CHRISTOPHER JAMES/VAL GARDENA
In the early 90s, a few years into his storied tenure with PolyGram Records promoting pop and
jazz artists to international markets and eager to expand his creative horizons, Christopher James
embarked on an exciting artist project with the blessing of label president Ed Eckstine.
Partnering with bassist Jeff Leonard, James a veteran keyboardist/composer – who launched his
career scoring film and television projects in Germany – formed Val Gardena upon a multi-
faceted sonic aesthetic he calls “the soundtrack to your imagination.”
James and Leonard found success in the contemporary instrumental world in the mid-90s with three acclaimed albums,
River of Stone (1993), On The Bridge (1995) and Migration (1997), the second of which featured the breezy
and infectious tune, “Northern Lights,” a Top Ten hit on the New Adult Contemporary (NAC) radio charts.
Bridging past and present, a re-imagined version of “Northern Lights”, and the hit single on Sirius/XM Watercolors, “Outside Inside”,
are two one of the many pleasures on Val Gardena’s new album, The In Between Time.
A stylistically eclectic showcase for Christopher’s dynamic skills as a composer
and co-produced with keyboardist/saxophonist Andy Snitzer (seven tracks) and Bob Stark (four tracks).
The release of the 11-song collection marks a little over a decade since
James restarted the Val Gardena concept and released the 2013 compilation A Different Place,
A Different Time. The In Between Time is James’ first Val Gardena recording since 2020’s Across the Divide, which
marked the blossoming of his creative relationship with co-producer Snitzer and featured trumpet great Chris
Botti on “Two of One” and “Back in Time.”
An accomplished classical pianist, Christopher earned a B.A. in Music and German Literature at
Lewis and Clark College, in his hometown of Portland, Oregon before studying Musicology in
Graduate School at the University of Illinois – a path which in turn led him to move to Germany for
post-graduate research. He started his career in Germany, composing and producing music for
the German film and TV industry. With influences ranging from Elton John and Burt Bacharach
to Brian Eno, Bach, Chopin and Ravel, his fusion of pop, jazz and classical resulted in
music that was heard often in prime time on various German National TV networks.
After five productive years, but seeking a change, he moved back to the United States and began
a successful career as a music industry executive, first as a VP of International at
PolyGram, then as President of Classical and Jazz Music for the label – a position that
necessitated a lengthy hiatus from Val Gardena. During Christopher’s tenure, which included
overseeing the Deutsche Gramophone, Verve, Decca and Phillips labels, he signed and worked with a
wide range of top artists – including Luciano Pavarotti, The Three Tenors, Renee Fleming, Elvis
Costello, Anna Netrebko, Lang Lang, Chris Botti and Andrea Bocelli. He was also executive
producer on some of the most successful albums of the past quarter century, including Sting’s On
A Winter’s Night, Herbie Hancock’s Gershwin’s World, the Gladiator soundtrack, the Grammy
winning Wicked Broadway Cast album, the Grammy winning Spamalot cast album, and The Boy from Oz,
featuring Hugh Jackman. He also found time to Produced critically acclaimed albums
by Renee Fleming (Haunted Heart) and Paula Cole (Ithaca).
Leaving Universal Music in 2012 allowed Christopher not only to bring back Val Gardena,
but also pursue a successful complementary career as a solo artist. He has released four highly regarded albums
as Christopher James since the mid-2010s, including: House by the Railroad (2015), The Sad Waltz (2017),
Grace from Persistence (2019) and A Rose in the Canyon (2022).
In 2021, leading The Christopher James Project, he released Better Days, which
reached #1 album of the year on a prominent new age music chart.CHRISTOPHER JAMES/VAL GARDENA
In the early 90s, a few years into his storied tenure with PolyGram Records promoting pop and
jazz artists to international markets and eager to expand his creative horizons, Christopher James
embarked on an exciting artist project with the blessing of label president Ed Eckstine.
Partnering with bassist Jeff Leonard, James a veteran keyboardist/composer – who launched his
career scoring film and television projects in Germany – formed Val Gardena upon a multi-
faceted sonic aesthetic he calls “the soundtrack to your imagination.”
