest Festival in Poland. How do other European people receive your show? Do you have the same relationship with them as with the French or is it different?
I think it’s exactly the same. We can miss each other so it’s really cool. I’m really happy to play for my audience again. The only thing is that the situation is creating a little bit of added stress we didn’t have before. I can’t wait, it’s really behind us.
You have several versions of your show: one with only yourself, with your musician and with your orchestra. How different is the show and feeling on stage when you perform with those versions?
It’s completely different. When I’m alone on stage, it’s way more free. I can do whatever I want. For me the best is of course with the orchestra. It’s a real show and it’s really milimettered. It’s something I work for. And when I’m with my musician Antonin as a duet in Worakls², like here at Delta in Marseille, I feel like I can remind the audience that I’m more a musician than a DJ. We kind of play together with our instruments and teasing the audience that we will be back with the orchestra.
You love to mix classic music with electronic music, you have a classical music education. How did you melt those two?
It’s very natural. The only way I found to be myself is to respect what I like. It happens that I like classical music, orchestral music, movies music and also electronic music. So I try to mix everything, because that’s just what I listen to. I don’t really ask myself questions. My philosophy is that if I do what I like, very well, then for sure there will be people that will like it as well. So I don’t try to get a bigger audience or a bigger crowd to be more famous or whatever. I’m satisfied that I can live from my passion, so I try to improve my craft, instead of looking for what will sell the most.
You have some artistic inspirations like Hans Zimmer. Do you think this artist, and some other ones, inspires you when you create the show, and not only the music?
Definitely. I think the first time I saw something like that was at the Metallica show with a symphony orchestra. At this moment I really loved Metallica. I still love it but at this moment I really was into it. I listened to the band every day. When I saw this show, I was like “ok, it gives so much deepness and depth and so much feeling”. I felt like something was added, and to me it was the first time that I was really inspired to do this.
Of course, adding an orchestra is not a new idea. Therefore, Hans Zimmer was for me the one that does it the best. Obviously, I never copy and I never inspire myself with a melody or whatever, but I always try to improve, I look at how he does and I try to get closer everyday. He is a master, as John Williams and many others.
You defend values, and you made the sountrack for Hugo Clément’s documentary “sur le front”. What was the story behind it ? How did you meet each other and how did you decide to make music for him?
He sent me a message on Instagram saying that he liked my music. I was a huge fan of his as well because I am really moved by all the environmental questions, or the defence of animals. He proposed working together and we did it for “Sur le Front”. For me, it is a great opportunity because I feel concerned about what he is talking about. It allows me to learn more and more film music without so much pressure. I can only thank him for this opportunity. In this case, it was simple to adapt myself to whatever the character or the story was about cause I really feel concerned about it. I don’t have to play a game.
In the album “Orchestra” we can feel everything you are saying, and especially about your passion between two opposite kinds of music. We can feel that there are some mental images we instinctively create when we listen to you. When you develop your tracks, do you try to offer a story to the listener?
I think there is a story behind every track because I really put all my emotions on them. I don’t do that job for the sake of doing it. There is always something more that I try to translate into music. Since there are no lyrics most of the time, you can imagine whatever you want. Only the emotion is speaking to you and you can put it into your own life. That’s what I like and that’s what I try to do.
This the first time that I involve so much orchestra in this album. I know that people in general that listen to my discography are not the best knowers of classical music. I have to remember that I come from electronic music, and I have to bring the orchestra on it, slowly and softly so people can understand it.
When you made this album, what was your objective, the idea you wanted to bring to your audience?
What I want to do is to create a bridge between the two worlds, sometimes between two generations as well. I was working some weeks ago with an orchestra in Basel, Switzerland and I felt like they liked it. They are not close minded, not close to electronic music or whatever. They just have certain expectations cause they are huge musicians so you have to write well.
I like to receive messages from my audience that say that because of it, they came to an opera, or to Hans Zimmer, or on the contrary. Even the contrary, seeing that people come from Hans Zimmer says that I am close to him even if it’s electronic music, so I am gonna give it a try. It connects people, especially from worlds that can be so close actually. It’s awesome.
Delta Festival 2021
The Delta Festival is an event that takes place in the Plages du Prado in Marseille since 2015, generally in July. In 2021, due to the sanitary conditions, it has to happen at the end of August. This event, is one of the biggest festivals to take place in France the same year with around 90.000 festival goers in three days. Delta Festival invites electronic (but not only artists) such as Bob Sinclar, Étienne de Crécy, Purple Disco Machine, Madeon, Angerfist or Hilight Tribe. The event already looks forward and will invite Sean Paul, Carl Cox, Vini Vici or Deborah de Luca in 2022.
For more information, you can visit their website.
Regular price in 2021: 150€
