Interview with esbjorn svensson

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Interview with Esbjorn svensson…

Teatro Ciak, Milano 4 December 2006

 

Would you tell us something about your music education and career?

I started to play by a year and stared play together with Magnus.

We learned how to play together without a teacher.

More or less by myself, we found out how it work and how to play in cord.

It is a little bit of mystery how it did. But some reason we did it.

We came quiet far, and then I got my first teacher when I was 16 when starting to some kind of music and I learned how to read as well which was quite late I mean I was 6 years old It was very boring because in the beginning I had to play in a simple stuffs. It was hard. But I managed and then I had also been to music university in Stockholm studying first 2 years as a pedagogy and improvisation and my piano teacher was first jazz piano teacher. But it didn’t work at all. We couldn’t agree about anything. I didn’t like his way of play and teaching. So I told that I had to change. I got another teacher who was more Classical educated and I got some classical training instead. That was actually for 3 years because then I up to those 2 years also studied another branch of that school more…then I studied piano composition as profession actually. But I think my training was very much that I got from those teachers was classical training but I obviously knew I am never going to be classical player I wasn’t that good. And it was more and less to learn how to get some kind of commends of the piano how to play piano. There is such a long piano tradition from Johan Christian Bach to Bala Bartok more contemporary music and So much to learn from them. Sometime I think jazz piano tradition is a bit poor in how pianists are using the piano. It has been for some reason it has been very much to right hand playing some rhys and left playing cord and that’s it which I find a bit boring. I’m still very very exciting about really exploring classical feeling how you can really…you know use the piano and even in the context of trio.

 

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So you’ve had an unconventional music education

Yes, in many ways since we started to play pop and rock by a year you kbthen some classical music and then of course some jazz music and improvised music. But I have never really invited the teacher in my improvised play. For some reason, I didn’t want their touch really I didn’t know why I was a bit. I’m sure that they could have been told me a lot. For some reason I was when I had idea that I know where I’m going and I know what I’m going to do and don’t tell me about it because I’m not interested in playing what you going to teach me. So I don’t know it wasn’t like that but some reason I kept them outside and to do classical music was just perfect. I mean I’m still practicing a lot of classical music because I just love. I mean as I said, from that..from the classical piano history there is so much music and so much fun to play that I meas as soon as I’m home, I’m playing a lot of music by Mozart, Beethoven and Bach for practicing, for learning technique only just for the fun because the music is great and I just say it’s my hobby. I’m not profession.

 

 

Do you compose the music together or is there someone of you more involved in it?

 

Most music composed by me and then that is the first part of process then when I have couple of tunes and Magnus join me and try to play and I try to say not too much, because I want to hear their reaction to what I composed. It’s also important that I always try to compose for Magnus and myself, so sometimes some of the music that we play, that I composed works fine directly, some music is not really for the trio and we realize quite similar some of the music we have to work hard on it to really find a form then maybe had to start sing or may we don’t find a right way of,, right approach for that. Some of our song that actually we have one song called “behind yashmak” I mean we don’t have any hit songs, but there is one of songs that the audiences seem to be very much aware of it as for me, that was a song we struggled a lot with it to find a right a way of playing it. It was almost that we haven’t….you know…. didn’t do it.  

 

Do you have a special place where you usually compose?

 

I work a lot at home. I have my basement by a little house there are piano and computer and stuffs. Basically I’m practicing and composing by the piano or at the piano or just being on tour with a notebook like writing. It was like this.

 

Do you play other instrument?

 

Yes, I do. I mean I know how. I think it’s not a complex, if you know or understand how it works what music. Then you can play more or less any instrument I mean you know how it works. I mean I can play guitar, bass and drums, saxophone, flute. But just little bit. I mean I know how they work then I can write for it and compose for it maybe I can play it little bit. But it’s nothing. Before I was a little bit like, “I am going to be bass player” as well I was practicing bass. But all that is gone now I am a piano player I knew and I know how they other instruments work. But I don’t practice any more. If you understand music you can play anything. But what I do that’s play a guitar and bass with my son because my younger son, Noa is playing drums. So we have serious sessions playing rock’n roll. Then I…I used to play bass then I brought some guitar because they want to me to play guitar with wheel. But I know it’s not the waa waa. It’s the arm getting on the guitar you can sustaind the notes. I love using with distortion, because I was guitar player. You know before, when I told you about, when I started playing piano, I played a lot of instrument, I didn’t really decide where I had to go. I guessed I would stop playing piano but I’m playing guitar and bass at the same time. I wasn’t sure really. Maybe, the guitar, in flat stand still.

