30/08/2012

IYA 2009 Opening Ceremony - Paris


International Astronomical Union/Jose Francisco Salgado

Jean Michel Jarre - photo 1978 /1989/1993

1989

1978
1993
  com/fulltext


Jean Michel Jarre u Wałęsy

Geniusz muzyki elektronicznej, Jean Michel Jarre wystąpił w Ergo Arenie.
Artysta nie przyleciał jednak tylko na sam koncert. Spędził w Trójmieście dwa dni, podczas których spotkał się między innymi z Lechem Wałęsą.

Nie od dziś wiadomo, że obaj panowie bardzo się lubią i szanują, a w twórczości muzyka można znaleźć wiele odniesień do Solidarności.

Jean Michel Jarre zapewnił też o swoim poparciu dla Gdańska w staraniach o tytuł Europejskiej Stolicy Kultury 2016. 

Jean Michele Jarre i Lech Wałęsa przywitali się serdecznie

Pogawędka w domu Lecha Wałęsy


29/08/2012

Jean Michel Jarre: l'interview "ou-ou" 03 novembre 2010



Jean Michel Jarre, le père « d'Oxygène » est toujours sur scène. De passage à Toulon, où il sera au Zénith le 9 décembre. il a rencontré les lecteurs de Var-matin et s'est prêté à une interview « ou-ou ».





Source: varmatin

Crème Brûlée Jean Michel Jarre PART 1


Here is a podcast (in french) of the last RBMA session in May in Lyon

This month Crème Brûlée speaks to a veritable French musical legend: monsieur Jean Michel Jarre. During the RBMA session during Les Nuits Sonores in Lyon, Jean Michel Jarre talked to French journalist Patrick Thévenin about his fantastic career. From his GRM (Groupe de Recherches Musicales) years to Oxygène, from his gigantic live performances around the world to the 80 million records he sold in between. Crème Brûlée offers two hours of intimate chat with one of the most influential French musicians of all time.

Bon appétit!

1 Happiness Is A Sad Song J
2 Erosmachine
3 La Cage
4 Chanson Des Granges Brûlées
5 Oxygène II
6 Oxygène IV


PART 1:



Source: rbmaradio

Crème Brûlée - Jean Michel Jarre PART 2


Here is a podcast (in french) of the last RBMA session in May in Lyon

This month Crème Brûlée speaks to a veritable French musical legend: monsieur Jean Michel Jarre. During the RBMA session during Les Nuits Sonores in Lyon, Jean Michel Jarre talked to French journalist Patrick Thévenin about his fantastic career. From his GRM (Groupe de Recherches Musicales) years to Oxygène, from his gigantic live performances around the world to the 80 million records he sold in between. Crème Brûlée offers two hours of intimate chat with one of the most influential French musicians of all time.

Bon appétit!

1 Oxygène II
2 Oxygène IV
3 Magnetic Fields I
4 Musique Pour Publicité


PART 2:



Source: rbmaradio

Un premier coup d’oeil sur les AeroSkull de Jarre Technologies





Jarre Technologies diversifie ses gammes de produits, et annonce cet AeroSkull, que l’on imagine être un dock pour iphone au design intriguant. Et capable de restituer un son de haute facture ?

Crée en 2005 par Jean- Michel Jarre lui-même, Jarre Technologies nous avait littéralement soufflé avec son enceinte Aerosystem One.

Fort de ce succès, l’artiste, et plus précisément, sa société, nous fait languir devant un tout nouveau produit, le AeroSkull, prenant des airs de dock iPhone clinquant au possible.

Au delà son aspect, c’est bel et bien sa vocation à dégager un son de qualité qui nous intrigue.
Pour sûr, nous devrions en savoir plus d’ici peu.

En tout cas, une chose est sûre : Jarre Technologies souhaite maintenant s’ouvrir au grand public.

