Peter von Poehl
Biography Peter von Poehl
Peter von Poehl
born March 31, 1972 in Malmö, Sweden. In the early 2000s, von Poehl collaborated extensively with Bertrand Burgalat and his Paris label Tricatel, notably on writer Michel Houellebecq's album Présence humaine (2000). Over the next years, he lended his services to artist such as Alain Chamfort, Depeche Mode and Burgalat himself. When the label's recording studio in Paris closed, von Poehl moved to Berlin, while continuing to produce records for other artists, many of them part of the French music scene, such as Doriand (Le grand bain, 2004), Lio (Dites au prince charmant, 2005), Florian Horwath (We Are All Gold, 2005), Vincent Delerm (Les piqûres d'araignée, 2006), Marie Modiano (Outland, 2008).
Peter von Poehl's first solo album (Going To Where The Tea Trees Are) was released in 2006 by French label Tôt ou Tard, followed by indie labels around the world, such as Bella Union (UK), World's Fair (US), Bonnier Amigo (Swe) and Speak n' Spell (AUS). The album was greeted by critical acclaim and the featuring of several songs - notably The Story Of The Impossible - in cinema and advertising helped introduce von Poehl's music to a large audience. The album was followed by extensive touring, including supporting artists such as AIR, St Vincent, Phoenix and Brian Wilson.
Follow up May Day (Tôt ou Tard/PIAS) was released in 2009. Just as von Poehl's debut, it was co-produced with Christoffer Lundquist and recorded at AGM in Vallarum in the south of Sweden. Again extensive touring followed the release, headlining and sharing the bill with artists such as Ben Harper, Wild Beasts and Peter Doherty. He also represented Sweden at Expo 2010 in Shanghai.
Big Issues Printed Small, von Poehl's third studio album was released in France, Belgium and Switzerland in 2013 on v Poehl's own label (Nest & Sound). In close collaboration with arranger Martin Hederos, the album was based on a written score and developed for different orchestral outfits - with sometimes as many as 40 musicians on stage. After a nearly four years absence as a recording artist, both the musical press and the audience has welcomed warmly von Poehl's return to the front of the stage.
Peter von Poehl has equally composed soundtracks for films, such as Lithuanian director Kristina Buozyté's already cult classic Vanishing Waves (2012) and Valerie Donzelli's Main Dans La Main (2012), the highly awaited follow-up of Declaration Of War (2011), which also featured music by von Poehl. He is currently writing the score for cinematographer Alain Choquart's debut as a director (Lady Grey) with among others Peter Saarsgaard and Emilie Mortimer in the leading roles. V Poehl has equally been commissioned by Norrlandsoperan (Umeå, European cultural capital 2014) to write the music for a ballet. The piece, which will premiere in November 2014, features v Poehl on electric guitar, a pile of stomp boxes along with a 54-piece symphony orchestra.
