Oxygene: Decoding Jean-Michel Jarre’s Synthe­si­zer Masterpiece

7. November 2024
| Lifestyle, Unterhaltung, Musikproduktion
| Doctor Mix
Kurze Zusam­men­fas­sung 🚀

Tauche ein in die Welt von Jean-Michel Jarres “Oxygene” und entde­cke die Magie hinter seinen Synthe­si­zer-Klängen, der Kompo­si­ti­on und Instru­men­tie­rung. Dieses Video bietet eine umfas­sen­de Analyse dieses einfluss­rei­chen Albums von 1976 und beleuch­tet die musika­li­sche Genia­li­tät von Jarre. Erfahre mehr über die verwen­de­ten Synthe­si­zer, die harmo­ni­schen Struk­tu­ren und die innova­ti­ven Klang­land­schaf­ten, die “Oxygene” zu einem zeitlo­sen Meister­werk machen.

Die wichtigs­ten Punkte 📌

Kernin­hal­te

  • Analyse der Musik und der Instru­men­tie­rung von Jean-Michel Jarres “Oxygene”.
  • Beschrei­bung der verwen­de­ten Synthe­si­zer wie ARP, AKS, VCS3 und RMI.
  • Erklä­rung der Harmo­nien und musika­li­schen Struk­tu­ren des Albums.
  • Hervor­he­bung des innova­ti­ven Sound­de­signs und der Klanglandschaften.
  • Bedeu­tung des Vinyl­hö­rens für ein optima­les Musikerlebnis.

Analyse und Gedanken

  • Jarres Musik wird als klassisch beein­flusst beschrie­ben, mit cleve­ren Harmo­nien und elektro­ni­schen Elementen.
  • Die Klang­land­schaf­ten des Albums sind beein­dru­ckend und haben auch nach Jahrzehn­ten nichts von ihrer Wirkung verloren.
  • Jarres Kompo­si­ti­ons­stil ist komplex und durch­dacht, mit unerwar­te­ten Rhyth­mus­wech­seln und Harmonien.
  • Die Verwen­dung von Synthe­si­zern ist innova­tiv und wegwei­send für die elektro­ni­sche Musik.
  • Das Album wird als Meister­werk der elektro­ni­schen Musik und als Inspi­ra­ti­on für viele Künst­ler gewürdigt.

Fazit

Jean-Michel Jarres “Oxygene” ist ein zeitlo­ses Meister­werk, das die Grenzen der elektro­ni­schen Musik erwei­tert hat. Die detail­lier­te Analyse in diesem Video bietet faszi­nie­ren­de Einbli­cke in die musika­li­sche Genia­li­tät von Jarre und die innova­ti­ven Techni­ken, die er verwen­de­te, um seinen einzig­ar­ti­gen Sound zu kreieren.

Inhalt mit Sprungmarken ⏩

Eintau­chen in Jarres “Oxygene” (00:07)

Doctor Mix begrüßt die Zuschau­er und führt sie in das Thema des Videos ein: eine detail­lier­te Analyse von Jean-Michel Jarres Album “Oxygene”. Er betont seine Begeis­te­rung für das Album und erklärt seine Absicht, die Musik Stück für Stück zu erfor­schen. Des Weite­ren stellt er die Kopfhö­rer von Beyer­dy­na­mic vor, die er für ein optima­les Hörerleb­nis verwen­det, und erwähnt die verschie­de­nen Synthe­si­zer, die Jarre für die Klang­ge­stal­tung des Albums einsetzte.

Harmo­ni­sche Raffi­nes­se und elektro­ni­sche Einflüs­se (04:19)

In diesem Abschnitt taucht der Sprecher tiefer in die musika­li­sche Struk­tur von “Oxygene” ein. Er analy­siert die Harmo­nien und beschreibt sie als clever konstru­iert und von klassi­scher Musik beein­flusst. Die Verwen­dung von vermin­der­ten Akkor­den und elektro­ni­schen Klängen wird hervor­ge­ho­ben, und es wird auf die einzig­ar­ti­ge Verschmel­zung dieser Elemen­te hinge­wie­sen. Der Sprecher demons­triert anhand von Beispie­len, wie Jarre mit musika­li­schen Motiven arbei­tet und diese im Laufe der Stücke variiert.

