Meet Dan Taro | Producer, Live Act & DJ

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dan Taro and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dan, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
The idea of work carries negative baggage for many people. Often, it’s a responsibility that we may reluctantly tend to. Our life often exists separate from work.

Naming creative endeavors as work doesn’t seem fitting to me. I, like many artists, feel that making art isn’t work. It ought not be agonizing. It’s something I want to engage in, or else why do it?

In terms of a balance, I make music basically every day. It’s probably the furthest thing from work. In fact when I don’t do it, I go a bit mad. Perhaps there’s not much of what you’d call a “work life balance” there. The line is blurred for me.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I produce electronic music, make installations, host events, and play live in Berlin.

I’m quite bad at talking about music, so I’d recommend that you listen for yourself. https://soundcloud.com/tarotunes

My music doesn’t conform to the paradigms of techno or other popular genres. I prefer to experiment with sound design, structures, and feelings, especially mixing seemingly contractive directions together in a single song.

The genre is usually irrelevant in my music. The important thing is that I connect with what the song is trying to say. It could be the sounds of distorted helicopter blades for a whole song, but it could also be seductive string arrangements or rolling techno beats. I believe there is beauty in most things if you learn how to see it.

I want to make something that hasn’t been said before.

Working lots of different devices like the modular synthesizer, programs that I write and recording the world around me gives me more than enough source material and inspiration to make music for my lifetime.

For those who are wanting to pursue a professional career in arts, it’s not easy. Corona showed us just how fragile the artistic ecosystem really is. But for me, the choice came naturally. Every time I made a decision that de-prioritized music making, things started to go wrong in my life. In this way, it doesn’t feel as though I had an option, it felt somewhat like fate.

Coming from Denver, where the electronic music scene is centered around EDM, I decided that I needed to go somewhere where more people make music like I do. Berlin has a rich history of clubs, electronic music, and art. Being in the community fueled my desire to pursue my ideas and continue to write music. It’s a symbiotic relationship now that I’m giving some part back by performing and working on raves.

If the world wants to hear my music, great, but if not that’s also fine. I will just keep making it. Most of my friends are the only ones to hear much of my music. I’ve got albums worth of material that I give to my mates.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Leaving a club at 9am and getting brunch and beguiling the rest of the day by the river is one of the best ways to spend a weekend.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My friends have been very supportive of my work. From helping me book my first show, to giving me pointers on music and songs that I’m working on, I’m grateful for their time and energy.

Website: tarotunes.de

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tarotunes/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tarotunes/

Other: https://tarotunes.bandcamp.com/music https://soundcloud.com/tarotunes

Image Credits
Kanaan Brothers