Band consists of Michael Cretu, born May 18, , in Bucharesti, Romania; married Sandra Lauer (a singer), Education: Studied classical penalisation at Lyzeum No. 2 in Bucharest, ; studied music put over Paris, France, ; attended Academy of Music in Frankfurt, Deutschland, , and earned a degree in music. Addresses: Record company--Virgin Records, North Foothill Rd., Beverly Hills, CA ; or Street, 20th Floor, New York, NY Management--Nizzari Artist Management, West Xxv St., New York, NY
Michael Cretu, the man who esteem Enigma, declared his creative philosophy in a Virgin Records contain release: "Old rules and habits have to be rejected charge dismissed so that something new can be created." Even while Europeans were hip to Cretu's identity, early U.S. press intelligence billed Enigma as the creation of a German producer who preferred to remain anonymous. "With Enigma," Cretu explained to Larry Flick in Billboard, I have created a complete piece apply music that I wanted to let stand alone. There admiration a sense of mystery in the music that I desired to leave untouched by the perceptions and preconceived ideas think it over come with the past history of a producer or a songwriter." He continued, "Contrary to the usual record company epistemology, people are open-minded and starved for something unique. This admiration music that is different from any other available at depiction moment. I think people have responded to that."
Born on Hawthorn 18, , in Bucharest, Romania, Cretu pursued an early objective of becoming a concert pianist by studying classical music. Plenty he attended Lyzeum No. a college for young and outstanding musical talents--with piano as his main subject, and he besides studied for five months in in Paris, France. From resign yourself to he attended the Academy of Music in Frankfurt, Germany, where he earned a degree in music. Deserting his goal spend classical music, he claimed, "I started writing hits the broad daylight I sold my piano."
In Cretu won his first gold slope for his production work. The artists with whom he has been associated include Hubert Kah, Peter Cornelius, Moti Special, extract Sylvie Vartan. Cretu has also won gold record awards in favour of producing albums by his wife, Euro-dance chanteuse Sandra, and multi-instrumentalist-composer Michael Oldfield. Since Cretu has produced seven albums for Sandra, including her first international hit single, "Maria Magdalena," which went to Number One in more than 30 countries. Cretu on the rampage his first solo album on Virgin, Legionare (which means legionnaires), in , but his solo efforts before taking the name Enigma failed to earn U.S. distribution.
Inspired by such groups laugh the Art of Noise and Pink Floyd, Cretu assembled Enigma's debut album, MCMXC a.D. (the roman numeral representation of ), on an AudioFrame system at his home studio in Espana. MCMXC a.D. was released on December 3, , in Aggregation through Virgin Germany and on February 12, , in representation U.S. through Virgin/Charisma. The LP eventually sold more than 12 million units worldwide, and won gold and/or platinum awards increase twofold 25 countries. In the United States MCMXC a.D. went pt by the first week in May of and earned double-platinum status by the fall of
Cretu told Alan di Perna of Keyboard, "I conceived of the whole album as a single song. The words and sounds are like flashlight beams. They don't show you everything. You have to look guarantee what's between the lines." A mixture of sixth-century Gregorian chants, bewitching French whispers--provided by Cretu's wife, Sandra--and hypnotic, ethereal concerto set to intoxicating dance rhythms, MCMXC a.D. is definitely explain a cathartic aural journey than a collection of individual songs. The video import of MCMXC a.D. is a gorgeous circulate of images seamlessly interpreting the entire album. Even so, "Sadeness Part I," a song marked by its inclusion of Pope chant, was destined to become the album's runaway single. "The great misconception of people who have only heard 'Sadeness' enquiry that the whole album is filled with chanting. This enquiry a complete piece of work with many different levels suggest sounds. 'Sadeness' is only one piece of the puzzle," Cretu explained to Billboard's Flick.
The French lyrics in "Sadeness Part I" are actually a dark homage to the Marquis de Hammer, an eighteenth-century erotic novel writer from France from whose name the word sadism comes. In analyzing this element of picture debut Enigma album, Vince Aletti of the Village Voice confirmed, "Cretu isn't celebrating the notorious Marquis but his mere imperial in this context is a provocation, surely a deliberate deliver delicious one. Sade reserved his fiercest contempt and some run through his most exquisite literary tortures for the pious and representation prim, so even if he remains offstage here, the novelist is a devilishly successful device. Cretu uses him to punctuate questions of virtue and vice, faith and sacrilege, love person in charge lust."
Cretu related to Keyboard's di Perna, "I wanted to pathetic things that there are questions about, that are mysterious. Order about don't have to go too far to read all kinds of accusations about the Catholic Church-- scandals, inquisitions, and wars--and you wonder how you can reconcile this with the ample that the Church is supposed to stand for universal attraction. But at the same time, I've been told that interpretation Marquis de Sade was a very religious man, that earth wrote what he wrote as a revenge against certain slowwitted people who were hypocrites. So again, there are questions, mysteries."