Zeitlo­se Klang­land­schaf­ten und progres­si­ve Struk­tu­ren (08:57)

Doctor Mix lenkt die Aufmerk­sam­keit auf die außer­ge­wöhn­li­che Klang­land­schaft von “Oxygene”. Er beschreibt das Album als progres­siv und betont die nahtlo­sen Übergän­ge zwischen den Stücken, die eine zusam­men­hän­gen­de Hörerfah­rung schaf­fen. Die Bedeu­tung des VCS3-Synthe­si­zers für Jarres Sound wird hervor­ge­ho­ben, und es wird erläu­tert, wie er damit atmosphä­ri­sche Klänge und sogar Natur­ge­räu­sche erzeugt.

Analyse der musika­li­schen Struk­tur und Kompo­si­ti­on (13:07)

Dieser Abschnitt konzen­triert sich auf die musika­li­sche Struk­tur und Kompo­si­ti­on von “Oxygene”. Der Sprecher analy­siert die Übergän­ge zwischen verschie­de­nen musika­li­schen Abschnit­ten und erklärt, wie Jarre klassi­sche Schreib­tech­ni­ken einsetzt. Die Verwen­dung von Bassli­ni­en, Arpeg­gi­os und melodi­schen Fragmen­ten wird unter­sucht, um die komple­xe Struk­tur der Musik zu verdeutlichen.

Komple­xe Rhyth­mik und harmo­ni­sche Raffi­nes­se (17:24)

Doctor Mix geht auf die komple­xe Rhyth­mik und Harmo­nik in Jarres Musik ein. Er beschreibt die Verwen­dung von ungera­den Taktar­ten und Synko­pen, die den Hörer überra­schen und fesseln. Die rhyth­mi­sche Verschie­bung und die Betonung bestimm­ter Schläge erzeu­gen ein Gefühl von Bewegung und Spannung, das für Jarres Stil charak­te­ris­tisch ist.

Kreati­ve Kompo­si­ti­on und dynami­sche Klang­land­schaf­ten (22:04)

In diesem Abschnitt wird die kreati­ve Kompo­si­ti­on und Impro­vi­sa­ti­on in “Oxygene” hervor­ge­ho­ben. Der Sprecher beschreibt, wie Jarre mit musika­li­schen Mustern arbei­tet, diese bricht und neu zusam­men­setzt, um eine dynami­sche Klang­land­schaft zu schaf­fen. Die Verwen­dung von Synthe­si­zer-Pads, melodi­schen Linien und rhyth­mi­schen Elemen­ten wird analy­siert, um die Vielschich­tig­keit der Musik zu verdeutlichen.

Die Bedeu­tung des Vinyl­hö­rens und die Magie der Inter­lu­des (26:24)

Der Sprecher spricht über die Bedeu­tung des Vinyl­hö­rens für ein authen­ti­sches Musik­erleb­nis. Er betont die Rolle von Inter­lu­des, die als Pausen zwischen den energie­ge­la­de­nen Stücken dienen und dem Hörer Zeit zum Reflek­tie­ren geben. Das Konzept des Konzept­al­bums und die Art und Weise, wie Jarre dieses in “Oxygene” umsetzt, werden erläutert.

Impro­vi­sa­ti­on und die Magie der vermin­der­ten Akkorde (30:39)

Doctor Mix schließt die Analyse ab, indem er die Rolle der Impro­vi­sa­ti­on in Jarres Musik hervor­hebt. Die Verwen­dung von vermin­der­ten Akkor­den und deren Bedeu­tung für die harmo­ni­sche Spannung wird ein letztes Mal betont. Der Sprecher verab­schie­det sich mit einem Aufruf zum Entspan­nen und Genie­ßen der Musik von Jean-Michel Jarre.

