Volker Bertelmann Quotes

I like to express true emotions under the cover of melancholy: It includes fulfilment and pain, which describes human existence.

When I read a script, I am already in the movie with my music, and I can dive into a world that I haven't seen before.

When I'm walking with my father through the woods, and we reach a place where you see so far that your ego suddenly shrinks because you are so touched by the dimension of your surroundings.

I was actually very surprised after using some plastic necklaces on the strings, as the sound was very bright. Sometimes I just put something inside that lies next to me.

I think for me, fusion is a word that describes a positive, collaborative combination of different styles. Every kind of new music was created by a fusion of different styles because to move on and find something new you have to allow all the influences within yourself a voice.

I am surprising myself [at] each show, and the delivered piano often surprises me. Sometimes the piano is so old that I don't have to prepare it, and sometimes I have a concert grand!

I can't say that electronic gear is restrictive. I think it is a challenge to play with electronic gear, and I regularly [perform] concerts with guys who are processing sound.

The opportunity to use a computer is great when it is used as one component, or when someone is working on his or her own sounds and approaches. I think it actually has the same restrictions as using the piano or any other instrument in [a traditional] way.

I was always interested in finding the elegance of each style and understanding why it influences so many people.

I am inspired by the films of Pedro Almodóvar, as they are funny, sad, and extremely weird.

I was bored to death and thinking more about the minibar and the after-show party than the performance.

I had a record deal with Sony in the beginning of the 90s, and I was rapping and singing in my band.

I always felt strongly connected to the region where I was born. But after leaving school, the only clear thought I had about my life was to leave this provincial area and go to places where real life was happening.

I always liked stories that carry on and have a different format from the normal music video.

During Christmas time, on German television they show films with three or four episodes, and I quite like the feeling of waiting for the next episode.

My music is also one part of my inner process, and people also seem to connect with me on that - especially the ones who have the same questions for their own lives.

I get a lot of emails where people are writing me their experiences, how they discovered my music, what they feel... they motivate me to carry on with what I am doing.

I really like stories, so in a way it doesn't matter for me if they are real or fiction.

I can't really say that film music inspired me; it is more the films themselves, in connection with the music.

I think there is a big question in how much music a film needs - a lot of films are overloaded for my taste, so that the story can't carry its own weight.

In a way, I pick out the films that have a same attitude as music that I like.

Even films without music are inspiring, as I think a good story is full of changes, different paces, and ideas.

I like the influence of pictures on music and the other way around.

I am a big fan of the Coen Brothers; I like their kind of absurd, dark approach.

Memories were in my mind during nearly all the concerts I've done, and I realized the deep connection to my childhood, when I went out in the morning and the only thing my mom said was, "Come back before dark." What trust and what freedom!

I still visit my village quite often, as my parents and one of my sisters live there, but also I feel the village is more of an isolated, unreal part of me.

I also remember riding home from a wonderful day with only my bathing shorts, losing the chain of my bicycle, having no hand breaks, and slipping high speed on a street covered with stones. I had to go to the hospital.

I am still happy to be close to the city, [to be] connected to the intellectual source in Ferndorf. In this area, [I feel] connected with nature and unimportant in a postitive way.