Crossover in music – electronics meets acoustic and classical music

It's time to dedicate another article to music. Our recent publications have focused primarily on the visual and performing arts. So this time, let's return to the world of sound .

Crossover: a definition of the term

The term crossover comes from English and translates roughly as "overlap," "crossing," or "crossing." Generally, it refers to the blending of two or more musical styles and genres that were previously separate, thus creating a novel sound composition .

Origin and development

1940–1979

Strictly speaking, the term originally referred to the simultaneous placement of a piece of music belonging to a specific genre in at least two separate charts. The term originated in the 1940s, when the separation of musical styles in charts was the norm.

The crossover story begins with the clear separation of musical styles in the USA. In particular, the introduction of Billboard magazine in 1942 led to the fragmentation of what was initially a unified chart system into separate charts for Black rhythm and blues, white country, and pop. Initially, the respective genres remained within their own charts.

In the following years and decades, this division was increasingly overcome. Among the first crossover artists were the Mills Brothers, Ink Spots, and Louis Jordan .

This trend gained momentum primarily through Pat Boone and others, who covered "Black" original versions, making them accessible to the pop charts. In August 1956, Elvis Presley with "Hound Dog ," selling over 3 million records.

1980–2000

Later, as fusions between rock and other genres emerged and it became unclear where the pieces should be categorized, the term acquired a slightly altered meaning. Over time, this led to the creation of ever more genres and subgenres.

The 1980s stand out in this development, as there was a further trend towards the fusion of different genres. In the North American hardcore punk scene, new forms of expression were sought, and due to the close relationship between the two, metal elements were frequently incorporated.

However, the prevailing aim was to open up the limited punk framework to almost all areas of popular music, and for a long time this stood as a synonym for artistic freedom. Bands were labeled with terms like post-punk or new wave .

While maintaining the core energy of 1970s punk, the movement increasingly experimented with styles such as country, jazz, and funk , which had previously been considered unsuitable. This gave rise to a broad movement of initially subculturally oriented rock music , which steadily evolved away from the original punk sound.

This newly emerging awareness finally found an even wider audience in the early 1990s. Together with the so-called grunge movement , a new scene emerged that distanced itself from punk.

Today

Today, however, only a few bands are explicitly categorized as crossover. This is partly because crossover never specifically and explicitly referred to a particular style, but rather to the blending of different musical styles and stylistic elements.

On the other hand, it is now almost taken for granted that bands draw inspiration from various musical influences. Only in a few genres is the adoption of "diluting" elements from other styles rejected.

Electronics meets acoustics and classical music

While in the 20th century rock and punk music in particular was characterized by crossovers, nowadays many stylistic mixtures are forming in the field of electronic music on the one hand and classical music on the other.

From modern covers with unusual instruments, to experimental reinterpretations, to large and diverse ensembles, the music scene has become extremely colorful and multifaceted in this respect. The DJ, as a musical artist, is also frequently incorporated into these "hybrid" musical pieces and interpretations.

Two modern crossover artists combine different sound worlds

Screaming teenagers, fascinated by the viola and violin – a phenomenon rarely seen in classical concert settings. Wil Baptiste and Kev Marcus, aka “Black Violin”, have made it happen.

Behind the band name are two US-American hip-hop artists from Florida, both of whom were taught and trained classical music

“Stereotypes” is the title of the crossover duo’s latest album. By blending classical music and hip hop, focusing on strong emotions, “Black Violin” break down barriers and inspire young people in particular to do their own thing and explore new paths.

They were just recently on tour in Europe.

Henrik Schwarz has made it into the ranks of the most famous DJs of our time. His instrument is the laptop. A collaboration with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra at the "Jazz Open Stuttgart" inspired the producer and composer for his current project "Instruments" .

Instead of simply layering classical music with beats, as other artists before him had done, he completely dispensed with beats and synthetically generated effects. The minimalist sound was produced by the Tokyo Secret Orchestra using only conventional instruments. This collaboration with classical musicians was a first for the DJ. Here, two cultures collided.

The impressive results achieved through this merger therefore seem all the more surprising.

DJ + Saxophone + Singer + Percussion

Currently, an extremely exciting project is taking place in Nuremberg, which is entirely dedicated to the fusion of different types and styles of electronic and acoustic music.

DJ & Friends, the Nuremberg-based group responsible for the event, presents an impressive combination of DJ and live musicians . DJ in Nuremberg plus singer, saxophone, and percussion – that's the motto of the event. The modular concept unites the advantages of a DJ with the unique charisma of singers, saxophonists, and other top-class live musicians .

The beats from the turntables provide the musical foundation and set the pace. Singers, saxophonists, and percussionists then build upon this foundation, adding virtuoso accents and musical highlights in several show segments. The diverse sounds then combine to create a captivating, top-class performance.

Joachim Rodriguez y Romero

Owner and Managing Director of Kunstplaza . Publicist, editor, and passionate blogger in the fields of art, design, and creativity since 2011. Graduated with a degree in web design from university (2008). Further developed creative techniques through courses in freehand drawing, expressive painting, and theatre/acting. Profound knowledge of the art market gained through years of journalistic research and numerous collaborations with key players and institutions in the arts and culture sector.

www.kunstplaza.de