Part 1

Name: Goeran Meyer
Nationality: German
Occupation: Producer, DJ, label founder at MYR
Current release: Goeran Meyer's Shadows of the Night, featuring a Mario Navajo remix, is out via MYR.
Recommendations: (music) Luv · Pascal FEOS / Heiko MSO; (book) Mastering Audio, Bob Katz

If you enjoyed this Goeran Meyer interview and would like to stay up to date with his music, visit his official website. He is also on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Soundcloud.



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

Personally, I like to listen to music with my eyes closed. Great things just happen with sometimes unpredictable energy.

If I particularly like a certain piece of music, it simply awakens emotional spaces in me. It's a kind of escape from the outside world, a way to immerse myself in the music and explore my own feelings. I find it particularly fascinating when people perform on the dance floor with their eyes closed and absorb the emotions at that very moment. It's as if they are immersed in their own world and absorbing the music.

It is a wonderful sight to watch people being moved by the music and expressing their emotions.

What were your very first steps in music like and how would you rate the gains made through experience - can one train/learn being an artist?

Music has a very special meaning for me. It has accompanied me all my life and has captivated me for over 24 years.

What I find particularly fascinating is its creativity and diversity. In music there is no right or wrong. Any artist or creative person can express themselves through it, and there are countless ways and possibilities to do so.

For me, it is crucial to remain authentic as an artist. It's not so much about embodying a certain image or bending over backwards. It's more about gaining expertise and always trying out new processes and approaches. Especially in the studio process, you can discover and learn a lot of exciting things.

It's a long road to be successful as an artist and it requires perseverance, passion and constant education. You have to be ready to face new challenges and find your own style. There is no magic formula for success as an artist, but with hard work and an open mind, you can go your own way and create unique music.

According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music mean to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

Great study! During this period, I was intensively involved in DJing and producing and discovered my passion for it.

I had the opportunity to set up my own events and gained a lot of great experiences. This time was formative and exciting for me and has influenced me to this day. We attended numerous parties, were out and about in the nightlife for the first time and experienced many impressive concerts and festivals. I firmly believe that my current choice of music for my DJ sets has its roots in this time. My approach to producing was also discovered during those years and has been continuously developed ever since.

Looking back, it was a wonderful time. Things have changed since then, and I've been constantly learning new things, tweaking studio processes, adapting and evolving. I would say that a considerable amount of experience has accumulated.

What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

For me, music is something natural that I like to listen to, produce and play. It is a passion that I live out whenever I feel like it. My motivation usually comes spontaneously and it is important to capture creativity at the right moment. The interactions with people and the connections that are made through music are great and definitely motivating.

Working on my own independent label MYR, I don't experience any pressure as we are not bound by specific deadlines. We have the freedom to decide when we want to present new music. I think this is definitely the biggest key idea behind all my work. It's about having the freedom to realise our artistic vision and create music without restrictions.

To quote a question by the great Bruce Duffie: When you come up with a musical idea, have you created the idea or have you discovered the idea?

In my creative process in music production, I discover most musical ideas rather than consciously construct them.

For me personally, it's a great experience to jam in the studio and make live recordings on analogue synthesizers in Ableton Live. When I jam in the studio, I often go into the session without any concrete ideas or plans. I just play and experiment with different sounds and melodies. This often results in random combinations and musical phrases that I wouldn't have planned. These spontaneous moments are often the ones that inspire me the most and show me new ways.

As soon as I have an interesting sound or melody idea, I record it directly into Ableton Live. Using analogue synthesizers gives me the opportunity to create a warm and organic sound that I think is superior to digital emulations. The recording is done in real time, so I can capture the subtleties of the performance. This also allows me to retain the human aspect and the vibrant energy of the music.

These live recordings often serve as the basis for the further song structure. I analyse the recordings, find out which elements work particularly well and develop the structure and build-up of the song from that. It can be that I take out certain parts, repeat them, change them or expand them in order to let the song grow organically. Sometimes I discover interesting sound details or effects while listening to the recordings, which I elaborate on and integrate into the song.

Overall, I can say that my creative process thrives on discovery and experimentation. Jamming in the studio and recording on analogue synthesizers in Ableton Live are indispensable tools for me to develop the most important and elementary parts of a song and to create a solid foundation for further production.

Paul Simon said “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What's your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

For me personally, it is always a challenge to judge my own music. During the whole process and the time involved, I eventually lose touch with the tracks. I also find it difficult to play my own tracks in DJ sets and I can't explain exactly what it is.

That's why I appreciate the feedback from good friends and long-time musical companions even more. I'm glad that they always give critical and detached feedback on my new works so that I can adjust or change song structures and elements. Their input helps me to look at my music more objectively and develop it further.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?

Observing the blackbird on the neighbour's house during my time on the balcony in summer is extremely fascinating for me.

I have noticed how the blackbird communicates with a female and they respond to each other with their varied chirps. It is amazing how they use their different tones and sequences. It almost seems like a game of question and answer.

From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

Due to the large number of music promos that reach me daily via various agencies, I have the opportunity to listen to different genres of electronic music.

I am mostly drawn to the quieter, deep and bass-heavy tracks with lots of rhythm, percussion and tracks with vocals. I tend to prefer a balanced sound between 120-125 BPM in my DJ mixes and big extremes are usually not represented in my selection.

In the last few years, experimenting with drone sounds has become an integral part of my work in the studio and is a lot of fun. In this context, the electronic devices play an important role, as they give me the impulse to experiment with sounds in the studio.