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Artist
Xavier van Wersch
12+ albums
vhoa
about
Originally from The Netherlands, Xavier van Wersch (1976) lives and works in Budapest, Hungary. His work reflects an organical approach to the field of electronic music. In his compositions, performances and installations there is always an element of controlled chaos. He explores the relation between man and machine by conceiving the two of them together as a hybrid system in which erratic behaviour is the principal condition for interaction. Another common theme in his work is recycling. Like a modern Frankenstein, he constructs his machinery from parts of deceased equipment and disfunctional devices. Van Wersch was raised with classical piano and violin training, which set the foundations for his experiments with composition and electronic music as a young teenager. At first spurning the conservative music academy for the freedom of visual arts, Van Wersch was eventually drawn back to study Sonology at Royal Conservatory in The Hague after discovering abstract electronic music. Van Wersch’s final exam composition entitled Odysseia was included on the compilation His Master's Noise - The Institute Of Sonology, released on Dutch experimental label BVHaast Records in 2001. The compilation gathered pieces from artists who had worked or studied at the Institute of Sonology, including Iannis Xenakis, Edgard Varése and György Ligeti. As well as performing under his own name, Van Wersch produces tracks under the moniker xaf. The first xaf releases appeared in 1999 on Dutch Break