Bruce Haack

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Bruce Clinton Haack (born May 4, 1931 in Nordegg , Alberta , Canada , † September 26, 1988 in West Chester , Pennsylvania , USA ) was a Canadian musician and composer . He was a pioneer in electronic music .

Life

Haack grew up in a broken family in rural Alberta. Among the indigenous people, he was said to have consumed mescaline when he was eight years old . He graduated with a degree in psychology from the University of Alberta at Edmonton. He later attended the Juilliard School of Music in New York thanks to a scholarship . There he made many friendships that would prove important for his career. Nevertheless, he left after eight months.

Haack worked extensively on music for children, where he had more success and published more than in any other field. He worked with the dance teacher Esther Nelson on his children's records. His most important records for adults are "Electric Lucifer" 1 & 2. The former was made largely on modified synthesizers . Haack is also one of the first electronic musicians to use the possibilities of the vocoder throughout .

Haack died of heart failure on September 26, 1988 at the age of 57. Most of his recordings were no longer published in the United States and are now only available as Japanese imports or via file-sharing networks.

Although Haack had no formal knowledge of electronics, he built his own instruments such as the “magic wand”, the “dermatron” (a synthesizer that is played with a person through electrical contact), and the “people-odion”. He also composed music under the pseudonyms "Jackpine Savage" and "Jacques Trapp".

Works

Albums

  • 1963 Dance Sing and Listen
  • 1964 Dance Sing and Listen Again
  • 1965 Dance Sing and Listen Again and Again
  • 1968 The Way Out Record for Children
  • 1969 Electronic Record for Children
  • 1970 Electric Lucifer
  • 1971 Together (as Jackpine Savage)
  • 1972 Dance to the Music
  • 1973 Captain Entropy
  • 1974 This Old Man
  • 1975 Funky Doodle
  • 1976 Ebenezer Electric
  • 1978 Haackula (unpublished due to content)
  • 1979 Electric Lucifer Book II (published 2001)
  • 1981 Bite (revision of Haackula)

Singles

  • Les Etapes (1955)
  • Lullaby for a Cat (1956)
  • Party Machine (1983)

Compilations

  • Hush Little Robot - QDK Media (1998)
  • Listen Compute Rock Home - Emperor Norton Records (1999)
  • Dimension Mix: A Tribute to Dimension 5 Records - Eenie Meenie Records (2005)

Film and TV

  • I've Got a Secret (1958)
  • The Mike Douglas Show (1965)
  • The Tonight Show - Johnny Carson (1965)
  • Mister Rogers Neighborhood (1968)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Haack, Bruce
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Haack, Bruce Clinton
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Canadian musician and electronic music pioneer
DATE OF BIRTH May 4, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH Nordegg , Alberta , Canada
DATE OF DEATH September 26, 1988
Place of death West Chester , Pennsylvania , USA