Views, Likes und Kommentare 💬

Video-Statis­ti­ken

Views: 68.721
Likes: 5.023
Kommen­ta­re: 751
Upload: 07.11.2024, 16:15:17

Top 25 Kommentare

@Doctormix 07.11.2024, 16:01:38
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13 Likes
@geiss48 10.11.2024, 13:38:05
I just disco­ver­ed this video and watched it. Thanks to Doctor Mix for his enthu­si­asm and for highlight­ing the Oxygene album. It brings back my memories of working with Jean-Michel Jarre in 1976. It was 2 years earlier that he had been given my telepho­ne number follo­wing my presen­ta­ti­on of the ARP 2600 for the AES (Audio Enginee­ring Society). I confess I still wonder how I ended up working on such a legen­da­ry album!
I had noticed that, apart from the single Oxygene 4, the contents of the album were little known. Hence the interest of this analy­sis. In fact, I’ve heard a number of criti­cisms of this single, often descri­bed by musici­ans as simpli­stic.
I thought it would be useful to add a few details.
First, the techni­cal context of the recor­ding.
The recor­der was an 8‑track Scully. In today’s unlimi­t­ed-track environ­ment, it’s not uncom­mon for projects to reach several dozen tracks. But… each of the 8 tracks contai­ned several parts, some of them comple­te­ly diffe­rent. Conse­quent­ly, to achieve the final mix of one side of the vinyl, we worked in sections. Each was made up of pieces of magne­tic tape cut with a razor blade and assem­bled with adhesi­ve tape. And as console automa­ti­on was not yet available in 76, mixing was done in real time with several pairs of hands. Each person was respon­si­ble for his or her own work, and could­n’t make a mistake or they’d have to start all over again!
One of my roles was to take care of the recor­dings, and in parti­cu­lar to make “on-the-fly” pick-ups of sections to be re-recor­ded, the “drop-ins”. Jean-Michel had also consul­ted me on the struc­tu­re of the single. My experi­ence of music fairs had enabled me to advise him on the purcha­se of new instru­ments when he was looking to expand his sound palette. And so RMI’s Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer entered the studio. Its arpeg­gia­tor forms the basis of Oxygene 4. And it’s also this arpeg­gia­tor, plugged into Electro Harmonix’s Electric Mistress flanger, which makes the chorus sound on the single.
It’s also quite fair to say that JM Jarre’s signa­tu­re sound was largely the result of combi­ning the strings of the Eminent 310 with Electro Harmonix’s phasing pedal, the Small Stone, also for Equinoxe. in princi­ple inten­ded for guita­rists (the guitar had been Jean-Michel’s 1st instru­ment in his rock band). But Oxygene’s sound is also largely derived from the use of the Revox tape recor­der as an echo chamber. During the recor­ding sessi­ons, the Revox was constant­ly running. Then, during mixing at Studio Gang, the same Revox was used with the same settings.
Yes, Doctor Mix at 7“36 is indeed an imita­ti­on of an opera voice, played on the VCS3, which Jean-Michel humorous­ly called ‘Arlette’ (the female first name).
As for the sounds of noise, they come from three sources, two analog and one digital. One, heard mainly on the A side, is produ­ced by the VCS3. The granu­lar sound evokes the sound of pebbles on a beach. Another noise sound is produ­ced by the ARP 2600. Well done Doctor! And at 28“37, you were right to mention cutoff movements on the filter. Jean-Michel had also entrus­ted me with this role and direc­ted me like a conduc­tor! I also created the seagull sound you hear in this part. I certain­ly had a good mastery of the 2600. And finally, the other noise sound in Oxygene 5, this one rhyth­mic, comes from the RMI.
Of course, Jean-Michel Jarre could very well have given these explana­ti­ons. But given his many activi­ties, I’m not sure he’d have the time. And given the interest of this video, I thought you might like these details.
And thanks to Doctor Mix, who, thanks to this video, has enabled me to tell this important part of my life story. Michel Geiss
121 Likes
@Nidels 07.11.2024, 22:24:42
Let me tell you a few things about this album:

Part 1: The album begins with some very echoy notes made with the magni­fi­cent Eminent 310U electro­nic organ to which, little by little, other instru­ments are added. The human voice that makes the main melody is made with the AKS synthe­si­zer and this sound is Jarre’s favori­te, accor­ding to his own words. In the middle part of the song, some low notes made with a Minimoog that was barely used on the album and that is out of the credits, give way to some powerful rising brass programmed in the ARP 2600 synthe­si­zer. Finally we come to the last minutes of the theme, in which, a background noise made with the VCS3 will accom­pa­ny us until the end of the theme while we resume with some strings of the Eminent 310U the main melody that was previous­ly made by the human voice of the VCS3. Meanwhile, some sound effects produ­ced with the VCS3 begin to be heard, which will conclude the song, giving way to the second Part of the Album.

Part 2: links direct­ly to part 1 of the album begin­ning with a rolling sequence perfor­med on the AKS synthe­si­zer. The sound of the bass seems to have been done with the ARP 2600, while almost all the special effects were done with the VCS 3. The rhythm is handled exclu­si­ve­ly by the Korg Mini pop 7 Rhythmi Compu­ter drum machine.
There is no data on what instru­ment he used to perform the main melody, although the flute sound was surely made with the ARP 2600. The human choirs are, of course, made with the Mello­tron. The wind sound is made with the VCS 3 proces­sed by an Electroh­ar­mo­nix Small­to­ne pedal.

