The Trauma Duo Project began in the middle of the year 2003 with an ambient/downbeat performance. The act “Improvised Labor Music” gave a small impression of the music styles and grooves that would define and shape of their music in the years to come. While playing at private parties, they expanded their live set from one to two hours. Following this they were given the possibility to play on the chill-out floor at the Headhunter (Gaskessel, Bern). Shortly thereafter they were able to play this set once again on the Nightline Bus in Zurich.
In the year 2004 the Duo played a new experimental downbeat set with new sound creations including a software and hardware setup at the Gurten Festival in Bern and at the Blue Balls Festival in Lucerne. After these gigs, they reinvented their working tactics and introduced a new group of software and hardware setups coupled with a new style. This involved more danceable sets, a large variety of sounds, diversified music styles as well as cut and paste noises. This had a significant impact on their performance work. In 2005 they were invited by Marc Huerlimann of the FEGA-Werk to perform at the Rote Fabrik in Zurich. Using their current momentum they put together a new set dominated by fresh and dirty dance floor sounds. This inspired Huerlimann to include the Trauma Duo on the crew of his Lovemobile at the Street Parade 2006. The concept of the Lovemobile was for the artists to “create” the music live. This represented a clear break from the traditional mixing of “existing” music by a DJ. The interest generated by this performance resulted in several appearances on Radio RABE in Bern and Treibhaus Radio X in Basel. The Sommerfoyer in the Dampfzentrale in Bern gave the Duo yet another opportunity to present their Street Parade set.
2007 was marked by a back-to-the-roots project, which combined their ambient / downbeat sound with contemporary opera. At the Rigiblick Theater in Zurich they played a 20-minute reprise from the Opera “Drei Wasserspiele” by Detlev Glanert. This was followed by their current one-hour ambient / downbeat set. Parallel to the performance work the Trauma Duo has been actively involved in redefining the concept of studio tracks. In the studio they retained the working method of “live” producing. From the initial idea to the sound designing and the composition of loops and melodies, they took advantage of every possibility to interact live with the music. In this sense the studio production was always already a live performance.
Trauma Duo is:
Trauma John (alias S. Ambrosi) and Duo Pad (alias S. Willenegger a.k.a. DJ Mastra).