User:Daniel Lewiston/David Gerard

David Gerard (born 2/10/61) is an ambient/electronic musician who records for the independent label New Franklin Records. He has released seven albums of original electronic music, and is also one-third of the ambient music collective Elysium. He is a self-taught musician, employing synthesizers, percussion, and ambient guitar in his recordings. His first public performance was in the mid-80's at NYC's Knitting Factory, where he performed excerpts from a suite entitled "A Piece of the Desert." David openly cites Steve Reich's Desert Music as a source of inspiration, and pieces like the "Variegated Marimbas" (from 2004's "Compositions" and 2008's "Compositions, Too" display the influence of Reich's "Sextet/Six Marimbas" recordings. Unlike many musicians in his genre, David Gerard is surprisingly candid about the musical predecessors who have informed his work, including Reich, David Borden (Mother Mallard's Portable Masterpiece Co.), Brian Eno, and 70's electronic pioneers Tangerine Dream. His 2005 release, "Ambientism" features a 14-minute suite dedicated specifically to Tangerine Dream co-founder Edgar Froese ("Scattered Frequencies") and 2008's "Compositions, Too" includes a track aptly-titled, "Paging Mister Eno." Though Gerard rarely tours in support of his releases, his music is a fixture on Internet radio, including Last Fm and Soma Fm, where his music is featured on ambient stations Drone Zone and Mission Control. He is listed in The Encyclopedia of Electronic Music, where Gerard's music has been cited for being "intricate and experimental" as well as containing "the perfect programming of sounds." In addition to creating music, David Gerard has been writing about music for many years. Between 1996-2004, Gerard was a music correspondent for The Boston Globe, and is currently a regional rock critic for the San Francisco Examiner's Examiner.com, where he is listed as a Boston Rock Music Examiner. Reviews of his work can be found on Jimmy Stiletto's Magazine as well as now-defunkt E/I Electronic magazine, where archived reviews of his solo albums can be found, as well as the debut album by Elysium, where David Gerard is accompanied by fellow musicians Paul Christensen and Rutger Holst, the latter credited for producing Gerard's 2009 album, "Rubaiyat." His newest solo album "The Realm of Knowing" will be released April, 2010 and will be a self-produced effort.

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