James and Leonard found success in the contemporary instrumental world in the mid-90s with three acclaimed albums,
River of Stone (1993), On The Bridge (1995) and Migration (1997), the second of which featured the breezy
and infectious tune, “Northern Lights,” a Top Ten hit on the New Adult Contemporary (NAC) radio charts.
Bridging past and present, a re-imagined version of “Northern Lights”, and the hit single on Sirius/XM Watercolors, “Outside Inside”,
are two one of the many pleasures on Val Gardena’s new album, The In Between Time.
A stylistically eclectic showcase for Christopher’s dynamic skills as a composer
and co-produced with keyboardist/saxophonist Andy Snitzer (seven tracks) and Bob Stark (four tracks).
The release of the 11-song collection marks a little over a decade since
James restarted the Val Gardena concept and released the 2013 compilation A Different Place,
A Different Time. The In Between Time is James’ first Val Gardena recording since 2020’s Across the Divide, which
marked the blossoming of his creative relationship with co-producer Snitzer and featured trumpet great Chris
Botti on “Two of One” and “Back in Time.”
An accomplished classical pianist, Christopher earned a B.A. in Music and German Literature at
Lewis and Clark College, in his hometown of Portland, Oregon before studying Musicology in
Graduate School at the University of Illinois – a path which in turn led him to move to Germany for
post-graduate research. He started his career in Germany, composing and producing music for
the German film and TV industry. With influences ranging from Elton John and Burt Bacharach
to Brian Eno, Bach, Chopin and Ravel, his fusion of pop, jazz and classical resulted in
music that was heard often in prime time on various German National TV networks.
After five productive years, but seeking a change, he moved back to the United States and began
a successful career as a music industry executive, first as a VP of International at
PolyGram, then as President of Classical and Jazz Music for the label – a position that
necessitated a lengthy hiatus from Val Gardena. During Christopher’s tenure, which included
overseeing the Deutsche Gramophone, Verve, Decca and Phillips labels, he signed and worked with a
wide range of top artists – including Luciano Pavarotti, The Three Tenors, Renee Fleming, Elvis
Costello, Anna Netrebko, Lang Lang, Chris Botti and Andrea Bocelli. He was also executive
producer on some of the most successful albums of the past quarter century, including Sting’s On
A Winter’s Night, Herbie Hancock’s Gershwin’s World, the Gladiator soundtrack, the Grammy
winning Wicked Broadway Cast album, the Grammy winning Spamalot cast album, and The Boy from Oz,
featuring Hugh Jackman. He also found time to Produced critically acclaimed albums
by Renee Fleming (Haunted Heart) and Paula Cole (Ithaca).
Leaving Universal Music in 2012 allowed Christopher not only to bring back Val Gardena,
but also pursue a successful complementary career as a solo artist. He has released four highly regarded albums
as Christopher James since the mid-2010s, including: House by the Railroad (2015), The Sad Waltz (2017),
Grace from Persistence (2019) and A Rose in the Canyon (2022).
In 2021, leading The Christopher James Project, he released Better Days, which
reached #1 album of the year on a prominent new age music chart.
Joey – Title song for Roland Emmerick film, (Joey)
“Dance in a Trance ” – Metronome (84)
4 Gegen Willi – German TV (85)
Pink – German TV (85)Discography:
River of Stone – Mercury (93)
On the Bridge – Mercury (95)
Migration – Mercury (97)
A Different Place, A Different Time Val Gardena Music (2013)
Synesthesia – Val Gardena Music (2014)
House by the Railroad – Val Gardena Music (2015)
The Sad Waltz – Val Gardena Music (2017)
Grace From Persistence – Val Gardena Music (2019)
Across The Divide – Val Gardena Music (2020)
The In Between Time – Val Gardena Music (2024)
Christopher owns all of his audio masters and retains the publishing rights to his catalog of more than 100 tracks. Please enjoy listening to the music on this site and if you need more information on sync/licensing or composer contact [email protected].
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