Born in Tunisia, Africa in 1945, Claude Challe arrived in France at the age of 3. Having grown-up with a potent fascination with Asian mysticism and a deep respect for ancient cultures, Challe demonstrated his devotion by attending Rabbinical school and studying Judaism as a young man. Challe’s manual dexterity as a DJ was foreshadowed in his youth, when at the age of 19, he opened a forward-thinking hair salon in Paris for which he quickly became known as “the man with the golden scissors.” As Parisian jet-setters flocked to his door, Challe abandoned the salon and lived-out a hippy dream as part of a tribe in Sardinia, Italy. Soon thereafter, Challe wandered to India, Nepal and Indonesia. He says, “I like Asia very much, and I try to put Occidental elements with spiritual elements in my music.”
After his youthful adventures around the Far East were experienced, Challe returned home to France and discovered the sounds of new age musicians Andreas Vollenweider and Ennio Morricone. He soon became addicted to the country’s burgeoning nightlife. He dove-in headfirst by opening and managing a series of France’s most famed hotspots. They included: Le Prive in 1974, Le Centre Ville in fashionable Les Halles in ’79, Les Bains-Douches in ’84, El Divino in Ibiza in ’92, and – perhaps most notably – Buddha Bar in ’96. The chic restaurant/club became a longtime destination for Europe’s most glamorous people and it was subsequently the inspiration for Challe’s immensely successful Buddha Bar mix compilations. Adamant about his newfound passion, Challe went on to enjoy success with huge events like the “Reveillon de Mondes” event for 50,000 people, held at Vincennes and produced in conjunction with Radio Nova.
By 1996, with a wealth of unsigned new tracks and a plethora of promising producers on his doorstep, Challe launched the record label Chall’O Music to much fanfare. Nearly a decade later, Chall’o Music is busier than ever discovering new artists and delivering exceptional music to the world. v Globe-trotting aside, the DJ booth is where Claude Challe is the happiest. He says, “I consider the art of DJing to be the passion of life. When I’m DJing, I give myself to the people. When I play, I’m in the music.” Today, Claude Challe’s DJ booth consists of three Technics SL-1200 series turntables, four Denon dual-drive CD players or two Pioneer CDJ-1000 digital decks, and either a Rane or an Allen & Heath mixer.
Editorial Review
Mix Master Claude Challe Has Done it Again. He Has Created a Very Special Mix Disc in Celebration of the Release of the New Chapter in the Emmanuelle Saga on Film (In October 2004). Inspired by the Film’s Star, Nastaja Vermeer, Challe Has Once Again Created a Masterpiece that Captures the Eroticism and Sensuality Displayed on the Silver Screen. Vermeer Herself Recorded Two of the Tracks, as She is also a Singer and Composer. Other Highlights in the Mix Include Louie Vega’s Reconstruction of the Chakacha’s “Jungle Fever” and Delerium’s “Forgotten Worlds”. The Disc Comes in a Deluxe Package with a 16 Page Photo Spread of Vermeer Au Naturel. The Disc is also Enhanced with a Featurette on Vermeer and Shows her Playing on a Beach in all her Glory Doing a Photo Shoot for a Major Men’s Magazine.
