Depeche Mode drummer Christian Eigner premieres Orchestrified Pulse in Budapest

Christian Eigner, the drummer of Depeche Mode, and Hungarian composer Richárd Riederauer will present the first live show of their joint project, Orchestrified Pulse, in Budapest on 26 November. The concert takes place at the MOM Kulturális Központ, according to zene.hu.

The project is built on Eigner's own drum compositions, around which Riederauer, conductor of the Hungarian National Male Choir, wrote arrangements for orchestra and male choir, joined by electronic sounds, a solo voice and improvisation. The drums are not an accompaniment but the starting point of the music. Eigner returned to writing his own material during the pandemic and says he did not want "a drum production for drummers", but music that goes further.

The two met when Eigner came to Hungary as a guest of the 101 Hang Depeche Mode Special Tribute show, whose musical director is Riederauer. Eigner says the performance has fixed points, but the path between them changes every time, since without improvisation he "cannot fly". The project mixes classical thinking, electronic sound and a pop approach, and the audience can dance or simply listen.

The first recordings were made at Pannonia Studio with the Hungarian Studio Orchestra and the Hungarian National Male Choir. Further European dates are planned after the Budapest premiere.

Christian Eigner is an Austrian drummer, born in Vienna in 1971.