Today, the graphics have gotten much better, and I don't get that anymore-that same connection is not there. But it was that initial connection that I made when I was doing that, that really amazed me, and I really enjoyed that.
Ed: Your music for Beyond The Mind's Eye seemed to be much more harmonious and tranquil sounding than your Miami Vice material. Was that strictly to match the visuals, or was your music in general changing?
Jan: Yeah. As we grow older-and wiser--hopefully, hopefully we mellow out, and I think that's happened to me. I still like to do something very intense here and there, but for most of the time, I like the subtle stuff that's almost pretty to listen to, and a certain amount of beauty. Sound has to have some sort of a beauty for me to be able to enjoy it, and to be able to appeal to me.
Snapshots (of Technology)
Ed: When Miami Vice was on, I remember reading an interview with you in, I believe, Keyboard magazine where you discussed the Fairlight, the Minimoog, the DX-7 and the 24 track.
Is that still your basic approach, or are you more computer based?
Jan: I think that by the time that Miami Vice ended, the computer/MIDI sequences started really working well. I really jumped on Opcode immediately once it started out, and I was like one of their people, testing their Vision Sequencer, and Studio Vision, and all that. So I switched completely from the multitrack. Everything moved into Midi, and then Midi and audio combined, within the Mac.
Ed: I was going to ask, what do you think of hard disk recording and software-based synthesizers?
Jan: I live by it-it's all I do. I don't work with tape at all, and I haven't, for I guess, a decade.
Ed: But it sounds like you will use a hardware-based synthesizer from time to time, right?
Jan: Yes. But they're all Midied together. You know what I mean? As opposed to recording the sounds onto the tape, and then mixing, I use them as virtual instruments that only get mixed only in the final mix, onto a DAT or a hard drive.
Ed: What made you decide to launch your own Website? How has it been received?
Jan: I don't know! Elliot would probably be much better to answer that question. But it seems like I've had it forever, but it's probably just a few years. It's somewhere there: between forever, and a few years!
Article comments
1 - Phillip Winn
Hmmm... really bad movie. A Night In Heaven or Gimme An 'F'? From the reviews, it appears either one might qualify.
2 - Michael King
I'll simply include the review of the Miami Vice set that I posted to Amazon.com:
This is the soundtrack album for "Miami Vice" that should have been released 15 years ago.
It contains most of the music from Jan Hammer's defacto "Miami Vice" score, "Escape from Television" on disc 1, but the real treasure is on disc 2 - nearly all of the music there is previously unreleased in the US, and conveys the flavor of the quintessential 80's television series.
You know the story by now, but the style of "Miami Vice" set the stage for action television and movies of today. Jump cuts, strong musical tracks, noir-driven sequences; all mainstays of contemporary shows like "CSI" and "ER" have "Miami Vice" to thank for setting the table.
This set lets you feel the wind in your hair, hear the roar of the Ferrari motor and recall the question: "How would you like a career in Southern law enforcement?"
3 - A. Farrow
This Is a Very Good Jan Hammer Interview That Was Done Here On This Webpage!!,I've Been Following The Career of Jan Hammer Ever Since I Started Tuning Into Miami Vice Back In 1985 When The Show Was Ending It's 2nd Season and I Was Very Happy When I Found Out That He Released a 2 CD Set W. Some of The Instrumentals That He Did for The Series When He Was Scoring from 1984 to 1988!!.I'm Hoping to See More Stuff of Jan's In The Near Future Maybe Even Another MV CD Revival as Well!!.There's Been Some Talk About A Movie Version of Miami Vice and If It Is I'm Hoping That They'll Get Jan to Do The Film Score as Well!!
4 - Ed Driscoll
A. Farrow,
Thanks for the kind words--glad you liked the interview!
Ed
5 - Amador
The best interview I ever read about the legendary Jan Hammer!!