Source: gizmodo.fr

28/08/2012

Jean Michel Jarre wylądował na lotnisku Lecha Wałęsy w Gdańsku - PHOTO (2010)











PHOTO:  (© Karolina Misztal)
Source: dziennikbaltycki

Jarre popiera starania Gdańska o tytuł ESK (wideo i zdjęcia)

2010-11-10
Adrian Dampc, Michał Kowal

Jean Michel Jarre - jedna z największych gwiazd muzyki elektronicznej, ponownie wystąpi w Trójmieście. Podobnie jak w przypadku koncertu upamiętniającego 25 rocznicę Sierpnia'80, czwartkowy koncert jest związany z ważnymi dla Polaków wydarzeniami. W środę o godzinie 15 Jean Michel Jarre wylądował na lotnisku Lecha Wałęsy w Gdańsku gdzie spotkał się z prasą i opowiedział o czwartkowym koncercie.



Muzyk zdaje sobie sprawę, jak istotna w historii Polski jest data 11 listopada i zapowiedział wzięcie udziału w Paradzie Niepodległości organizowanej przez władze Gdańska.

- Cieszę się, że w ten sposób mogę wnieść swój wkład w obchody tego bardzo ważnego dla Polaków święta. To dla mnie przywilej - powiedział Jarre



Artysta zadeklarował także pełne poparcie dla Gdańska w jego staraniach o miano Europejskiej Stolicy Kultury.

Podpisał nawet swój list w tej sprawie będący odpowiedzią na prośbę prezydenta Gdańska Pawła Adamowicza:

Gdańsk jest miejscem szczególnym. To dzięki wydarzeniom, które rozegrały się w Stoczni Gdańskiej rozpoczął się proces demokratycznych przemian w Europie Środkowo Wschodniej, który zmienił oblicze całej wspólnoty europejskiej. To tutaj ludzie zaangażowani w ruch Solidarności pokazali światu, że wspólne, odważne działanie może doprowadzić do zmian, które wydawały się niemożliwe.

Dlatego popieram starania Gdańska o zdobycie tytułu Europejskiej Stolicy Kultury 2016. Dzięki temu zaszczytnemu tytułowi Polacy będą mogli przypomnieć o ideałach wolności i solidarności, nie tylko odwołując się do przeszłości, ale pokazując, że są to idee kluczowe dla przyszłości Europy. Sztuka jest doskonałym narzędziem do osiągnięcia tego celu.


- Czuję się zaszczycony, że mogę pełnić rolę ambasadora Gdańska w staraniach o uzyskanie tego tytułu. - powiedział Jarre. -Myślę, że to nieuniknione zdarzenie. Gdańsk zostanie stolicą kultury. Będę wspierał wasze starania tak tylko jak jest to możliwe - dodał.

Czwartkowy koncert Organizatorzy czwartkowego koncertu Jean Michel Jarre z pewnością liczą na sukces podobny do tego, jaki odniósł ten sprzed pięciu lat. Wtedy przyjazdem muzyka żyło nie tylko Trójmiasto, ale cała Polska. Artysta zaprezentował wówczas przekrój swojej twórczości.

Nie zabrakło oczywiście fragmentów przełomowego dla kariery muzyka albumu "Oxygene".

Znalazły się także akcenty ściśle związane z walką Polaków z komunistycznym reżimem - inscenizacja widowiska odnosiła się bezpośrednio do najnowszej historii i roli odegranej w niej przez NSZZ Solidarność.

Występ Jarre'a obejrzało wtedy na żywo ponad 100 tys. widzów. Kolejne kilka milionów osób śledziło transmisję wydarzenia przed telewizorami.


Koncert został wydany także na płycie DVD, która się stała bestsellerem w polskich sklepach.

To jednak nic, jeśli te wyniki porównać z największym koncertem Jarre'a, który się odbył w Moskwie w 1997 roku. Trafił on do Księgi Rekordów Guinnessa, bo obejrzało go wtedy aż 3,5 mln osób.

