Irène Drésel

Irène Drésel
Drésel in 2021
Background information
Birth nameIrène Billard
Born1984 (age 39–40)
France
GenresTechno[1]
Occupations
  • Musician
  • record producer
  • DJ
Years active2016–present
Websitewww.irenedresel.com

Irène Drésel (née Billard; born 1984)[2] is a French electronic music producer.[3][4]

In 2023, for her score of the film Full Time she won the César Award for Best Original Music, becoming the first woman to do so.[5]

Early life and education

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Drésel was born Irène Billard and grew up in a Paris banlieue. Her father was an engineer and her mother ran a travel agency before she was born. She joined the Conservatoire de Rueil-Malmaison at the age of 7, where she studied piano for two years, music theory for five years and classical dance for ten years. She earned a baccalauréat L (littéraire) with honours. She spent a year in a preparatory class at the École d'Arts de Rueil-Malmaison after which she entered the Beaux-Arts de Paris in a dual programme with the Gobelins school. It was at this time that she rediscovered her passion for music while searching for music to accompany a video needed for her diploma. After receiving her diploma she started an "intense" six-month internship at the SAE Institute in Aubervilliers.[6] She also worked as a visual artist in photography, video, installation and performance.[7]

Career

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Borrowing her mother's maiden name, she took the stage name Irène Drésel and began composing electronic music. Her musical style is typically described as techno. Trax Magazine highlighted the melancholic melodies in her music and compared it to those released by the German music label Innervisions [de] and that of French artist Rone.[8] She gave her first concert on 6 April 2016, at the Silencio club in Paris.[6]

In February 2023, she won the César Award for Best Original Music for her work on the film Full Time, her first composition for cinema. She was the seventh woman to be nominated for the award in 48 years, after Émilie Simon, Delphine Mantoulet, Béatrice Thiriet, Anne Dudley, Sophie Hunger and Fatima Al Qadiri, but the first to win. She concluded her acceptance speech by dedicating her prize to all female composers.[9]

Discography

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Albums

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  • Hyper Cristal (2019)
  • KINKY DOGMA (2021)
  • Rose Fluo (2024)

EPs

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  • Rita (2017)
  • STUPRE (2020)
  • Je t'aime (2021)

Awards and honours

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Nominations

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References

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  1. ^ Patarin, Pablo (26 January 2024). "Irène Drésel : " La techno crée une forme de communion "". L'Humanité (in French). Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  2. ^ "Irène Drésel, la vie en rose fluo". Le Soir (in French). 16 April 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  3. ^ Chatelier, Angèle (8 February 2024). "Interview : Irène Drésel". DJ Mag (in French). Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  4. ^ "Irène Drésel : "Je fais de la musique électronique comme je pourrais faire de la peinture"". France Culture (in French). 21 February 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  5. ^ "Irène Drésel : "J'espère que ce César aidera les réalisateurs à collaborer avec plus de femmes compositrices"". Les Inrockuptibles (in French). Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Les airs de jeunesse d'Irène Drésel, la compositrice d'"À plein temps"". Télérama (in French). 25 June 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  7. ^ "Le mot d'Irène Billard, artiste du 60è Salon de Montrouge" (in French). 2015. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  8. ^ Deniaud, Jean-Paul (18 April 2018). "Qui est Irène Dresel, l'artiste française qui invite la sensualité et la couleur dans le live techno ?". Trax Magazine. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  9. ^ Sardet, Yoann (24 February 2023). "César 2023 : une compositrice récompensée pour la première fois". AlloCiné (in French). Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  10. ^ Roxborough, Scott; Vlessing, Etan (24 February 2023). "César Awards: 'The Night of the 12th' Named Best Picture". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  11. ^ "Nomination dans l'ordre des Arts et des Lettres – été 2023". Ministère de la Culture (in French). 30 November 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
  12. ^ "Lumières 2023 : "La Nuit du 12", "Pacifiction", "Saint Omer" et "Les Enfants des autres" en tête des nominations". France Info (in French). 15 December 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2024.
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