Part 3: The song begins with the farfisa organ that ends in a C minor chord while some low notes of a Minimoog make a melody that will soon be accom­pa­nied by some higher notes throug­hout the song made by the RMI Harmo­nic synthe­si­zer.. The human voice is made with the VCS3 synthe­si­zer. The song ends with the sound of some birds. Surely a real recor­ding.

Part 4: This is par excel­lence the single from the album and the song that made Jean Michel Jarre famous. The wind sound is made by the VCS 3 monopho­nic synthe­si­zer and the rhythm by the Korg Mini pop 7 drum machine. The string cushion throug­hout the entire track is made by the Eminent 310U and the sound is proces­sed by a pedal. Small­to­ne by Electroh­ar­mo­nix that gives it that so shall we say… spatial sound. The sound of the main melody is made with the ARP 2600 and was programmed by Michel Geiss. The violins or strings of the melody are made with the Eminent and the third melody or varia­ti­on is made with an RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer, a device Michel Geiss insis­ted Jarre buy. The basses were recor­ded by hand and possi­bly made with the ARP 2600, although there is no infor­ma­ti­on on what synthe­si­zer they were made with.
The special effects “Pssss­s­s­s­s­ss” are done with the AKS and the special effects at the end of the song that link to part 5 are done with the ARP 2600. This sound could also be produ­ced by vcs 3, since there are videos with a perfect emula­ti­on of that sound recrea­ted by both synthe­si­zers.

Part 5: Begins with a few notes from the Farfisa organ with the whole palm of the hand on the keys and which creeps towards the top of the keyboard. This keyboard is also in charge of the melody during the first minutes of this first part in which the theme is divided. The low notes are made if I remem­ber correct­ly by the RMI harmo­nic synthe­si­zer that will play a funda­men­tal role in the second part of the topic. The high notes are more than likely also from the RMI due to the peculi­ar type of sound that this synthe­si­zer has. In the second part, the RMI arpeg­gia­tor kicks in, making a fast and frene­tic bass sequence until the end of the song. Rhyth­mic sounds with white noise are also made with the RMI while the melody solo is made with the Eminent 310U Organ. The short note rhyth­mic sounds that accom­pa­ny the main melody solo are played on the Eminent 310U. The sound of waves crashing “Or fireworks rising and explo­ding” was made with the ARP 2600 and programmed by Michel Geiss

Part 6: The rhythm of part 6 is done by the Korg Mini Pop. The theme is played entire­ly on the Eminent. Halfway through the song, a high-pitched sound made with the RMI harmo­nic synthe­si­zer is added to the melody, but it is barely noticeable. The sound of the seagulls is made with the ARP 2600 synthe­si­zer.

Some anecdo­tes:

This album has current­ly sold 18 million copies.
Jean Michel recor­ded it in his kitchen, since he lived in a tiny apart­ment in the center of Paris with black painted walls.
The apart­ment was comple­te­ly empty because his ex-girlfri­end had taken every­thing in the apart­ment.
Jarre hardly had any instru­ments, so Michel Geiss had to lend him some synthe­si­zers in order to carry out the great ideas he had told him about.
The mello­tron had several broken keys, so Jarre had to adapt the chords from Oxygene Part 2 to the keys that worked.
To record Oxýgene and having so little money, Jarre had to go to a thrift store where he bought a Scully 8‑track recor­der. The album was recor­ded in 6 weeks.

A hug.
137 Likes
@mraduanemc 07.11.2024, 17:41:41
This is the most important electro­nic album for me. Like so many, I heard it when I a little kid. It shaped my dreams and my memory of a fanta­sti­cal future that never was.
143 Likes
@RevoltStudio-hj6tj 07.11.2024, 17:05:37
I’m a French Guy from Lyon where JM is born and I thank you for honoring this video on Jean-Michel Jarre the way you did.

He is a unique Artist and our musical pride. Everyo­ne knows him in our country. A pioneer in his Art.

His cities concerts Lyon/Houston will remain forever in my memory and on a vinyl that I still own since 1987.

His music trans­ports you and touches you deeply.