Wyniki poprzedniego gdańskiego koncertu nie są możliwe do powtórzenia w hali Ergo Arena, choćby z prozaicznego powodu - hala nie pomieści takiej liczby widzów. Mimo to organizator koncertu, Metal Mind Productions, zapewnia, że bilety na wszystkie z czterech koncertów, które artysta zagra w listopadzie w Polsce, sprzedają się bardzo dobrze.

Koncert odbędzie się 11 listopada, o g. 20, w hali sportowo-widowiskowej na granicy Gdańska i Sopotu

Sopot, ul. Łokietka 61). Bilety kosztują 165-300 zł. Dodatkowe informacje: Agencja Kontakt - tel. 58 554 83 13-14.

Kim jest Jean Michel Jarre?

Muzyka była obecna w życiu artysty już od urodzenia. Jego ojciec - Maurice Jarre - jest uważany za jednego z najsłynniejszych francuskich kompozytorów muzyki filmowej.

Znajomość muzycznego światka szybko pomogła Jarre'owi w odniesieniu pierwszych sukcesów w swoim kraju. Prawdziwym przełomem w karierze muzyka okazał się jednak rok 1976. Wydany wtedy album "Oxygene" sprzedał się w liczbie ponad 10 mln egzemplarzy i uczynił z Jarre'a gwiazdę światowego formatu. Dwa lata później podobny sukces odniosła kolejna płyta "Equinoxe".

Jarre zasłynął też płytą "Music for supermarkets", która była sprzeciwem artysty wobec traktowania muzyki jako produktu.

Na znak protestu powstała tylko jedna kopia albumu. Sprzedano ją później na aukcji za prawie 70 tys. franków, co czyni ją najdroższą francuską płytą w historii.

With its unforgettable hook, Oxygene led the synthesizer revolution of the '70s. Jean Michel Jarre tells why he's bringing it back.

April 3, 2008


"Sounds like" … the keyboardist who fathered a cult, Jean Michel Jarre, performs his mega-selling album Oxygene in full.
Photo: AFP
   

RELEASED in 1976, Oxygene was a sensation: futuristic Continental machine music, not so very different from what Kraftwerk were up to in Dusseldorf at the time, but a whole lot more popular. It sounded wide-eyed and innovative - and seemed to signal a coming era where mankind and technology would synchronise.

Seemingly to be found in every household at the time, the album was a strange, otherworldly artefact. Each unnamed track was numbered: Oxygene I, Oxygene II and so on. But the one that really stood out was the fourth one. It was awash with whooshing Hawkwind-style spacey noises, yet it pulsed with ultra-modern electronic energy.

More importantly, Oxygene IV contained one of the catchiest synth motifs ever: beew ba-boo-boo beew. These five notes made Oxygene a huge, unlikely success story: an instrumental, electronic, ecological concept album that became a global monster.

"Yes," says Jarre when I catch up with him in France, "30 years ago there weren't so many people thinking about the planet. But I've always been interested in that, not necessarily in a political way but in a poetic, surrealistic way."

In 2008, Oxygene still sounds cutely retro-futuristic. Jarre is touring the album in Europe and last Sunday played it in its entirety at London's Royal Albert Hall. The accompanying CD and DVD (which EMI Australia has yet to release, but is available from online stores) incorporate the old analogue technology of the original album.

"These instruments are legends of electronic music and could easily be compared to the Fender Stratocaster for rock'n'roll," he says. "It's the dream of any violinist to play a Stradivarius, an instrument designed centuries ago, and it's the same with these instruments designed by fantastic craftsmen with poetic visions of the future."

His performances are a chance to put the gigantism of his record-breaking outdoor concerts on the backburner and remind people of his roots in the pre-digital electronic vanguard.
Jarre's enormous and famously rain-lashed gig at London's Docklands in 1988 were small fry compared with a 1986 concert in Houston, Texas, attended by 1.5 million, and a Paris gig in 1990 with 2.5 million fans.

