Nicolas Bougaïeff is co-founder at the music technology company Liine, which released an iPhone/iPad app called Lemur. A application based on the original (now discontinued) music controller. Liine was founded in 2010 by Etienne Noreau-Hébert, Gareth Williams, John Acquaviva, Mark Quail, Nicolas Bugayev and Richie Hawtin.

Name: Nicolas Bougaïeff
Occupation: Musician, Technologist
Hometown: Montreal
Currently residing: Berlin

Music: Music is at the center of my life.  It is the first thing I do in the morning, and my week is consumed with related activities. It’s my passion and also the source of my income. My music technology company Liine released an iPhone/iPad app called Lemur, it’s been in the top selling Music apps on iTunes since the release in late 2011. I just completed an album of miniatures: 24 tracks clocking in at just under 24 minutes. I also did a four track EP earlier this year which I’m getting producer friends to remix. I love being at a point where my friends and colleagues are producers whose music, in some cases, I’ve admired for years. I’m also just about to turn in my PhD thesis which I wrote, obviously, on electronic music and technology.

Art: I strive to eliminate the distinction between art and the mundane.  I see the act of creation, whether it’s soundwaves or software, as a deep and fulfilling way of being engaged with the world. I believe in art through action. Everything we do should be infused with a search for beauty and truth. I see in routine, for example daily practice of music production or software design, the potential for ritual. My workspace, both virtual and physical, are kept as bare as possible, completely free from extraneous details as much much as possible.

Technology:  Somehow, I’m not sure where humans end and technology begins. I stare at glowing rectangles way too much.

Lifestyle: Monastic dedication to work is the vibe I’m going with these days, except that at the moment I’m writing from sunny Barcelona. My work takes me to events here and there which is quite nice.

Quote: Live now, die later.