As the founder of disco and the trailblazer of electronic music, Giorgio Moroder gained recognition around the world. The artist is an influential Italian music producer, songwriter, performer and DJ. After over 50 years of activity, Moroder is still in the centre of the Electronic Dance Music (EDM) culture. Since 2013 he once again came into the spotlight as a guest collaborator on the Grammy-awarded Daft Punk album “Random Access Memories”.
Moroder is the creator of new remixes for Donna Summer, Coldplay, Lady Gaga, Eurythmics and Haim. He performs live again, also as a headliner of festivals.
A native of the Italian Val Gardena-Dolomiti, Giorgio Moroder spent his early years on a musical tour of Europe. He played bass and guitar in pop bands. He first gained popularity in Mucich, where in 1969, the release of his single “Looky Looky” was awarded a gold record. He eventually teamed up with Pete Bellotte and Donna Summer to produce “Love to Love You Baby”, the song that is now credited with starting the popular, worldwide disco craze.
Moroder has worked with several of the biggest names in music, including Barbra Streisand, Elton John, Cher, Roger Daltrey, Janet Jackson, Freddie Mercury, David Bowie, Chaka Khan, Cheap Trick, and Pat Benatar. Among his biggest hit singles are Donna Summer’s “Hot Stuff” and “I Feel Love,” David Bowie’s “Putting Out the Fire” and Blondie’s “Call Me.”
The producer was a key player in the success of the “Queen of Disco” Donna Summer. In the 70s, he collaborated on her biggest hits: “Love To Love You Baby”, “Hot Stuff” or “I Feel Love.” In 1997, In 1997, Moroder and Summer won the Grammy Award for “Best Dance Recording” for the song “Carry On.” The Italian recently teamed with Verve Records to honour Summer with “Love To Love You Donna”, a collection of her most notable hits remixed by Afrojack, Hot Chip, Laidback Luke, Masters at Work and others.
Giorgio Moroder’s music charted success everywhere the disco craze touched down but he is also responsible for some of the most classic film scores to date including “Scarface” and “Midnight Express”, as well as timeless soundtrack numbers like “Take My Breath Away” (“Top Gun”), Irene Cara’s “Flashdance… What a Feeling”, Blondie’s “Call Me” (American Gigolo), as well as compositions on films such as “The Never Ending Story”, “Superman III”, “Rambo III” and “Beverly Hills Cop II”.
The numerous innovations introduced by him in soundtracks have won him three Academy Awards. In 1979, he received the award for the soundtrack for “Midnight Express”, followed in 1984 by another for the song “Flashdance… What a Feeling” and finally in 1987 for the song “Take My Breath Away” from “Top Gun.”
For his achievements, Giorgio Moroder has received three Academy Awards, four Golden Globes, four Grammy Awards and over one hundred gold and platinum records. The producer was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame in 2004.
Moroder works have also entered the realm of global sporting events. He wrote the songs “Reach Out” for the 1984 Olympics, “Hand in Hand” for the 1988 Olympics, the song “To Be Number One” for the 1990 Soccer World Cup in Italy, and “Forever Friends” for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
In 2013, he collaborated on the song “Giorgio by Moroder” with acclaimed electronic duo, Daft Punk, ushering a resurgence of Moroder’s work and earning his fourth Grammy Award.
Also in 2013, Moroder teamed with Google Chrome Experiments to compose “Racer”, the soundtrack track to a mobile game for smartphones and tablets. In 2016, he composed the soundtrack to “TRON Run/r”, a video game published by Disney Interactive Studios as part of the popular “Tron” franchise.
Since 2014, Giorgio Moroder has been performing all over the world during a variety of shows, including Vivid Fest, Moogfest, Wireless Festival, Les Ardentes, HARD and many others.
Giorgio Moroder will perform during the 10th Soundedit Festival, on Saturday, October 27, at Klub Wytwórnia. On the same night, during a gala also held at Wytwórnia, the artist will be awarded “The Man with the Golden Ear” for “Timeless Achievements in Music Production.”
Photographs: Sebastian Kim
Awards
Film Academy Awards
1987 – Top Gun (Best Music, Original Song)
1984 – Flashdance (Best Music, Original Song)
1979 – Midnight Express (Best Music, Original Score)
Golden Globes
1987 – Top Gun (Best Original Song, Motion Picture)
1984 – Flashdance (Best Original Score – Motion Picture)
1984 – Flashdance (Best Original Song – Motion Picture)
1984 – Scarface (Best Original Score – Motion Picture) *Nomination
1983 – Cat People (Best Original Score – Motion Picture) * Nomination
1983 – Cat People (Best Original Song – Motion Picture) * Nomination
1981 – American Gigolo (Best Original Score – Motion Picture) * Nomination
1981 – American Gigolo (Best Original Song – Motion Picture) * Nomination
1979 – Midnight Express (Best Original Score – Motion Picture)
Grammy
2014 – Random Access Memories (Album of the Year)
1998 – Carry On (Best Dance Recording)
1984 – Flashdance (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special)
1984 – Flashdance (Best Instrumental Composition)
1979 – Midnight Express (Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special) * Nomination
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