Star violinist David Garrett: “I don’t like the Larifari life”

David Garrett (44) has released 16 studio albums over the course of his career and has performed numerous pieces on them with his violin. It will be 17 on October 18th, when his new work “Millennium Symphony” will be released. The title says it all: the musician reinterprets the biggest hits of the last 25 years. “It’s a very fresh album,” enthuses Garrett. The tour of the same name starts in March 2025.

In an interview with the news agency spot on news, Garrett reveals what music he plays privately and what his violin has in common with a car. The talent of the century also explains that tour life is not always easy and why selfishness is not helpful on stage.

What makes your new album “Millennium Symphony” so special for you?

David Garrett: It’s a very fresh album. It’s the first time my album is really about modern times. I’ve released a lot of crossover albums in the last fifteen years, but they were all more focused on 70s and 80s rock, only some of them had something more modern. But “Millennium Symphony” is thematically really music from the 2000s and up. Accordingly, it is an album that resonates musically in all of our heads because of current radio playlists and that makes a big difference.

How did you choose the songs?

Garrett: First of all, of course, whether they work on the instrument. It has to be a melody that is not monotonous and has a lot of recognition value on my instrument. But the arrangement in the original is also important: What can I draw from it to write a creative orchestration? Take “Shape of You” by Ed Sheeran as an example. It is written very puristically, almost minimalist in the original. Nevertheless, when analyzing this piece, there are so many different facets that you can make something really great out of it.

Was there a piece that was particularly close to your heart?

Garrett: Ultimately it culminates in a playlist that I really enjoy listening to in my private life – and perhaps have heard instinctively over the years because it sounds a little different to my ear. I believe that when I listen to music, I subconsciously perceive the diversity in the different voices and therefore find the song good. Whether it’s The Weeknd with “Blinding Lights” or “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus – it’s not without reason that the songs are very well known and have become big hits worldwide. These are two very good examples with a lot in them that I instinctively thought were great right from the start, without analyzing them directly. It was only afterwards, after the analysis, that I realized why I thought it was so good.

How would you describe your personal taste in music? Do you listen to charts?

Garrett: I don’t think anyone actively listens to the charts these days, but current music is always there. To be fair, I also listen to a lot of deep house and EDM. Especially when you have company, a small group at home, this is music that doesn’t interrupt a conversation. That’s not meant to be disrespectful (laughs). As far as complexity goes, it’s kept very simple and not annoying. For example, if I had Jimi Hendrix in the background, I wouldn’t be able to hold a conversation for a second because I would be focused on the music the whole time and I think a lot of people feel that way.

Back to your new album. Are there any songs that you don’t dare to try?

Garrett: I don’t have that attitude. I think you should always pursue unrestricted goals in life. The best example in the headlines recently: Julian Nagelsmann said he wanted to win the World Cup. That’s right! Unrestricted thinking, big goals, big dreams – that’s beautiful, that’s important! If you don’t have this idea, then you can leave it alone. So no, I don’t have songs like that.

Do you ever get feedback from the original artists of the songs?

Garrett: Yes, absolutely. Of course, it’s mandatory first of all, because every piece that comes out on a CD has to go through publishing. This means that the music publisher who owns the rights must agree. With many artists, I know that they listen briefly privately. For some artists it’s a little more complicated. Eminem accepted three cover versions in his life – and one of them was “Lose Yourself”, which I did. I’m very, very proud of that.

In March you’re going on a big world tour again with “Millennium Symphony” – but you’re currently also traveling around the globe. Does touring life ever get too much for you?

Garrett: Even if you play a project for a very, very long time – we’ve been on the classical tour with “Iconic” for over 18 months now and basically without a real break – the program doesn’t get boring for me. But of course it is a very monotonous life. From the airport to the hotel, to the hall, then back to the hotel after the concert, pack up, go to the airport in the morning, new hotel, new country that you don’t see, a new city that you don’t get to know… Of course it works at some point sometimes to the substance, also physically. Probably more physically than mentally. You always think: A weekend at home would be nice.

How do you prepare physically and mentally for such a concert marathon?