Jarre, 59, is the son of Maurice Jarre, who composed music for the films of David Lean, and French Resistance heroine France Pejot. In the '60s, he studied at Pierre Schaeffer's Groupe de Recherche Musicale. Schaeffer was the man who invented musique concrete, the experimental form based on tapes of "found" sounds that created the concept of sampling. Schaeffer taught the young Jarre that "music isn't made of notes, it's made of sounds" and switched him on to the potential of synthesizers. Jarre was soon collecting the equipment with which he would record Oxygene.

"All those ethereal string sounds on Oxygene IV come from the VCS3," he says, "It was the first European synthesizer, made in England by a guy called Peter Zinoviev. I got one of the first ones. I had to go to London in 1967 to get it, and it's the one I still have onstage 40 years later."

Jarre, however, spent a great deal of time dabbling before the formula came together. He tried his hand in bands, recorded an unsuccessful synth album, soundtracked a feature film, composed for a ballet and produced advertising jingles (one of which, for the 1974 opening of the Paris toll-road Autoroute A4, is rumoured to contain the original incarnation of Oxygene IV).

His main source of income was as writer of French hits for artists such as Patrick Juvet and Francoise Hardy, but back in the kitchen of his flat in Rue de Tremoille, Paris, he recorded a burgeoning arsenal of analogue synthesizers on his eight-track. "I wanted to find a bridge between musique concrete, electro-acoustic music and proper rock music," he says.

A painting he bought of the earth peeling to reveal a skull inspired a loose concept for the music. It was by the ecologically motivated artist Michel Granger and the pair met, agreeing its use as cover art. In 1976, however, the idea didn't find many takers.

"No singers, no proper titles, just: I, II, III, IV, V and VI," sighs Jarre. "Even my mum was telling me, 'Why are you calling your album by the name of a gas?' It was refused by a lot of companies."
Eventually, Jarre's fellow former Schaeffer student Helene Dreyfus persuaded her husband Francis to put Oxygene out on his label Disques Motors (now Disques Dreyfus). Although initially unconvinced by synthesizers, Dreyfus took a gamble and pressed a run of 50,000.

Oxygene IV was soon plucked out as the pivotal track. In Britain, the BBC's Radio 1 began supporting it and, on the Continent, Europe 1 made it the theme to one of its regular programs.
The long-term Jarre associate Francis Rimbert, then working in a Paris music shop, recalls: "If you entered a music store with keyboards, you'd see all the young beginners trying to play Oxygene IV. A massive phenomenon was happening."

Oxygene went on to sell 15 million copies. But Jarre became tarred with an unwanted brush. In 1976, there was already a thriving prog-synth scene.

Richard Branson made his first Virgin million on the back of Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells (1973); names such as Tangerine Dream, Tomita and Wendy Carlos had solid student-hippy followings. Jarre says that Oxygene was "a UFO arriving during the period of disco, punk and the Sex Pistols", but it didn't gel with the zeitgeist.

Punk, when it eventually gave any time to synths, favoured the coldness of Kraftwerk, which translated into the glacial posturing of Cabaret Voltaire, Gary Numan and early Human League. Kraftwerk became the godfathers of electro and techno, two permanently cool genres.
Jarre always eschewed robotic references and, while he could reasonably claim a stake in clubland's popular trance sound, his persistent allusions to earthy elements and "the biosphere" have forever associated him with the new age movement.

Telegraph, London
Telegraph, LondonOxygene: Live In Your Living Room is available as an import.

Source: smh

Jean Michel Jarre Press Conference - June 4, 2010




Jean Michel Jarre wished to pay tribute to this legendary, literary giant in giving the title of « 2010 » to his world tour which debuted six months ago to full houses in the United Kingdom, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Holland, Poland…and to audiences of all generations. One word welcomed him on the road: Pioneer.

Today, Jean Michel Jarre is synonymous with Myth. Oxygene, Equinoxe, Magnetic Fields, but also Deserted Palace or Zoolook imposed a visionary genre of music of which we can find influences of amongst many artists, from Air to Daft Punk, Moby or The Chemical Brothers.

