colleen n : an Irish girl

English

Pronunciation

GenAm [kɑˈlin]

Etymology

From cailín (girl).

Proper noun

1. A given name, a twentieth century American invention based on an Irish word but not used in Ireland.

Usage notes

• Traditionally, Colleen is spelled "Coleen", the former spelling being a product of marketing by the Hollywood film industry (to promote a new starlet in the 1920's).

Colleen (real name Cécile Schott) is a composer of electronic and ambient music based in France.

Music

Cécile Schott began making music under the name 'Colleen' in 2001, after a friend gave her a CD-R with the ACID Pro music production software contained within. Samples were a common part of her early work and in summer 2003 the debut album Everyone Alive Wants Answers was released. It was notable for its heavy use of looped samples, which were taken from records in her collection and heavily modified. The album was critically well-received and drew enough attention to warrant touring. During live shows, Schott would replicate the sounds from the album using acoustic instruments played through pedals as she thought the idea of using a laptop live was uninspiring.

This approach using live physical instruments led to the 2005 follow-up, The Golden Morning Breaks, which retained the looped style present in earlier work but was something of a departure from the sampled setting of Everyone Alive Wants Answers. Instead the album consisted almost entirely of natural, non-synthetic sounds, an approach Schott has stated in interviews that she prefers.

In January 2006 Schott released a live album as part of the Staalplaat label's series of live performances, called Mort Aux Vaches (meaning 'Death to Cows'). A second 2006 release in October, a 14-track EP called Colleen et les Boîtes à Musique ('Colleen and the Music Boxes'), was composed entirely using music boxes.

In May 2007 dancer and choreographer Perrine Valli performed Série, a production with an original score composed by Schott - her first foray into dance.

Les Ondes Silencieuses ('The Still Waters'), Colleen's third full-length album, was released on May 21, 2007. A slight evolution in sound was again heard on the album, as Schott adopted a more free-form approach in place of the use of loops that were so apparent in much of her prior output.

Discography

Albums

• Everyone Alive Wants Answers – June 30 2003 – The Leaf Label
• The Golden Morning Breaks – May 23 2005 – The Leaf Label
• Mort Aux Vaches – January 25 2006 – Staalplaat – Live album, limited to 500 copies.
• Les Ondes Silencieuses – May 21 2007 – The Leaf Label

EPs

• Colleen et les Boîtes à Musique – October 2 2006 – The Leaf Label

Singles

From Everyone Alive Wants Answers:

• "Babies" – 2002 – Active Suspension

References

External links

• Official website
• Official Leaf label site
• Interview with Grooves Magazine
• Interview recording from WNYC radio

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