William Orbit

William rbit, the ambient-house pioneer/U.K. beat master who took home a Grammy Award for his co-producing work on Madonna’s multi-platinum Ray of Light, will release a solo album, entitled Pieces in a Modern Style, on Maverick in early 2000. Pieces In A Modern Style features rbit’s stunning interpretation of classical arrangements written by the likes of Vivaldi, Handel, Ravel, and Beethoven.

Amazingly enough, he recorded the album without use of an orchestra. “It was a very enlightening experience,” says the multi-instrumentalist rbit. “There are barely any drums involved, just a few throbbing pulses going on and nothing else. I tried to keep the tone exactly right. It’s very understated.” Rolling Stone called Pieces In A Modern Style “astonishinga rare bridge between pop and classical that never buckles.”

Over the course of the past several years, William rbit has become the somebody to whom everybody turns for the jobs that nobody else can handle. Proof of this can be found in his resum, a work history that practically reads like a “Who’s Who” in the international world of pop music. Since launching his career in the early 80’s, rbit has provided remixes for artists such as Prince, Erasure, Sinead O’Conner, Beth Orton, Human League, Sting, Peter Gabriel, Seal, Blur, The Cure, Nitzer Ebb, Gary Numan, Kraftwerk, and Depeche Mode. rbit also produced the Ricky Martin/Madonna duet, “Cuidado Con Mi Corazon” (“Be Careful With My Heart”), featured on Martin’s self-titled recent commercial blockbuster. rbit stepped into the spotlight with the early 80’s band, Torch Song. After the group broke up, he took to the studio and taught himself how to mix. rbit then recorded four critically-acclaimed albums during the late 80’s and early 90’s under the banner, Strange Cargo, a collection of mood-heavy instrumental music. Strange Cargo 3 featured a vocalist that rbit had met in a London nightclub and encouraged to sing. Her name was Beth Orton.