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Part 2

Collaborations can take on many forms. What role do they play in your approach and what are your preferred ways of engaging with other creatives through, for example, file sharing, jamming or just talking about ideas?

I had several collaborations so far, with different results, but all of them turned out to be nice experiences.

Collaborating itself, in any form, is something that enriches you and allows you to grow faster. But in the end I live my art in a very personal way, I’m a self taught and what drives me is an internal need to express my singularity.

It doesn’t mean I only do that. In fact, recently I had the most beautiful moments playing together with other people. Last year I was jamming regularly with some friends and we were about to become a very cool band, but the global situation didn’t allow us to continue.

Could you take us through a day in your life, from a possible morning routine through to your work? Do you have a fixed schedule? How do music and other aspects of your life feed back into each other - do you separate them or instead try to make them blend seamlessly?

Routines can be powerful, both in positive and negative way. Sometimes I play with them, sometimes I fight with them, but I try not to fall into a rut.

My ideal routine starts with a good sleep, the other activities depend on the work priorities of the moment because I don’t have a fixed schedule. But generally I’m an early bird, those silent moments are great for reading and I like to take care of my body and brain as well as possible on a daily basis.

Ten years ago my habits were completely different, I had a more bohemian attitude for all the aspects of my life, everything was melted together badly. Now the level of complexity is growing and so is my need to clean up here and there. I believe that keeping things separated has its benefits.

Could you describe your creative process on the basis of a piece or album that's particularly dear to you, please? Where did the ideas come from, how were they transformed in your mind, what did you start with and how do you refine these beginnings into the finished work of art?

The game is always the same, we can have different players and results but the principles underlying the process remain the same.

The starting point is the exploration of a new territory, it can be a new instrument to learn, a technique to master, or simply something I never did before. Once it’s defined , I begin to study, spending a lot of time around it without any specific direction, I’m just looking for inputs and connections, maybe I throw down some sketches. This phase can last weeks, months or even years. It allows for iseas to settle down and lets the tension grow. When I have enough of that, it’s time to forget everything and start to act, this time very quickly. I let it rest for a while and come back to it with a fresh mind and perspective.

I do listen, multiples times if needed. In Fantasia I put more things together, I played on different levels and had fun with roles. The idea of the imaginary band reflects my holistic vision, I thought it was a good way to describe how I see it. In this case I was into the acoustic guitar, combining open tuning and percussive techniques with my use of effects, which gave me the trigger. So I added rhythm, bass and other elements, plus a lot of computer work. I know when a project is finished when there’s nothing else to do, I mean when nothing distracts or bores me during the active listening phase.

There are many descriptions of the ideal state of mind for being creative. What is it like for you? What supports this ideal state of mind and what are distractions? Are there strategies to enter into this state more easily?

My ideal state of mind for being creative is a calm space. The environment is extremely important, because in the end, it is a matter of focus.

However, there must be an emotional substrate, a tension to release, something to say. My strategies to get there have changed over time. Alcohol and drugs don’t work anymore, a cup of coffee and a little joint are still ok in the studio. I face external distractions managing my time and getting rid of my phone, it has to be in another room. Internal distractions are a different story, everybody has her own, I try to direct my attention on one thing at a time.

Writing helps me put concerns aside for a while. My goal is to create the conditions for this much desired ‘flow’.

How is playing live and writing music in the studio connected? What do you achieve and draw from each experience personally? How do you see the relationship between improvisation and composition in this regard?

In the studio the focus is on the inside, in a live context on the outside. On one hand I try to make art, on the other to share a mood, there is a shift from the spiritual dimension to the emotional and social dimension. All my compositions derive somehow from improvisation, luckily there’s HD recording.

How do you see the relationship between the 'sound' aspects of music and the 'composition' aspects? How do you work with sound and timbre to meet certain production ideas and in which way can certain sounds already take on compositional qualities?

The compositional aspects are the most important to me, the sound comes later. I much prefer a bad sounding good idea instead of a full spectrum, ‘in your face’ nothing. It’s easier to progress in technique than in taste. That’s why I pay attention to how much I like what I’m doing, looking at how I respond to it and the sensations I’m feeling. I listen, listen a lot ‘till it’s clear in my head what needs to be done, and I deal with that only. I think every sound has inherent compositional characteristics, the meaning I give it depends on how I relate it to the context. Should I get along with that or do I prefer a contrast? Blending or separation? Is it cool or does it suck?

Our sense of hearing shares intriguing connections to other senses. From your experience, what are some of the most inspiring overlaps between different senses - and what do they tell us about the way our senses work? What happens to sound at its outermost borders?

At one extreme should be the silence if I remember correctly, my right ear has been ringing for almost two years now (due to something called Tinnitus), and I miss it. It’s physiologically ok, but it's giving me a noisy brain. In this case the connections could be with different things. I’m investigating.

Art can be a purpose in its own right, but it can also directly feed back into everyday life, take on a social and political role and lead to more engagement. Can you describe your approach to art and being an artist?

I always tried to make some art and never thought about how to approach it. What I mean is that I consider it a very instinctive process, reasoning comes later. To me, it is a way to bring order to a great chaos, beside a need. If I do it I’m fine, if I don’t I feel bad.

In the end it’s nice to leave a trace of yourself, the things I did will survive me . If in doing so, I can contribute to someone else’ life, even if for just 10 minutes in just one person’s life, I succeeded.

It is remarkable, in a way, that we have arrived in the 21st century with the basic concept of music still intact. Do you have a vision of music, an idea of what music  could be beyond its current form?

Music and all its connected worlds can take many forms. We are witnessing a revolution in action, but emotional desire remains the foundation. We can change the way we do it and the way we listen to it, but we still want the music to give us those feelings.


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