Could you describe your creative process on the basis of a piece, live performance or album that's particularly dear to you, please?
Speaking of the creative process of a song, I often let instinct or intuition dictate the "score" and the form.
So at first, I try not to follow "rules" or "schemes". After finding a key sound, or melody or drum pattern that satisfies me, I try to map out the whole song in my mind and then imagine what paths it could take. Sometimes I try them all, but with time and practice, I noticed an increase in the speed and efficiency with which a song develops.
With regards to live performances, having always had a strong passion for jazz and improvisation, I always try to identify moments in which I can let myself go, sometimes guided by the feedback of the audience - which for us musicians is fundamental - or why not, even by the location. I’m in the habit of doing this even during live performances, in certain parts and sections of the tunes.
These approaches converge when I write and compose an album. In this case, it’s necessary to be as focused as possible on the concept as a whole and how it takes shape, keeping in mind to always strive for consistent growth.
It is not a simple process but it forces you to grow exponentially, in musical and artistic terms. It certainly represents in my opinion the most beautiful moment for a musician, alongside live performances.
Listening can be both a solitary and a communal activity. Likewise, creating music can be private or collaborative. Can you talk about your preferences in this regard and how these constellations influence creative results?
As mentioned, originality and diversity mean that creative results can be different and distinguishable. In a collective, such as a band, I think that both of these constellations influence the final result.
Of course in an ensemble, there are always members who exercise a stronger influence on the direction and identity of the band, according to a specific vision. Most of my creative moments arise from a private inspiration that sometimes evolves into a collaborative effort.
I usually prefer solitary activity for the creative stage because I’m able to develop my own method, thus forging a path that increasingly reflects a unique vision and identity. But obviously, I think it’s so important to be able to exchange musical ideas with colleagues and fellow musicians because it’s a great way to grow and expand your horizons.
How do your work and your creativity relate to the world and what is the role of music in society?
Well, the job of the musician / artist falls within the framework of freelancing, in the strict sense of the term! Leaving aside the job of teaching music - which adheres more or less rigidly to a system, also because of institutional schedules for example - an artist’s world is made of different “rules”. Having to "create", "process", “recreate" and "rework" - all steps in the creative process - means an artist cannot be subjected to rigid schedules that have to be respected as it would take away from the very essence of the creative process.
That being said, my creativity relates to the world in a flexible way as I think that, in creative terms, an individual is more fruitful in some periods of their life than in others, because of the various situations and circumstances that he / she may encounter.
The role of music and therefore the musician’s job in society has changed a little. My opinion on the matter is a “work-in-progress”. At times I see that nowadays we are increasingly losing the messages and meanings that music has transmitted in the past. Music reflects society, culture, ideology, people; many themes of the past have been replaced by others that in my opinion are devoid of meaning, but I guess our current society requires them.
The fact remains that music still plays a fundamental and indispensable role that I think will always be needed.
Art can be a way of dealing with the big topics of life: Life, loss, death, love, pain, and more. In which way and on which occasions has music – both your own or that of others - contributed to your understanding of these questions?
Yeah, that’s why music has eternal powers! Thanks to music I’ve been able to understand and overcome many personal challenges and uphill battles.
Music has certainly played a fundamental role in my life so far, but you don’t have to be a musician to appreciate it. You can simply listen to a CD or vinyl, go to live shows, basically experience it in all its forms.
If you think of great musicians or painters / sculptors, and reflect on their lifestyle, there’s a remarkable and impressive attraction to art that is completely spontaneous, and allowed them to express an innate artistic sense that consequently shaped their way of living and their way of facing every situation in life.
Obviously a strong predisposition to the arts in general plays a role, but this can happen gradually in all human beings, if one is willing to do so.
How do you see the connection between music and science and what can these two fields reveal about each other?
I can’t be sure that I’m able to argue about the influence of science on music or vice versa, though I do see a true and deep connection between these two worlds.
Going on pure reasoning and logic, and considering the evolution of musical language over the centuries, I see a similarity in the development of scientific knowledge, especially in the last century, in terms of properties of "language", themes, approach, etc.
Instead of considering science generically, since it is a vast subject, we can consider for example a particular field such as mathematics or physics, where multiple connections can be made with the world of music. This is because musical theory, foundational concepts such as musical scales and intervals, date back to the times of Pythagoras and are entirely based on numerical and frequency studies (acoustic physics).
Also just think about how music was considered in the Middle Ages: a branch of mathematics and one of the subjects of the seven Liberal Arts (quadrivium).
Creativity can reach many different corners of our lives. Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn't or wouldn't in more 'mundane' tasks?
As with everything in life, there are different levels of expression, and in this case artistic ones. More than "what do you express through music that you couldn’t or wouldn’t in more 'mundane' tasks?" - I actually think it is necessary to see the level of potential “offered” by each of these “levels”.
Creativity reaches infinite angles of our lives, which is why every living being feels and perceives a specific predisposition towards a particular field ... including making cups of coffee!
However, it is self-evident that there are some creative "angles", such as music, that offer superior expressive possibilities, precisely because they allow the expression and creation of something broader and of universal value. Because of this vastness, the musician can draw from an infinite palette to express his or her creativity.
Music is vibration in the air, captured by our eardrums. From your perspective as a creator and listener, do you have an explanation how it is able to transmit such diverse and potentially deep messages?
In my opinion, it depends a lot on subjectivity, the path each person takes and what relationship they have formed with music over the years.
In purely "morphological" terms - to pick back up from the previous question about science - we should all get the same message, the same emotions and so on, you know … because the physical mechanism through which we hear is the same for everyone, yet it does not work like this.
I think it is more a process of spiritual, emotional and sensory analysis, which leads each of us to perceive a certain sensation or a message and meaning. It’s all about subjective perception.
Like a book, music can convey a common message or theme. In my opinion, this is due to the fact that “at a certain point” man began not only using written language in order to transmit messages. Over time, humans started to consider music (the “vibration of the air”) as a way of carrying messages due to the particular and susceptible perceptions of our eardrums.
So these certain vibrations or sound impulses represent a different way to transmit these deep messages and emotions: that’s music.
