Ricochet Gathering
Encyclopedia
Ricochet Gathering is a unique collaboration event for electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
. This name applies to the event and also the group of musicians involved in the event, where a group of musicians and a usually small group fans gather at unique locations throughout the world. The event happens approximately once each calendar year. The first gathering occurred at the Okefenokee Swamp
Okefenokee Swamp
The Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000 acre , peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia–Florida border in the United States. A majority of the swamp is in Georgia and protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Okefenokee Wilderness. The Okefenokee Swamp is considered to be...
in April 2000. Each gathering event has a theme tied to the Berlin School of electronic music
Berlin School of electronic music
The Berlin School of electronic music, or just Berlin School, was a development of electronic music in the 1970s, shaped by Berlin-based artists like Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream and Ashra....
pioneers Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream
Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music group founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The band has undergone many personnel changes over the years, with Froese being the only continuous member...
.
~ Electronic Music and Beyond...
The type of music that is created at these event varies from old-style retro Berlin School to new contemporary electronic music (EM). Musicians and fans usually have to make an effort to reach the exotic locations. Once there, the setting and atmosphere allows fans and musicians to live in a communal setting for a few days (usually a week) to inspire/create/enjoy electronic music. All music created at each event is live, unrehearsed, and improvised - and captured in one take...
~Chronology of Music Events~
- Okefenokee 2000 (Okefenokee SwampOkefenokee SwampThe Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000 acre , peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia–Florida border in the United States. A majority of the swamp is in Georgia and protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Okefenokee Wilderness. The Okefenokee Swamp is considered to be...
, Georgia, USA) - Okefenokee 2001 (Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia, USA)
- Okefenokee 2002 (Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia, USA)
- Mojave 2003 (Mojave DesertMojave DesertThe Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
, Nipton, CaliforniaNipton, CaliforniaNipton is an unincorporated town in San Bernardino County, California, on the northern edge of Mojave National Preserve, west of Searchlight, Nevada. It has a population of 20 people....
, USA) - Poland 2004 (Jelenia GóraJelenia Góra----Jelenia Góra is a city in Lower Silesia, south-western Poland. The name of the city means "deer mountain" in Polish, Czech and German. It is close to the Krkonoše mountain range running along the Polish-Czech border – ski resorts such as Karpacz and Szklarska Poręba can be found...
/ Szałas Muflon / Wrocław, Poland) - Gomera 2005 (La GomeraLa GomeraLa Gomera is one of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. In area, it is the second-smallest of the seven main islands of this group.- Political organization :...
Island, Canary IslandsCanary IslandsThe Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
, Spain) - Rubycon 2006 (TuscanyTuscanyTuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
/ RubiconRubiconThe Rubicon is a shallow river in northeastern Italy, about 80 kilometres long, running from the Apennine Mountains to the Adriatic Sea through the southern Emilia-Romagna region, between the towns of Rimini and Cesena. The Latin word rubico comes from the adjective "rubeus", meaning "red"...
, Italy) - Yellowstone 2007 (Bozeman, MontanaBozeman, MontanaBozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...
/ Yellowstone, Wyoming, USA) - Romania 2008 (TransylvaniaTransylvaniaTransylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, Carpathian MountainsCarpathian MountainsThe Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
, Romania) - Croatia 2009 (VinišćeVinišceVinišće is a village and small harbour 12 km southwest of Trogir, Croatia; population 765. Main occupations are fishing and tourism. The coastal strip near the village provides opportunities for underwater fishing, and is distinguished by attractive inlets with sandy and pebble beaches....
, DalmatiaDalmatiaDalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
, Croatia) - Berlin 2010 (BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany - 40th Anniversary of Berlin School EM) - Siberia 2011 (Trans-Siberian RailwayTrans-Siberian RailwayThe Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world...
, Russia (Soundtrack with artist Wolfram SpyraWolfram SpyraWolfram Spyra is a German composer of ambient music.Spyra was born in Eschwege. He began his career in the early 1990s constructing 'soundscapes' and installations around Germany. He has collaborated with a wide range of visual artists, musicians, producers and DJs. He has released several...
)).
~Discography~
Ricochet Gathering Releases
Ricochet Dream Releases.
The music at and by the Ricochet Gathering is recorded and eventually published by the Ricochet Dream music label, which is dedicated to releasing music from this event and its associated musicians. Vic Rek is the producer of these events and the music released on Ricochet Dream EM label. He also coined the term "Electronic Woodstock" when he was preparing for the Poland 2004 event, even though the published slogan was "Elektronika u Rolnika", which means "Electronics at the Farm" in Polish. Complete details about the Ricochet Gathering music and releases are cataloged in the Discogs
Discogs
Discogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
music database.
To further explore the musician line-ups and details go to the Official Ricochet Gathering page with links to the artists.