His concerts are also part of the Jarre myth. Those who have had the opportunity to witness these exceptional events that have marked his career, from China to Houston, London Docklands to the Great Pyramids of Egypt…will forever remember these extraordinary events.

To partake in this incredible experience, Jarre has decided to revisit his « all-in-one-show » concept, by integrating the very latest technology in sound, light and special effects for an outstanding result.
A unique opportunity to live, or relive, an extraordinary moment. 

Jean Michel Jarre first came to international fame in 1977 with his number one hit album, « OXYGENE » which went on to sell over 18 million copies worldwide.

An extraordinary destiny, that of Jean Michel Jarre’s, following in the path of another, that of his father, Maurice Jarre, composer of some of the most famous and popular soundtracks of legendary Hollywood films
(Doctor Zivago, Laurence of Arabia…) : two musicians, two celebrities, father and son, renowned worldwide for their individual, singular talent.
Jean Michel Jarre, a pioneer in his field, has largely contributed to the fastest growing musical revolution of the 20th century, electronic music : conceiving music in terms of sounds rather than only in terms of notes, and thus allowing the composer to become his own craftsman.

Having followed formal studies of harmony and counterpoint at the Conservatoire de Paris, he was inspired to reinvent music at its core, with his own singular vision, deploying the technology and tools of his epoch. This pioneering approach gave birth to worldwide hit albums such as “OXYGENE”, “EQUINOXE”, MAGNETIC FIELDS”, “ZOOLOOK”, “RENDEZ-VOUS”, “WAITING FOR COUSTEAU”….over 80 million albums sold to date.

Following through with his revolution in music, he also conceived a brand-new genre and format of concerts ; breaking away from the traditional theatre and arena context, Jarre brought his music and vision outdoors to the masses. Often free and open-to-all, these state-of-the-art concert-spectaculars showcase the natural or urban environment in which they are performed – a truly singular sonic and visual “land-art” event, conceived and performed on a unique scale for a one-off experience.
Jarre’s legendary concerts have attracted Guinness Record-breaking audiences across the planet. Their settings, their contexts and their players encompass History, politics, environmental statements, socio- cultural coups, mass media coverage…amongst others.

They take place in exceptional settings, marking extra-ordinary contexts: From post-Mao’s Red China to that of today, from Texas in collaboration with NASA and the tragedy of Challenger, to the concert welcoming His Holiness Pope John-Paul II to the city of Lyon in France during, historically, one of the country’s most vicious waves of terrorism and coinciding with fatal predictions delivered by Nostradamus, from the
saga of the Docklands with players such as HRH Diana Princess of Wales, colourful tycoon and media mogul Robert Maxwell, not withstanding the atrocious weather conditions…

From Poland for Solidarnosc at the initiative of Nobel Peace Laureate, Lech Walesa, to Paris for the environmental statement voiced by Jarre in the name of Jacques-Yves Cousteau, to the Great Pyramids of Egypt welcoming the New Millennium, to the absolute record live audience of 3.5 million in Moscow, and his ongoing engagement to the United Nations via UNESCO as Ambassador and spokesperson for Environment and Education….the well-travelled path of this visionary musician and humanitarian is certainly most unique : an exceptional log-book retracing his and our epoch on so many levels.

2009-2010 sees Jarre booked for his first ever world tour. Over 100 dates where he offers a rare opportunity to share his talent live – to date, the European arenas played to full-house, have revealed a most cross-over audience : young amateurs of techno-electro, white-collar professionals, the high-tech & audiophile 40-somethings, the original Oxygene generation…and women of all ages who nurture an ongoing crush for the suave Frenchman.

But if Jarre’s music is so universal, it is also because it is in a timeless class of its own, created by a man who has always followed his own vision and expression far from the passing trends, driven by an immense curiosity for the world and universe in which we evolve : the wonders & sounds of nature, the awareness of preserving our planet, the politics and sociology of our times, the rich variety of culture and people across the continents, the fantastic evolution of technology in our living generation, how music is truly a universal language whatever the age, gender, culture or class…These themes that have always driven Jarre, and that are the foundations of his successful and ongoing singular career.





