Quotes from Jean-Michel Jarre

What is important to me is that the world understand that the problems of the Dead Sea concern not only residents of the region but humanity.

When I was at the Group for Musical Research, with this idea of discovering electronic music, I quickly realized that that it was a very interesting and exciting approach to music, but I also saw that it was very intellectual and quite dogmatic.

My first break was in my home country with some pop songs that became hits, writing for French singers Christophe & Francoise Hardy, which became hits.

What is very interesting when talking about electronic music is that - I would say that rock and roll is called the ethnic music born in America that invaded the world. Electronic music is certainly kind of ethnic music born in countries like Germany and France that has invaded the world.

Creative industries are more important than the car industry, luxury jewels, and fashion.

When you have a young man, I mean, questioning the power in place for love of his country, not to say 'stop' but to say 'be careful about the abuse of technology,' I think it deserves to be promoted.

We should never forget that in the smartphone, the smart part is us creators.

I feel very privileged to have played China, and the pyramids, all these fantastic places, but it created a kind of smoke curtain between the audience and me as a musician.

People are rejecting the power of the elite, but individuals such as Snowden are doing so in a positive way, trying to change things for the better. He is a very intelligent man and obviously interested in electronic music.

When I heard Edward Snowden's story, it reminded me of my mother in a strange way. She was in the French resistance from early on, 1941. At that time, the Resistance were considered troublemakers - even traitors - in France.

As a musician, I have always strived for my albums and live performance to render a sound as close as possible to perfection.

The difference between noise and music is in what the musician does with the sounds.

People don't realize enough how important and influentical John Carpenter has been in electronic music. He did his soundtracks by himself, using mostly electronic and analog synthesizers. He's a cult figure with DJs these days for good reasons.

This project, 'Electronica,' is about working with people who are a strong source of inspiration to me.

The characteristic of 'Oxygene' is a mixture of innocence and ambition, of trying to do something different in a different way.

Early music in all kinds of movements is always a mixture of innocence and ambition.

Governments can help support European music by promoting public awareness that when people take music that doesn't belong to them, they undermine the future of those very artists whose work they enjoy.

I have always been of the opinion that when those in power are promoting actions and ideals that risk harming or impeding us, people should stand up to this.

Peace is neutral, and not very sexy.

Generation after generation, there is this never-ending, contemptuous, condescending attitude to the next generation or the next way of thinking: music, art, politics, whatever. And I have never been like that.

I think that in any language when you have a real relationship, and there is love and respect between people, infidelity is always something difficult to accept - whether you are Chinese, British, French. I think that is a universal concept... or problem.

Think about when you listen to a song on the radio. You are not paying for it; it's not illegal to do it, because the rights have been paid for on top, beforehand, by the radio station, by the network. We have to find exactly the same kind of system with the Internet.

In electronic music, staying behind your laptop for two hours is not too exciting to watch.

Sometimes, you try something, and it works in terms of success. That doesn't mean you like what is a hit. Sometimes you like the most obscure song on your album.