Oxygène is a pure gem for our ears, it gives me goose­bumps every time I listen to it.

( He is the son of film music compo­ser Maurice Jarre but it’s an another story..)

Let’s just celebra­te his music 🙏
170 Likes
@spiesonmars 08.11.2024, 8:30:27
The sounds of Oxygene and Equinoxe are like nothing else. Absolu­te masterpieces!
28 Likes
@francoisbasquin6974 09.11.2024, 4:17:48
THIS album changed my life. I was 13 at the time when I listen­ed to it at a friend’s house. This sound literal­ly hooked me, and trigge­red my interest to synthe­si­zers, to music, to electro­nics and to recor­ding studios.
20 Likes
@TyeMorrisVlog 07.11.2024, 17:04:04
I was lucky enough to have been intro­du­ced to Jarre at a very young age in the 80s by my grand­mo­ther who was my piano teacher. She was very progres­si­ve and open minded musical­ly, and her album library included Jarre, Vange­lis, Wendy Carlos, etc, right along side her classi­cal and jazz albums. When she saw that the classi­cal and jazz pieces she usually taught to her students weren’t resona­ting with me, she intro­du­ced me to early synthe­si­zer music ❤
I’m almost 44 now, and this music always reminds me of a wonderful part of my child­hood when the sonic landscape of the time felt like the final unexplo­red frontier❤
Every­thing felt so wild and new, and from time to time it still does.
34 Likes
@AsteroidKiller 07.11.2024, 18:56:45
Oxygene is proba­b­ly one of the best album ever. A true masterpiece! 🙌
46 Likes
@albertpauw8234 07.11.2024, 17:53:12
In July 1977 I went over to a friend as he had bought Oxygene. When I rang the doorbell his mum opened the door and said “are you coming to listen to this ghost music”. The first part came swirling down the stairs out of his room. I never forget my first hearing of Oxygene in full.
51 Likes
@zoolook3264 08.11.2024, 1:29:54
Great video as always. I’m 51 now and almost blind but Jean-Michel Jarre inspi­red me back in my early teens to learn electro­nic music and I’ve been writing, mixing and maste­ring for myself and others ever since but the one constant is Jarre never stops inspi­ring me, even with being blind in 1 eye and 2 degree’s of vision left in the other nobody inspi­res me musical­ly like Jarre.
18 Likes
@steeltrust68 08.11.2024, 10:06:35
This record was so bloody mindblo­wing … I got (and still get) chills when the base-sound at 4:25 kicked in.
5 Likes
@pixelninja666 08.11.2024, 21:04:41
I’m a semi pro musici­an same age as you. My background is the usual pub rock guitar base, but I often dabble with digital electro­nic media . Your videos are not only inspi­ra­tio­nal, but highly educa­tio­nal and the theore­ti­cal chordal and melodic break­downs you make even help me with my guitar work. Thank you, and keep them coming
5 Likes
@danieljerosch5602 07.11.2024, 19:43:30
I just listen­ed to this record two times today because my 2‑year old toddler random­ly took it off the shelf. She seemed mesme­ri­zed especi­al­ly by the more sound-designey parts, the swells and rumblings and weird little synth noises.

I just reali­zed: This is exactly how I disco­ver­ed it as well, when I was a child, going through my fathers record collec­tion. Full circle, i guess!
21 Likes
@thhedk 07.11.2024, 19:41:51
Part 1:
Start sound = Eminent + Small Stone
Opera sound = EMS Synthi AKS
Glissan­do = ARP 2600
Bass middle part = ARP 2600
Effects = EMS VCS 3 

Part 2:
Start sequen­cer = EMS Synthi (I have been told — don’t know the sequen­cer well enough)
Strings = Eminent
Bass = ARP 2600
Effects = EMS VCS 3
Chorus sound = Eminent
End chorus sound = ARP 2600
Clarinet/flute = Mello­tron
Choir = Mellotron 

Part 3:
Start = Eminent
Strings = Eminent
Lead = RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer (I think)
Drum = ARP 2600
Opera sound = EMS Synthi AKS 

Part 4:
Wind = ARP 2600 or VSC
Bass = RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer
Sequen­cer = RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer (I can’t figure out how its sequen­cer worked, but I think it is)
Lead brass = ARP 2600
Strings = Eminent
Chorus = RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer + flanger (Maybe Electric Mistres) 

Part 5–1:
Organ = Farfisa + Electric Mistres
High pitch lead = RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer
Bass = ARP 2600 

