In the latest instalment of our Live Chats at Lunch series, Hannah Nepilova interviews the photographer Charles Brooks about Architecture in Music, his series of images exploring the insides of musical instruments in immense high definition detail.
Originally trained as a cellist, the photographer Charles Brooks held principal cello positions in China, Chile, and Brazil, playing in concert halls around the world. However, he also nurtured another passion: for photography, which he initially studied as a fifteen year old boy, when his school offered a three-day course on photography with the celebrated New Zealand photographer Kevin Capon. Within weeks he was teaching his own class at Auckland Grammar School. In 2011 the National Geographic took notice, and commissions swiftly followed.
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Before the pandemic hit, Charles Brooks captured dramatic scenery astrophotography while touring the world as a cellist. Among his shots from this time are low-light photos of southern Chile, glow worms in New Zealand and the night sky. After lockdown, however, Brooks started experimenting with probe lenses and old instruments, and turned his attention to the objects around him. The photographer captures rare instruments with fascinating histories, including a cello once hit by a train, a didgeridoo hollowed out by termites, and a Fazioli grand piano hand-made from 11,000 individual parts.
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Since embarking on his full-time photographic journey, he has contributed to publications including National Geographic, NBC News, The Daily Mail, Der Spiegel, The Telegraph, Die Zeit, Lonely Planet, and others.
Check out his Architecture in Music series here.