Philip Jeck (15 November 1952 – 25 March 2022) was an English composer and multimedia artist. His compositions were noted for utilising antique turntables and vinyl records, along with looping devices and both analogue and digital effects. He studied visual arts at Dartington College of Arts in Devon. He became interested in record players after visiting New York in 1979 and being introduced to the work of DJs such as Walter Gibbons and Larry Levan.
Career
Jeck started exploring composition using record players and electronics in the early 1980s. In his early career, he composed and performed scores for dance and theatre companies, including a five-year collaboration with Laurie Booth. Jeck was perhaps best known for his 1993 work Vinyl Requiem with Lol Sargent, a performance for 180 Dansette record players, 12 slide-projectors and two film-projectors.
Jeck signed with Touch in 1995 and proceeded to release his best-known works on the label, including Surf (1998), Stoke (2002), and 7 (2003). In 2004, he collaborated with Alter Ego on a 2005 rendition of composer Gavin Bryars's The Sinking of the Titanic. Many of his studio releases are pieced together from recordings of his own live performances and stitched together with a MiniDisc recorder.
He collaborated with artists including Jah Wobble, Jaki Liebezeit, David Sylvian and Janek Schaefer.
- Surf (1998, Touch)
- 7 (2003, Touch)
- Sand (2008, Touch)
- Suite. Live in Liverpool (2008, Touch)
- Songs for Europe with Janek Schaefer (2004, Asphodel)
- The Sinking of the Titanic with Alter Ego and Gavin Bryars (2007, Touch)