Part 5–2:
Bass = RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer
Lead = Eminent 

Part 6:
Waves = Could be both ARP2600 and VCS
Seagull = Arp 2600
Strings = Eminent + Small Stone
Lead = Eminent
Lead after chorus in right channel = RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer


.…So I think, but chall­enge me 😉
68 Likes
@dbean7460 09.11.2024, 3:38:04
Being an iconic album, your decon­s­truc­tion (decoding) is not less epic. It shows, in such evidence, your skills at both under­stan­ding, percei­ving and vulga­ri­zing to less adept people like me. I genui­ne­ly appre­cia­ted this work of yours. I’m certain that I cannot convey what I feel in these simple words.

Thank you Claudio.
6 Likes
@TwinManiacsMusic 07.11.2024, 17:00:09
Think it is inevi­ta­ble that you visit JMJ and se his private Synth collec­tion stash and have a talk with him❤
45 Likes
@mcfly1077 08.11.2024, 9:02:42
It’s so wonderful to see what a passion you have for music.

Jean-Michel Jarre should invite you to his studio, and you should both discuss and philo­so­phise about this master­pie­ce together. At the same time, you could try all these great synthe­sisers and have a really deep discus­sion about Oxygen. That would be fantastic.😍
5 Likes
@christianchall8169 07.11.2024, 19:13:08
My first contact with this album was in a plane­ta­ri­um in 1984. The next day at school I was asked what I remembered…I said the music, just the music, no constel­la­ti­ons, no plane­ta­ry constellations…just the music
JMJ once said that this album suppo­sedly caused a signi­fi­cant increase in marijua­na use. the intro to Oxy 2 is so amazing, it is rebuild in the Arturia V Col in the Synthi V as “JMJ tribute sound” ..someti­mes i was listen to this sequence for hours.…and Oxy 5 with this Moog Libera­ti­on part to at the end…without words…so it is without words and that´s the deepest thing at his music
8 Likes
@mmeewezen 07.11.2024, 16:43:32
I have been waiting for this since you decoded Equinoxe, thank you so much!
20 Likes
@Armandox 08.11.2024, 10:32:07
Great video Claudio! I’m a big JMJ fan and I’ve studied his music quite exten­si­ve­ly. Just a quick rundown of the instru­ments and where they are used throug­hout Oxygene: Oxygene 1 start with the Eminent 310 Unique organs string synthe­si­zer (later compac­ted into the Solina String Ensem­ble), going through a modified ElectroH­ar­mo­nix Small­s­tone phaser and a Revox tape machine for the delay. The low bass is simply the bass pedal from the Eminent organ on I believe an 8′ setting. The bleepy glissando’s are done with the ARP2600, again with delay from the Revox tape machine. The vibrato soprano voice sine patch is done with the EMS Synthi AKS (the suitca­se VCS3). The loud bass drone again comes from the ARP2600 ran through an ElectroH­ar­mo­nix Electric Mistress flanger. All the compu­ter room like effects (the random s&h bleepy effects) come from the EMS VCS3 (The Putney). In Oxygene 2 all the laser effects and such like are done with the VCS3 (the best synth to create such effects ever). The 13/8 sequence running is done with ARP2600 with delay from the Revox and trigge­red by the Matri­se­quen­cer which was custom built and created by Michel Geiss for JMJ (not listed on any album covers). The drumma­chi­ne used is Korg Minipops 7 of coarse. The track’s meter is 6/8. The lead from Oxygene 2 again afaik comes from the ARP2600. The choir at end is done with the Mello­tron. Oxygene 3 pad is again the Eminent. The drone bass is again ARP2600 through the Electric Mistress flanger. The lead bell like sound RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer (the best synth to create bell like sounds). Oxygene 4 starts with noise from the VCS3 going through the Small­s­tone and Revox. This song is (contra­ry to popular belief) also in a very fast 6/8 (out of the top of my head like 180 or 190 bpm) meter! That is what gives the song it’s ’swing’! The 5th arpeg­gio pattern is done with the ARP2600 trigge­red by the Matri­se­quen­cer (or ARP sequen­cer, he might have used either one of them) and I perso­nal­ly think the former just running in first-last step mode for trigge­ring. Korg Minipops 7 for the drums (also going through the Small­s­tone phaser, which gives it that meande­ring and spacious effect). The lead is the ARP2600 of coarse! The bass also ARP2600 trigge­red by the Matri­se­quen­cer. The next part starts starts with the Eminent String Ensem­ble, but this time going through the Electric Mistresss flanger. The bass sequence and noise rhyth­mic sequence are done with the RMI Harmo­nic Synthe­si­zer (loads of panning during track­ing for both parts, and it really sounds like there were two sets of hands on the console while they tracked that). They actual­ly pegged little blocks of wood on the keys to keep the sequence running, and you can see JMJ do it live during Oxygene Live In Your Livin­g­room tour. There’s plenty of videos out there on YouTube about those concerts and such that really truly outline the process of making Oxygene in it’s entire­ty, albeit he is liberal with the usage of instru­ments for the sake of a live perfor­mance! The end of the album is breathing in, and breathing out noise made with the VCS3. The seaguls of coarse are a famous ARP2600 patch with Revox delay. I think this is one of the few, if not only, 4/4 songs on the album. Korg Minipops. The lead is the Eminent String Ensem­ble doubled with a bit of Farfisa and bell kind of sound (flanged) from the RMI. The album was recor­ded in it’s entire­ty on a Scully 8‑track tape machine I believe, so they had to do a lot of bouncing and such, hence he used copious amounts of white noise from the VCS3 to cover up for all the build-up tapen­oi­se. I’m sure if Michel (Geiss) reads this, he’d be more than happy to comment and elabo­ra­te! He was fysical­ly there during most part of the recor­ding process, and I just use my educa­ted ear and what i have come to know… Try to arrange a meeting with master JMJ himself! 💜
5 Likes
@denisrostohar3254 07.11.2024, 22:46:30
As a kid, I listen­ed to this record over and over again, trying to isolate each of many diffe­rent and intri­gue sounds and melodies. Just wonderful record..
3 Likes
@bio-metric-1016 07.11.2024, 18:27:14
I’m going through some dark times right now and just wanna say that lifted my spirits a bit Thanks xx❤
5 Likes
@carlpurkins 07.11.2024, 22:35:41
What an awesome decon­s­truc­tion (as always!).

