Hector Zazou 1948-2008

It is with great sadness that we have learned of the death of Hector Zazou. The innovative French composer and producer was a regular visitor to Real World Studios and delighted us all with his unique charm. His international reputation came from his diverse musical projects – from rock to classical, avant garde experimental electronica to pure vocal and world music. He worked in collaboration with artists as diverse as Bjork, Jon Hassell, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Peter Gabriel, Jane Siberry and LIsa Germano.

Real World Records worked closely with Hector when he produced the exquisite album ‘Coming Home’ for Tibetan artists Yungchen Lhamo. He then took a voyage of discovery to Tashkent, Uzbekistan to meet Sevara Nazarkhan and produce her ground-breaking debut album ‘Yol Bolsin’. His bold and beautiful use of strings, traditional instruments alongside electronica gave both albums their futuristic and yet timeless quality.

One of Hector’s most recent projects, a CD/DVD titled Quadri [+] Chromies, result of a two years collaboration with French digital painter Bernard Caillaud which was released in 2006 was designed and authored by the team at Real World’s Multimedia Department.

Peter Gabriel pays tribute to Hector in September’s Moon Club: ” He had a particular, unique personality – very drole, very witty. His musical persona was very emotional but restrained. You could feel the passion but it was kept at an observer’s distance. We will all miss him greatly.”