Three decades deep in electronic music, Claudio C.P. returns with the same free spirit that started it all.
Claudio C.P. has been a fixture of the German and wider European electronic scene since the early 90s, performing as a DJ and, alongside production partner B-Holder, as the live project THE MAGE across clubs and events in Germany, France, Austria and Switzerland between 1993 and 2005. As The Mage, the pair released a remix of Emmanuel Top’s classic “Acid Phase” on Logic Records in 2000, later reissued via Save The Vinyl and BMG and featured on “The Best of Emmanuel Top.” Along the way he crossed paths with key figures from the Frankfurt scene, including Ralf Hildenbeutel, producer for Sven Väth and head of Earth Nation, and picked up regular radio support on HR3 Club Night and HR3 XXL. Now in the final stages of new productions and preparing his return to DJing, Claudio C.P. is working with MN2S Label Services.
How did you get into music? What is your musical background?
My interest in electronic music started when I was eight or nine, listening to Jean-Michel Jarre and Kraftwerk with my father. Growing up through the 80s, electropop coming out of England and Germany, artists like Limahl, Wham and Kajagoogoo, along with “Electrica Salsa” by OFF (Sven Väth with the producers behind Snap!), had a huge influence on me. Then in 1992, when “Accident in Paradise” by Sven Väth came out, produced by Ralf Hildenbeutel, with “L’Esperanza” on it, that was it for me. There was only techno after that. Back then there wasn’t the thousand different subgenres you get today, just house, techno and trance. In 1990 I met a DJ who taught me the basics, and I got my first warm-up slot in a club. I bought my first turntables and mixer and started recording my own sets. I first DJed properly in 1993, at a small but well-known club in Mannheim called Coco. From there it moved quickly, one club led to another, and by 1995 I was playing my first big event, Sirius 4, in front of around 3,000 to 3,500 people, alongside DJs like Marc Spoon and Pascal F.E.O.S., who are sadly no longer with us.
Tell us about your first release and what was special about that one.
My partner B-Holder and I were huge fans of Emmanuel Top and his sound, but by the end of the 90s that early creative spark was starting to fade. We made it our mission to bring that feeling into the new millennium, adapting it for the times, and there was no better track to do that with than Emmanuel Top’s “Acid Phase.” That became our 2000 remix as The Mage.
Could you describe your musical style and creative vision?
My style comes from the 90s, from that versatility and free spirit where everyone could find something that brought a smile to their face without everything being pigeonholed. I’ve made it my mission to bring that feeling back through my music. It should adapt to you, amplify your mood and your feelings. Music should be a companion in life, the friend that’s always by your side and never turns away from you. It should listen to you, understand you, reinforce what you’re feeling. It should never tell you what to think or how to feel. On its own it won’t make you laugh or cry, but together with you, it can. I want to make tracks again that you can listen to at home from beginning to end, not just tracks made purely for DJs to play out.
My sets reflect that same versatility. I play across techno, tech-house and lately jazz elements too, and I never stick to one genre for long. A set has to challenge you. You can’t listen to the same thing for two hours straight.
What advice would you give to anyone thinking of entering the music industry?
Be yourself, not someone else. What already exists doesn’t need repeating. Don’t stick to any boxes, especially the ones other people try to put you in.
What are your plans for the rest of the year and beyond?
Right now I want to focus on my productions and my DJ sets. I’m also thinking a lot about an album, one that brings together elements and the spirit of other musical genres with electronic sound.