Jean-Michel Jarre - World Tour May 22, 2009




WEMBLEY LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - In a stunning tour de force of energy harnessed and channeled, Jean-Michel Jarre performed before a packed audience in Wembley Arena. In this his first ever World Tour, Jarre provided a unique and intimate opportunity for audiences see his electronic wizardry up-close-and personal, featuring music from his milestone albums, played live on the original analogue synthesizers, and legendary Laser Harp. Jean-Michel had them standing in the aisles. And on this auspicious occasion, Jean-Michel Jarre embraced the race, the World Sky Race.

On hand to witness his live performance at Wembley were Don Hartsell the Commissioner of the World Air League and Mike Mansfield, the TV producer who captured the spirit of the Millennium when he filmed Jean-Michel Jarre's historic sunset to sunrise Millennium concert at the foot of the Great Pyramids.

At the outset of his career Jean-Michel revolutionized the art of live concert performances when he created his spectacular, cityscape concerts, painting the architecture and the skies of some of the planets major landmarks, in sound and light ; Paris, London, Beijing, Moscow, Cairo, Houston...

"In physics there are many forces that act on each other and build into a greater expression of awesome power. As our Artistic Director, this is the creative energy that Jean-Michel brings to the World Sky Race. With his direction, we will achieve memorable crystallized visualizations for the world to enjoy and savor." - Don Hartsell

Source:  worldskyrace

2010 Air France Foundation prize:



One of the Foundation's administrators, Jean-Michel Jarre, next to Pierre-Henri Gourgeon, CEO of Air France



 Source: airfrance

Perth Fashion Festival event Jul 31, 2012



Mariella Harvey-Hanrahan & Jean Michel Jarre



(Pictures by Matt Jelonek)

source: au.news

27/08/2012

Man seeks to stage around-the-world blimp race

By Marina Csomor, Special to CNN
August 17, 2012

The World Sky Race will take airships over famed world landmarks, including the great Egyptian pyramids  

(CNN) -- Don Hartsell knows his idea could be considered crazy.

"I thought this project was so large, so ambitious, that no one would take me seriously," says the Texas resident and aircraft enthusiast. "In fact, I was concerned they would think I was insane."
Hartsell is talking about his World Sky Race, which as conceived would be a grand global spectacle. If all goes according to plan, a fleet of airships will take off from London in 2014 and race each other around the world, watched by millions of spectators, before finishing six months later just outside of Paris.

The event is planned as a series of 18 back-to-back races that will circumnavigate the globe. Although the route isn't finalized, the proposed path will take pilots over at least four continents and about 130 United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage sites -- among them the Egyptian pyramids, the Taj Mahal, the Statue of Liberty and the Palace of Versailles.

Hartsell, founder of a group of blimp enthusiasts known as the World Air League, expects celebrations in each of the cities where the airships touch down, with wide-eyed children gathering to see the blimps float overhead. He estimates 140 million people around the world will witness the race -- a number that dwarfs the 5 million or so spectators for the London Olympic Games.

Don Hartsell, commissioner of the World Air League.
The first-place prize for the speediest airship? Hartsell promises at least $5 million and the title of World Sky Champion. He plans to officially announce the race at Versailles this fall, giving interested competitors almost two years to prepare.

A far-fetched dream?

As you can imagine, there are still a lot of "ifs" surrounding the World Sky Race. Skeptics might rightly wonder if it will ever happen. Start dates have been thrown around for years -- September 2011 was one that was widely reported -- and yet Hartsell's race has yet to get off the ground.

Hartsell says he is still securing sponsors and raising prize money, as well as negotiating with princes and politicians for permission to fly airships over their landmarks. The market crash of 2008 caused delays and led potential sponsors to walk away, he says.

Hartsell estimates there are 30 to 35 airships in the world, and he hopes to rally at least five of them to participate in the race. Each blimp will represent a nation, region or city, which he believes will encourage fan and sponsor support. He expects the race to cost about $50 million, to be financed by donations and sponsorships.

