Name: Daniel Ögren
Nationality: Swedish
Occupation: Guitarist, composer, engineer, producer
Current release: Daniel Ögren's Fastingen 92 is out via Mr Bongo.
Recomendations: Rune Gustafsson (Swedish guitarist, 1933-2012), Jan Johansson (Swedish Pianist, 1931-1968), Selda Baçan (Turkish singer), Turid (Swedish singer)

If you enjoyed this Daniel Ögren interview and would like to stay up to date with his music, visit him on Instagram.



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

I listen with eyes open, I relax them so they get “blurry”. That helps me “see” the music with my ears.
 
What were your very first steps in music like and how would you rate the gains made through experience - can one train/learn being an artist?

Hard to say. I’ve been around musicians my whole life, I’ve always played on ivarious instruments.

I remember one party when I was around 8 years old, where there was an African band playing and they saw me staring at them the whole time they played. They invited me up on stage and let me play on congas together with them. That was amazing.

Stages have been a big part of my life and that have trained me to be comfortable with having others staring at me haha.

According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music mean to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

Music has meant everything as long as I can remember.

The earliest memories I have are the ones from when I was 5 years old. Music has not become less deep for me since then.
 
What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

I strive for telling stories and explore sounds / noise / chords in a rhythmic way. Everything has a rhythm and that is music to me.

The fact that there are unlimited ways of expressing oneself really motivates me.

To quote a question by the great Bruce Duffie: When you come up with a musical idea, have you created the idea or have you discovered the idea?

That is a good question. I think that I create and discover at the same time.

I create a idea and discover ways of creating. And then I discover that the first idea is gone and something new is being created.
 
Paul Simon said “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What's your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

I would say that I do pretty much the same. I listen to see if I can hear myself, if I can see the story that I’ve tried to write.

And as always, I look to see that is has the groove that I want.
 
Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?

Thunder, streams, birds, flies, machines, cars, ice, waves, trees, escalators, anything can get me feel the music. Is it music? What is music then? Is it our minds, or is music just music …?

I don’t know really, but I believe humans (and maybe some others animals) create music, or maybe “speak” music, and when a machine makes a noise that we recognize as a musical “word” we complete the “sentence” and create music.
 
From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

I am quite picky I’m afraid haha. I wanna say that I like everything but I don’t, but the things I do like isn’t all extreme. But it needs to have a strong personality, otherwise I tend to get bored.

Could you describe your creative process on the basis of one of your pieces, live performances or albums that's particularly dear to you, please?

I can’t really. All projects / albums I’ve produced/composed are dear to me. It’s a passion whenever it strikes me, and I really can’t reject it then.

The last ten years I’ve been a parent (three kids) and it’s quite hard to work that hard with new projects, but I must, for everyone’s sake haha. That means working day and night when I suddenly start being creative again.

Do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you're making music?

Every time (so far) I’ve tried to compose from an idea, it has led to zero music. It has to be sounds and rhythms before I get curious to continue.
 
How does the way you make music reflect the way you live your life? Can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

I think we can be much better listeners, develop patience and become better on seeing the “whole picture” by listening to all kinds of music.
 
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?

Short answer: No, I don’t feel music is much different from like making a good cup of coffee.

Music is a language, a way of expressing oneself.”

Every time I listen to "Albedo 0.39" by Vangelis, I choke up. But the lyrics are made up of nothing but numbers and values. Do you, too, have a song or piece of music that affects you in a way that you can't explain?

Yes, I heard “Carmina Burana, O Fortuna” in school when I was 16. I had to skip the other classes, go home and rest for two days. I cried and had nightmares like never before (also, I was 16…).



I couldn’t listen to that piece of music for almost 15 years, and then suddenly I lay down on my bed and decided to have a listen on it again when I was 30. I almost vomited. Can’t say I don’t like it, but it truly affects me.
 
If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?
 
Nothing. Just curious to hear more stories.