Excellent Collaboration with Anek Fuchs

Anek Fuchs had a dream: to showcase dual performances with the best of the best in Second Life. Now, thanks to Phil Zarco and Teresa1417 Juliesse at The Cove, as well as Symbiotic Management Votslav Hax and BobbiJo Jonson, that dream has come true, and you can catch Anek's dual stream performances every Friday or Saturday at 9 pm depending on artist availability.  Anek's the first one to offer a big thank you to the people who have helped make this happen. "Without their hard work, this would not have come together so well. The Cove is one of the few places you can go to see all the top shelf artists in SL  and the owners spend a load funding music for the masses." He has chosen to play with top ranking players for the challenge and fun it presents to him personally. " You see, I am what you call an improvisational player, never having had lessons, I play by ear, and I can pick up and follow with no rehearsals, and that makes for a greater show that way." He plans to expand the concept into more venues as opportunities present themselves.

He recently played alongside Nnoiz Papp. "I love that eastern hindu-ish sound, something you could easily attribute to an epic story of someone wandering through the deserts in Bahrain, with the music exposing the brain to a medley of visions, be it peaceful or action-riddled. These are the things I look for in any genre I play in, to find a story of notes and expressions." Sometimes it's the tale of two guitars, as with Frets Nirvana. "When the story doesnt happen in the notes, it turns in to fun jamming to see if I can keep up. Frets lends his hands an amazing style that displays the talents of players in RL history like Django Reinhardt in an amazing plethora of sound, and this was my most complicated dual stream ever."

Anek is open to try pretty much anything, when it comes to dual stream concerts. "I have done Chill (mediation), blues, rock, country, gypsy jazz now, the only genre I can think of where I would be very uncomfortable would be a "noise band" type sound, or perhaps anything too abstract. I want the listener to enjoy the show and be able to hear the magic as it unfolds."

Among the people Anek plays with are US- based Christopher135 Quan, Skye Galaxy and Maximillion Kleene while other musical partners are much further afield, like Moshang, who's based in Japan, Nnoiz Papp, in Germany. "In Second life, every day we are around people living in far-off places, and that has always intrigued me, but now, to be ble to share these musical and often magical moments with someone from the other side of the world, without either of us having to leave or own homes or performance studios, is so amazing to me still, had it not been for Second Life, I would have never had the chance."

He feeds from energy of crowds. In 1992, in San Fransisco, he opened for Slayer in front of 50,000 people, and could feel every pulse musically in the venue. "In SL I can say I have that experience quite often, feeling the energy of the crowd as they musically breathe with me. This may be a smaller environment, but it's world wide. That being said, other than not having to haul gear, or even go outside, this is a pretty relaxed concept for any musician." He still remembers his first SL gig, some three years ago at Cat's Club. Organized by Rezlez Steeplechase, there were 18 in attendance. The set, like all his sets back then, was a mix of Joe Satriani and Steve Vai songs. He's come a long way since then, largely thanks to keeping it real, never giving up, and being choosy about where he plays. "When it comes to picking places for my performances, presentation can be everything. A good build can make or break a venue. It costs me real money to perform, so pay is a factor, but I also have made some great friendships in music clubs all over the grid. I like places that are run in a respectable manner, no strippers, emoting stripper poles, or at least have those elements toned down while I'm performing."

The past few years have been transforming, and full of great memories, like the time at Sherie's Gaslight near two years ago now, when he watched half an audience of 40 -50 people fall into the ocean below her venue when the floor vanished. Or when his RL love, Gina Stella, wrote the song "Here" for and to him when he still lived in California. Or the time he got to  headline the "Jax Streeter - Dos Vidas" tour. "That was in the beginning of my musical SL experience, and it still blows my mind when I think about it."

Check out the on-the-spot live videos of him in action at http://thestage.tv and catch Anek at our very own Cisum on Wednesday August 4.