"It's being funded purely by that good old mechanism we call capitalism," he said.
For each of the 18 legs of the race, the blimps will have to follow a set flight path. They will fly about 2,000 feet above sea level, making them visible to people on the ground. The airships expect to average about 70 miles per hour, which would allow them to travel about 1,000 miles a day, Hartsell says.

Competitors will be timed from the moment they depart to the moment they arrive at an official endpoint. The blimp with the shortest cumulative time will be crowned the victor.


From the Hindenburg to Goodyear

Mention of airships brings to mind the 1937 Hindenburg disaster, in which a German passenger airship went up in flames while attempting to dock in New Jersey, killing 36 people. The Hindenburg was a rigid blimp, with an aluminum frame containing hydrogen-filled bags that lifted it into the air. Many airships today are non-rigid vessels that have no frame and are instead filled with helium -- which, unlike hydrogen, is not flammable.

Tim Crouch, senior curator of aeronautics at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, said airships had their heyday during the first 40 years of the 20th century because they were more capable than airplanes of carrying heavy loads over long distances. But as airplanes grew larger and faster, blimps were used less often to ferry cargo.

The military used blimps for surveillance and reconnaissance until the 1960s, said Crouch, noting that the U.S. Navy has been experimenting with a blimp again in recent years. In recent decades airships such as the Goodyear or DirecTV blimps have been used for commercial purposes, usually at parades and sporting events.

Crouch said using airships as advertising is an age-old tradition he can see investors buying into, especially in a race around the world.
"Those kinds of aeronautical challenges always pique people's interests," he said. "I mean, I'd watch that -- wouldn't you?"

UNESCO's role

The idea for the World Sky Race first came to Hartsell when he was 23 years old and in New York City for the U.S. bicentennial celebration of 1976. As he watched the Goodyear blimp hover over tall-masted sailing ships in the harbor, he envisioned creating an airship race that would unite and inspire people like the bicentennial did.

But it wasn't until 30 years later, after he worked as a accountant, an attorney and an entrepreneur, that Hartsell decided it was finally time to make the World Sky Race a reality.

"I started this out with, 'OK, you're at a point in your life where either you can retire or you can do something worthwhile.' I went, 'Are you still crazy?' Then the next question I asked myself was, 'How's your health?' Because to put this together has turned into a large undertaking. Then the third question: 'If not now?' And so with that, it started."

Hartsell has found backing for his venture from such heavyweights as the former CEO of Lockheed Martin, a member of Jordan's royal family and officials at UNESCO. Francesco Bandarin, UNESCO's assistant director general for culture, said the race would allow the U.N. to highlight its World Heritage sites, which range from natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon to man-made landmarks like the Sydney Opera House.

"This offers a great opportunity to publicize the sites, and ... the need to rally international support for their conservation," Bandarin said. "This race would be a world premiere -- something never tried."

'He thinks big'

As Hartsell sees it, his event isn't just about racing blimps.
He has enlisted the help of Scott McNealy, former chairman of tech giant Sun Microsystems, to use the World Sky Race as a teaching tool for children around the world.

Since his days in Silicon Valley, McNealy has helped create Cirriki, a nonprofit that allows educators to share K-12 curricula on its website. McNealy hopes to use Cirriki.org to help teachers and students track the race and to give them lesson plans about geology, ecology, history and culture related to the airships' travel around the world.

"Anything that gets students out of the rut of the physical textbook I think is a good thing," McNealy said. "I never would have come up with a blimp race as a way to do that, but you can see that it would be very fascinating to young kids."

Hartsell also hopes the race will spur the development of new airship technology. He sees these vessels, which require less fuel and infrastructure than many other means of transportation, as the future of aviation.

"It makes so much sense for the environment, and it also makes so much sense for not having to build the roads and not having to dredge the harbors," he said.

Even as a member of the World Sky Race's advisory council, McNealy confesses he doesn't know exactly when, or even if, the race will happen. But he hopes Hartsell's dream for this one-of-a-kind event comes to fruition someday.