Oxygene is a very special album to me. I was born on the same day it came out in France. My earliest memories are of my Dad playing it over and over, and me not thinking that much of it, but then Houston happen­ed and I’ve been a hardcore Jarre fan ever since. I’m not musical­ly minded and don’t under­stand classi­cal techni­ques, but there is really something very special going on in this record, and your analy­sis helps to reveal that.

I’ve spent so much time with the Oxygene in your Living Room perfor­mance, watching how the synths are used. I love how organic and tactile the record is — like a car when you put your foot on the accele­ra­tor, you feel it, you become connec­ted with the machine. There’s an emotio­nal connec­tion.

I implore people to listen to 2016’s Oxygene 3 in a similar way. It is a work of modern genius which people hurry over in the rush to review it and get to the next thing. It deser­ves far more atten­ti­on than it gets. Jarre takes a similar approach to his opus, but it benefits from new techno­lo­gies and experi­ence. I am really quietly hooked on Oxygene 16 — in which Jarre uses Teenage Engineering’s pocket opera­tors and reali­ses their capabi­li­ties in a way that only he can.

I do wish he would spend more time with his classi­cal training — it’s what made Oxygene special and what makes his work unique.

Thanks so much.
3 Likes
@Foodgeek 07.11.2024, 17:12:58
I was 5 when this album came out, and I grew up with my Dad listening to it (also Kraft­werk). That’s how I got into electro­nic music 😁
13 Likes
YouTube Infobox ⓘ

🎹 Join me today as I dive deep into the synthe­si­zer sounds, compo­si­ti­on, and orchestra­ti­on of Jean-Michel Jarre’s 1976 vinyl master­pie­ce, “Oxygene”! 🌌✨🎧 Disco­ver Beyerdynamic’s awesome headpho­nes 👉 Check out the DT 1990 PRO MK 2: https://​www​.beyer​dy​na​mic​.com/​p​/​d​t​-​1​9​9​0​-​pro 👉 And the DT 1770 PRO MK 2: https://​www​.beyer​dy​na​mic​.com/​p​/​d​t​-​1​7​7​0​-​pro

🙏 Huge thanks to Beyer­dy­na­mic for sponso­ring this video!

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Beyerdynamic Instrumentierung Jean-Michel Jarre Komposition Kopfhörer Musikproduktion Oxygene Synthesizer Vinyl