 

What is your favourite music genre?

At the moment, without question it’s a classical music. It’s not jazz music. For the moment, it’s Johan Sebastian Bach, Favourite of mind. I need to ask a lot of question to him. I love playing the way very much of his music I think his inspiration of that music is just amazing. I need to also take inspiration that was the music composed in 1600 something. Sometimes I feel like that nothing happen after him. I mean maybe he is beyond his time. I don’t know how people react about his music. But just amazing I think.

 

How would you define your music?

I don’t like define music because I think music exist. Just because you shouldn’t try put words on it. Music is just something you can’t express with words. You can’t talk about music, of course you can talk about the music. But if for instance you never heard of music and then I have a plan to say something “describe music for you”, you probably get some idea but that’s the only way you hear music. It will be something completely different. That’s at least my philosophy. But I think music is a kind of universe itself. That’s wordless in that sense. It’s something that you can experience with other part not really with your logical minds. It can be very so many others… your body might feel it, your heart, it goes somewhere else. Another reason in story, totally different thing. But it’s story in Bible about walls that nobody could get through that all warriors were trying to going to city but they could destroy those walls ‘cause they were just strong. Suddenly there was a musician coming and playing and the wall just fell. Nothing but it’s very nice picture or image of us as human being. I mean we can have very hard shell and people try to reach there for instance some keys that they’re very close you can communicate with them. That’s only with music, you can reach them and with music you can get it touch with them. So music can go really through. Your wall and your shell I think. In that sense, I don’t know how describe music. It is universe itself so forth.

 

What about the titles?

The titles is actually Magnus’s work, the drummer and is poet in that sense. I have no idea regarding titles. For me when I compose music C minor slow, fast as compose used to do. Magnus says great fantasy in that sense coming up all these titles. We always discuss a lot.

 

You’re experiencing a period of wide popularity. Did popularity change your life or not?

Those all I feel the same. Everybody constantly is changing, growing up and down. What we’ve been a trio and being a big popular of course. It has affected us. What way I’m not really sure of. It’s really hard to say. It is though very important to try to stay humble even though people are pleasing you. So I see that Music that is, is important thing.

 

Do you think your idea of music has developed through the years?

I think it has changed. I think it’s constantly changing. It’s an evolution or hopefully development in that sense. It’s again really hard to describe you relationship with music. Somewhere I think I’m getting close to it. I don’t know really. It’s very interesting question. I don’t know really what to say. The relationship with music is constantly going on and it is what it is constantly changing.

 

In other European countries you’re more popular than Italy, why?

I think it’s questionnaire of marketing actually, because I think in some countries Germany, France and England. We have very strong distributors and we have many different distributors so far. I don’t know maybe it’s going to change now with what we have. It’s really hard to say. You need to work hand in hand like when we started in Germany, we were touring at second time record company really supporting everything that happened. And I think now I learned a lot from it. So we try to the same thing in Italy more and more hopefully we will low. But it’s a little bit same effect in Spain. It’s not really working. I mean concert-wise it’s fine. It’s same in Italy. When we are playing in concert used to be fine as well but the record sale is not that high. But the concert we’re working on it. So it’s really hard to say what the problem is. I don’t feel that there are a lot of people who might be interesting in our music so where they reach them somehow.

 

You’re working together since many years. Was it always easy to get along?

No, it’s rather like relationship, sometimes really tough. I think we learn a lot through the way though. I mean in the beginning, we started to work together move to work hard together plus we tried to socialize and allow spare time as well which was too much. It just get really tired each other side I think we understood quite early and decided that we spend like holidays together on the road. We don’t need to see each other when we are at home. Of course we’re not bothering each other like with me with me. But it’s not like we inviting each other for party all the time and so on. We try to take care other friends and other things and doing different stuff at home. Recently speaking I think it’s still growing still have lots of charming it’s really exciting to play with Dan and Magnus. I have feeling that we are still very hungry, music is very fresh.