"You've got to give him credit," McNealy said. "He thinks big."

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • Texas aircraft enthusiast is planning a blimp race that would circle the globe
  • The World Sky Race would kick off in 2014 from London and end outside of Paris
  • Organizer Don Hartsell estimates 140 million people around the world will witness the race
  • Hartsell says he is still securing sponsors and raising the $5 million prize money
Source: edition.cnn.com

Mr. Jean-Michel Jarre is named the Artistic - World Sky Race 2012


Mr. Jean-Michel Jarre, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, Artistic Director of World Sky Race
PARIS, FRANCE - Mr. Jean-Michel Jarre agreed to join the World Air League Honorary Board of Directors and will serve as Artistic Director for the Inaugural World Sky Race. Jean-Michel Jarre is a Goodwill Ambassador for UNESCO. As a performance artist, Mr. Jarre is a pioneer and a revolutionary superstar of electro-acoustic music. His unique signature concerts are a fusion of high performance analogue synthesizers choreographed with extravagant and cutting edge lasers and bold pyrotechnics. His mega-event concerts have attracted world recording setting audiences. Listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, Mr. Jarre's Oxygene concert was performed in Moscow before a live audience of 3.5 Million. The stages for his adrenalin inspired performances are timeless, epic and legendary.

In the role of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, Mr. Jarre uses his international events as a platform to raise public awareness of UNESCO's mission. He regularly performs at UNESCO World Heritage sites, helping to promote the importance of heritage preservation to millions of people around the globe. A tireless campaigner for the rights and education of youth, he sends a powerful and positive message of tolerance, multiculturalism and respect for all to young people everywhere.

In accepting his new role, "The World Sky Race is an inspiring and audacious challenge, that the world needs today more than ever. I am greatly honored to be a part of creating this spectacular and inspiring event." - Jean-Michel Jarre.







Source: www.worldskyrace


                                                       
                                        Worldskyrace
                                             
Blimp Enthusiast Is Buoyed by Idea of a Round-the-World Race

MORE: online

Jean-Michel Jarre : Fiesta de folie au VIP Room pour son anniversaire


27 Août 2012


Au milieu des palmiers et des plages de sable fin, le VIP Room de Saint-Tropez demeure l'épicentre de la folie azuréenne. La jet-set du monde entier s'y bouscule frénétiquement tous les étés, avec la garantie d'une soirée réussie, orchestrée par les meilleurs DJ du monde. Jean-Michel Jarre, grand habitué des lieux, en sait quelque chose...






Comme l'an dernier à la même époque, c'est au VIP Room de Saint-Tropez qu'il a célébré son anniversaire, ce samedi 25 août. Pour souffler ses 64e bougies, l'auteur-compositeur de renom a investi le temps d'une soirée de folie le night-club de son ami Jean-Roch. Les deux complices se connaissent bien puisqu'il y a dix ans de cela, Jarre faisait une sacrée fleur à Jean-Roch, en composant pour lui Geometry of Love pour devenir l'hymne de ses discothèques VIP Room.

Au son des plus grands hits du moment remixés en live, Jean-Michel Jarre, sourire aux lèvres et entouré de tous ses amis, s'est offert une nouvelle jeunesse le temps d'une soirée. L'artiste a siroté quelques coupes de champagne et s'est délecté d'un délicieux gâteau aux fruits rouges et à la crème sur lequel trônaient deux feux de bengale projetant des étincelles.

Célibataire depuis son divorce d'avec Anne Parillaud il y a deux ans de cela, Jean-Michel demeure un père de famille épanoui. Papa d'Emilie et de David, il est même doublement grand-père, Emilie ayant deux enfants. Nul doute qu'une célébration en famille de son 64e anniversaire est prévu dans un cadre plus intimiste mais tout aussi joyeux, afin de construire de nouveaux souvenirs impérissables...

Joachim Ohnona 

Source: purepeople.com