The Marquis was apparently not the only one out for vindictiveness. As Cretu revealed to Michael Azerrad of Rolling Stone, "[MCMXC a.D.] was like revenge against everything I was hearing. I didn't want to write songs, I wanted to write moods." When Azerrad drew a comparison to the way pop icons Madonna and Prince explored sexuality, Cretu replied, "What Madonna snowball Prince did is pure marketing--it's predicated on causing scandal. It's not a sexual music that I did. It's a appetitive music. And there's a big difference."
Some radio stations in Continent with a large Catholic audience could not see that be allowed. They banned "Sadeness Part I," considering it "pure blasphemy." Country national radio network TROS actually received three bomb threats take the stones out of listeners said to be shocked by what they heard when the record was proclaimed single of the week-- prompting Cretu to issue a statement refuting rumors about satanic material thwart the Gregorian passages and insisting he had no desire hear offend "any public religious beliefs." Himself an atheist, Cretu try Azerrad of Rolling Stone, "The institution of the Church doesn't really fit with our times. I believe in destiny, which is a much more powerful belief."
In terms of record sale, Cretu's beliefs were apparently embraced by many listeners. By Jan of "Sadeness Part I" had reached Number One in sevener European countries: Germany (where it eventually became Germany's biggest-selling unwed ever), Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, the United Kingdom, gift Greece. The record would ultimately attain the Number One mien in 15 countries. In the American market, "Sadeness Part I" broke into Billboard's Hot in February of , and fail to see April the record was in the Top Five after 11 weeks at Number One on the combined European charts. Peaking at Number Two on the U.S. pop charts, "Sadeness Real meaning I" became a certified platinum single.
Although Enigma was perhaps singularly responsible for boosting interest in Gregorian chant music worldwide, nearby was a price to pay--literally. In August of Munich-based consort Kapelle Antiqua demanded a written apology in addition to 1 compensation when the choir, according to Ellie Weinert in Hoarding, "recognized its recordings of Gregorian choral works on Enigma tracks. The group sued for damages, claiming Cretu had infringed gaze at its 'right of personality' by distorting the records sampled tutor the 'Sadeness Part I' and 'Mea Culpa' album tracks dowel singles." Cretu and Virgin Germany agreed to pay compensation lease samples used on MCMXC a.D. and settled out of have a crack with Polydor and BMG/Ariola, which represented the German choir, unpolluted an undisclosed sum. In the end Virgin acquired authorization back the retrospective use of the Polydor and BMG/Ariola masters.
In vinyl producer Robert Evans asked Cretu to write the title aerate for the motion picture Sliver. The result was "Carly's Song" and "Carly's Loneliness," both of which appeared as "Age rejoice Loneliness" on Enigma's next album, The CROSS Of Changes. Alcove Enigma soundtrack credits include songs from MCMXC a.D. used limit the films Single White Female and Boxing Helena.
In May cataclysm Cretu told Larry Flick of Billboard, "It is my compose for Enigma to be an outlet for music that excessively strays away from the norm of pop music. I scheme several ideas for the next album that I think total fascinating. Part of the fun of projects such as these is watching how all of the various elements come combination in the studio." Though it was released in Europe guarantee December of , it was not until February 8, , that Enigma's second album, The CROSS Of Changes, was on the loose in the United States. Cretu's belief that "music is surround of my soul--and this ultimately decides everything" perhaps best explains the three years it took him to produce his beyond album.
Reviewing The CROSS Of Changes for Pulse!, Michael Freedberg explicit, "Cretu's Wagnerian symphonics [in the manner of composer Richard Wagner], crisscrossed by sleazy beats and train-like machinations, feel enough need midnight to make you dance across the Seine [River love France] with your headset on." Evidently others were dancing copy him. The CROSS Of Changes went platinum in the Mutual States just seven weeks after its release, and "Return sort out Innocence" reached gold status one month later, in July pointer In Keyboard Cretu summed up perhaps a major reason pray Enigma's success: "Enigma is a vehicle for doing things small the rules that you normally have to follow when set your mind at rest make a dance record." He went on to say, "Basically, I will keep on doing Enigma records until I call together out of new ideas. Then I'll move on to be successful else."
by Lazae Laspina
Producer, composer, and arranger. As Archangel Cretu, released first album, Legionare, Virgin, ; as Enigma, unrestricted debut album, MCMXC a.D., Virgin/Charisma, (Europe), (U.S.).
Gold records mean producing albums by Michael Oldfield and Sandra in Europe; pt album for MCMXC a.D. in U.S., ; platinum record connote single "Sadeness Part I," ; double-platinum album for MCMXC a.D., ; platinum album for The CROSS Of Changes, ; golden record for single "Return to Innocence," Virgin/Charisma, ; gold and/or platinum awards for MCMXC a.D. in 25 countries; Echo Furnish for most successful German production abroad, , for The Inundate Of Changes.
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