York - In Search Of Sunrise 20

September 2024 sees the landmark six-disc/six-DJ ‘In Search Of Sunrise 20’ hit shelves and stores. At the rate of one a week, Black Hole are unveiling the masterful mixers stepping up to this epic task! We’re talking to them about all aspects of their ‘ISOS 20’ approach and to see what the series has meant to them over the longer course of their careers.

After the announcement of Solarstone and Airscape, Super8 & Tab became the third last week. Another seven days on we’re thrilled to raise the curtain on … York! Make no mistake, Torsten Stenzil’s ISOS game is tight! He’s the proud owner of a truly unique ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ moment, and here he is, 25 years later, mixing a disc for the 20th release. 
Sometimes life just finds a way!

Torsten, was there ever any chance you wouldn’t start your mix with ‘Reachers Of Civilisation’ !?
“No there wasn’t. It’s honestly for me a full circle moment. Tiesto started the very first ‘In Search of Sunrise’ with that track in 1999, now over 20 years later I started mine with it. It’s my legacy. I was also waiting for the right moment to remix it myself and suddenly this opportunity came up. What a great gift!”

It truly was! Now, how did you go about updating?
“I was thinking about it a lot. If I should go the ‘deeper’ way or press on more. In the end I decided to give it a more energetic feel.”

You also have perhaps the ultimate sign-off track for a series bearing the name ‘In Search Of Sunrise’. Tell the good people about that!
Oh yes! ‘Farewell to the Moon’ – it does dovetail nicely with ‘In Search Of Sunrise! The remix is a cool summary of that sound. As it’s the last track in the mix, it’s quite a banger, but is also super melodic and has a strong 2000 retro vibe.”

Did you have any sense when you received the first ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ album that it would turn into the extraordinary series it has?
“Actually, yes! I thought this could be the ‘Café del Mar’ of trance. I was living in Ibiza at that time and was influenced a lot by the island. I also heard the album for the first time there and met Tiesto at the Pacha back in the day.”

Oh yes, I remember visiting you in your villa in Ibiza back in 2000. So, is Ibiza the place you most quickly associate with ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ or is there another country, city (or island!) that more comes to mind?
“Exactly, oh yes, I remember now, hahaha! I am looking at sunrises all over the world, but Ibiza in the 90s & 2000s was super-special. I think I would associate it the most with the ISOS, yes. People are still awake after a long club night and watch the sunrise on the beach. Quite a clichéd picture but also the most realistic of scenarios on the island.”

 
Looking back across their tracklists, what’s your favourite track (other than ‘Reachers’ perhaps!), that’s been compiled onto an ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ album?
 “Tiesto’s In Search Of Sunrise remix of Delerium’s ‘Silence’ would be my absolute favourite. When Sarah McLachlan’s vocals start, honestly, I could still cry.”

The music of In Search Of Sunrise’ is perhaps renowned for having both a ‘sound’ and a ‘feel’. How would you summarise that in three words?
“Maybe something along the lines of ‘desire’ and ‘longing’. ISOS was also never overly commercial like many other mix albums, so I would also say its cooler and more tasteful than many of its contenders.”
 
How did you approach the flow of your disc’s mix?
“It’s clearly a journey, that starts with less energy and builds up with some surprises.
But I imagine I would dance to it, so it doesn’t have superlong dragging drops etc. I think it flows nicely!”
 
Are there any exclusives, premieres, or purpose-built tracks on York’s mix that you’d like to highlight?
“Well yes there is some candy on it for sure! As we mentioned, the new ISOS mix of ‘Reachers of Civilisations’ and then there is a new Torsten Stenzil track that will be released on Pure Trance. It’s called ‘Never Give Up’ and is co-written by my youngest daughter, who’s is also narrating a fantastic poem on it. Then there’s ‘Sleepwalking’, which is a brand-new track that’ll be released on Andrew Rayel’s label. Labels and friends were very supportive in giving me some of the newest releases, a good few unreleased. I was delighted to get Above & Beyond’s ‘Crazy Love’ and Activa’s Eclipse on there, so, the mix is really fresh.” 
 
Excellent! Final-thought question then. We imagine you’ve seen some of the finest, but what’s the best Sunrise York ever found !
“In Antigua, a tiny Island in the Caribbean where I’ve lived for the last seventeen years. The sunrise here is incredible.”