Garrett: Practice, practice, practice. Even if I only have an hour, no matter how tired I am – at least the basics of playing the violin, i.e. scales and bowing exercises, have to be done. But I’m also not someone who says you should practice if you don’t have concentration. I believe that practicing incorrectly is much worse than not practicing at all. But I play the basics – they are now so embedded in my body that I can get through them well even when I don’t have the concentration. It’s like brushing your teeth: no matter what time it is, you know the movements and they have to be done. Accordingly, the program is mandatory. Everything else: If you have the concentration, you’re welcome, but if you have a ten-hour time difference and don’t feel so good anyway, then it’s better to sleep. Lie down before the concert, wake up just beforehand, shower, get dressed, have two espressos and then off you go.

Did you record your new album because of this restlessness in your adopted home of New York?

Garrett: I studied there, I had social contacts there for the first time, because I only had private lessons until very late in high school. Accordingly, New York became my home – and still is. I have a lot of contacts from my college days that I don’t want to break off. That’s why I recorded the album at home, so to speak – not in my apartment, but I was able to drive from the studio to my house at night, slept in my own bed, put my violin where I normally put it and not living out of a suitcase.

How would you describe your relationship with your instrument? Is this more of a work tool for you or something like a friend?

Garrett: A friend, yes. But also work equipment… perhaps it can best be described as a car. It gets you from A to B. Without it, life would be more difficult because you have to rely on public transport. Sometimes you would arrive late, it would look unprofessional to the employer… I would describe the violin like this: It really gets me to my goals, as quickly as possible. I still have to put in the work to get there, but there are no delays with the violin. But there are no excuses for that: If you have a top instrument, you have to deliver. It’s your fault if something doesn’t sound reasonable. You have a great responsibility to handle such an instrument well.

Have you ever thought about slowing down or is that still the life that fulfills you?

Garrett: As a musician you say: You can sleep when you’re dead. That is also the case. I’m a workaholic, I was raised to work. Not because work is something negative, but because I enjoy my work, because it is something that inspires me, motivates me and makes me self-confident. I’m not a lazy sock and I don’t want to feel like a lazy sock either. Hanging out with friends, having a relaxing day, that doesn’t give me that much. That’s nice, but for me as a person, as an artist, as a human being, it gives me much more when I realize that I have developed. This is the most beautiful thing ever! The feeling of going to bed in the evening and knowing that you have made some progress. I feel like that gets lost a little bit. Giving yourself something emotionally through work – I think that goes a long way. I don’t like that kind of Larifari life, it’s totally boring.

You celebrated your birthday last month and turned 44. Does this give you an opportunity to pause and look back at what you have achieved?

Garrett: I don’t look back – look forward, that’s mine! Living in the moment, enjoying the moment and thinking about the future, that’s more my attitude. Even on birthdays. It is precisely on this occasion that all the partners and friends who support me in my career come together, but strangely enough, I never fall into nostalgia. I usually talk about the future. The poor! They sit there on my birthday and I basically use it as a brainstorming meeting for the next two years. Then I jump from one to the other and say: “Look, I have another idea, why don’t we do it like this?” Really, that’s very nice for them (laughs). I see this as a free meeting, people should already know that – this is not a Larifari. There is work going on!

So you have set yourself big goals for the coming years?

Garrett: Hundreds. When we talk about the album, the first thoughts are of course how I’m going to stage the upcoming tour. I’m very meticulous and in the last 15 years of touring I’ve never missed the opportunity to coordinate every detail in my head with the music. The first idea that came to my mind this time was to set up a vertical LED wall that also contains the orchestra and is coordinated with the positions of the individual musicians. This means that when the oboe plays a solo, we darken the entire orchestra and only illuminate that instrument. You can also learn something like this: people who are not very familiar with the orchestra can see for the first time exactly which instrument is being heard. With this concept you can highlight the instruments in an incredibly exciting way – not only in terms of sound, but also visually. This is now one of 10,000 ideas I have for the tour.

This takes the focus away from yourself as the main protagonist…

Garrett: I can say one thing in life: the more you as an artist focus on others, the more you shine. Arrogance has no place on stage! I always say to my drummer: “Give it full throttle!” Then when he says he doesn’t want to take my light, I say: “Take my light! I want you to shine! When you shine, we all shine – when everyone shines, I shine. Enjoy it!” They should all receive the light, the praise, that is very, very important. The audience should go crazy, not just because of me, but also because of my musicians. The better we are, the more I get out of it – and so do they. This is a team effort.