Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1139344
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 7 JULY 2019 5 THIS WEEK MUSIC winds ing Grigal, the tropical Lbic to the tur- bulent Majjistral. So I am grateful to the Malta International Arts Festival for having given me the opportunity and inspiration to create this work. How did you set about choosing your collaborators for the project? What can audiences expect from the multi-media mix that the event promises to be? The choice of collaborators happened in a very organic way. It started off with jamming sessions in September 2018 with guitarist Glen Montanaro, whose willingness to experiment with unor- thodox sounds and techniques com- plemented perfectly my experimental approach to music production. In October Glen moved to Gdansk to further his jazz career, but we kept on collaborating remotely, bouncing mu- sical ideas to and fro over the internet. As the concept started developing, I got in touch with sound designer Aleks Bundalo, with whom I have collaborat- ed on various projects for more than 15 years. The initial idea was to tap into Aleks' vast library of Maltese wind and nature recordings, but he got so excited about the project that he ended up becoming my second pair of ears and doing post- editing, mixing and sound engineering work. As for the live performance, from the beginning I had the idea of expressing the concept also visually, and for this reason I involved dancer and chore- ographer Lynne Salomone Reynaud, for whom I had also written music in the past. Lynne had just set up her own studio, Dance Hub, and was looking for a creative project for her team to work on. Working with Glen, Aleks and Lynne has given me priceless motivation and inspiration, and I sure that the audience will be rewarded with a unique experi- ence born from the synchronicity with these amazingly talented artists. What do you make of the local musical scene? What would you change about it? I think that the local music scene has really come in leaps and bounds in the last few years. There is a new generation of bright and talented young artists who are not afraid to assert their own sound, whether it is in jazz or experimental electronic music. There are also the more seasoned musicians who have been honing their skills over the years, and when the gen- eration gap is bridged between the two groups magic can happen. In terms of what I would change about the scene, I think that there is a lack of live perfor- mance venues, especially for less main- stream genres. This is why I believe that the Malta International Arts Festival should be highly commended for providing a plat- form to innovative musical expression. What's next for you? After the premier performance of 8 Winds on July 10 in Marsaxlokk and Marsascala, I will be working on releas- ing it on digital media and vinyl some time in autumn. I will also be remixing the whole pro- ject to create extended versions of the tracks which are more dancefloor ori- ented. Oh, and I might also try to fit in a short holiday some time in August! 8 Winds will be taking place on July 10 at Marsaxlokk Bay (7.30pm-8.30pm) and Pjazza Dun Tarcis, Marsascala from 9.30pm to 10.30pm. Entrance is free. Dancer Lynne Salomone Reynaud "Being islanders, the winds play a very prominent role in our daily lives and are constantly present in our psyche and language" Guitarist Glenn Montanaro