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| The Drummers' Perspective - Pedro Carneiro |
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Interview Post: August, 2005
Occupation: Solo Percussionist, Website: www.pedrocarneiro.com (CD's & Merchandise available)
Excerpts From Biography: is one of the very few percussion players to have made an international career as a soloist, and has established himself as one of the world's foremost solo percussionists, performing regularly throughout Europe, the Far East and the USA. Carneiro's extensive repertoire ranges from his own solo marimba transcriptions of Bach, Schumann and Bartók; 20th century classics by Stockhausen, Carter and Xenakis; several specially commissioned concerti by acclaimed composers worldwide; to world premières involving percussion and live computer interaction. Pedro Carneiro is also embarking on an original project: conducting from the marimba keyboard. His future plans include a collaboration with the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra in Vilnius, with a program featuring Haydn, Stravinsky and two contemporary marimba concerti.
Now at the age of 30, Carneiro has performed the world première of over 70 works by leading composers worldwide and appears regularly with a wide range of acclaimed musicians such as the harpsichordist Elisabeth Chojnacka, cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras, pianists Valentina Lisitsa and Artur Pizarro, the Chilingirian and Shanghai string quartets, composers Steve Reich, Egberto Gismonti, James Dillon, Emmanuel Nunes and Django Bates. Pedro Carneiro took up the piano at the age of five, later studying cello and trumpet. At the Conservatório Nacional in Lisbon he studied with his father and at London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama (with a scholarship from the Gulbenkian Foundation) he studied percussion and conducting with David Corkhill and Alan Hazeldine, where he graduated in 1997 with the Head of Department Award. Pedro also studied with a scholarship from the Centre Acanthes with Sylvio Gualda in 1993, later in London with the marimbist Leigh Howard Stevens and conducting in Milan with Emilio Pomárico.
In the last seasons, Pedro Carneiro has been performing the world premières of several new concertante, solo and chamber works written specifically for him by composers such as Erkki-Sven Tüür, John Psathas, João Madureira, Ian Wilson, Gabriel Erkoreka, Áskell Masson, Thanos Mikroutsikos and others. He has also performed, commissioned and improvised with composers and sonic artists using cutting-edge technology and live electronics, such as Paul Wilson, Ricardo Climent, Pedro Rebelo, Cort Lippe, Ivan Franco, Vitor Joaquim, Petra Bachratá, Pedro Amaral and João Pedro Oliveira; as well as having recently performed new solos by Japanese composers Karen Tanaka and Dai Fujikura.
Carneiro is a frequent guest soloist with numerous orchestras: BBC National Orchestra of Wales, London Mozart Players, Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo, Helsingborgs Symfoniorkester, Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta de la Comunidad de Madrid, Bilbao Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Régional de Basse-Normandie, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Gävle Symfoniorkester and Portuguese Symphony Orchestra, to name but a few, working with conductors such as Petri Sakari, John Neschling, Ronald Zollman, Kaspar de Roo, Jurjen Hempel, Olari Elts, Andrew Parrott, Juanjo Mena, António Saiote, José Ramón Encinar, John Storgårds, Hamish McKeich, Max Rabinovitsj, Sarah Ioannides, Joseph Swensen, Dominique Debart and Marc Taddei amongst others.
Pedro has been heard and seen on radio and television stations throughout the world (BBC Radio 3, RAI, RNE, K-Mozart, WNYC, Artsworld, Mezzo, etc). In 2003 the British label Deux-Elles launched the solo CD "Crazy Mallets - Portuguese Music for Marimba". 2004 marked the beginning of Carneiro's ongoing collaboration with the French label Zig-Zag Territoires, who released a CD/DVD of the solo works of Iannis Xenakis in October, receiving astonishing reviews worldwide. Pedro Carneiro's new recording with the label is expected to be released in early 2006. Carneiro performs exclusively on Malletech marimbas and mallets, and on Zildjian cymbals. |
Questions
The Drummers Lounge (TDL) |
Answers
Pedro Carneiro (PC) |
TDL: You started out playing the Piano, Cello, and Trumpet. Why or how did you choose those instruments? What drew you to them? |
PC: My father is a trumpeter, and early on I remember watching him practice his routines (which he still does today!). Since I was on tour with him, I became addicted to music very quickly. My parents enrolled me in a piano course when I was around 4 or 5 years old. I played the trumpet at home so eventually I went to the Lisbon Conservatoire as a trumpet student. This was excellent for me since it felt more practical - I could play in a band, play duos with friends, etc. - It was in a local wind band that I first discovered percussion, and little by little I was drawn to it in such a way that I applied for a percussion spot at the Conservatoire and switched subjects altogether! It was really liberating to discover the percussionists infinite resource for sounds, timbres, shapes, technical possibilities, etc. |
TDL: What musical influences did you have growing up? |
PC: Classical music in general, of course, but a lot of brass music, since my father had a brass quintet and I “hanged around” with them quite a lot. I think I still feel percussion instruments as wind instruments when I actually play. I think that stayed on, that feeling of effort and burning lungs from playing a high, long note! Around the age of 12 I was presented to Stockhausen (I hear his work Sirius) and loved it – so I started composing atonal music and trying to desperately find more of this mysterious music - a whole world to discover… and it still is every morning! |
TDL: How did those influences, mold your music preferences for today? Or did they? |
PC: They did, very much so. But I also listened and love jazz, world music (I am an absolute fan of Venancio Mbande’s xylophone orchestra from Mozambique) and some rock and pop. But listening to music is something very special. I dislike music on the lift, restaurants or as background. I listen to music with full attention… if not, I prefer silence. Or even better, thinking of John Cage and listening to the symphony that silence makes up… |
TDL: From your studies with many different accomplished musicians, who molded or influenced you the most, and why? |
PC: Many did and many still do, but if I had to pick the one person, that would have to be my conducting professor, Mr. Emilio Pom‡rico. He is one of the most impressive human beings I know and it would take far too long to even attempt to describe what he has mean to me. To out it shortly, absolute commitment with music at all levels: personal, moral, technical. |
TDL: You perform all over the world. When performing in a new place, new town, new time…how do you stay fresh and not let the performance become a job? |
PC: Every piece of music is different, every day is different. So that pretty much cuts any hint of routine from this profession! I loved performing the same piece countless times… you can never reach what you aimed for, so it becomes a challenge to surpass yourself everyday. Is also interesting to see that your thoughts about one particular piece change with time, so, that very same piece becomes a different work. |
TDL: When you look at the audience, what percentage do you think is the next generation Marimba player? Musician? |
PC: I don’t think about the audience, really. I am the first auditor of my performance, so, in a way, I try to connect to myself. If you cannot connect to yourself it’s nearly impossible to connect with other human beings. Performance is about honesty, also. |
TDL: What has separated you in the industry as a leader or dominant player? |
PC: I suppose I am persistent, stubborn and love music passionately. That has helped. |
TDL: As a leader in your field, what do you think has propelled you musically the most? (i.e. practice, discipline, motivation, determination) |
PC: All of those are important for music, but also important for life in general. |
TDL: Is emotion part of playing the Marimba, or is it more technique? |
PC: Musical development has so many “items”. The list is countless. One cannot reduce marimba (or any instrument) performance to emotion and technique. I often think that technique is like knowing an idiom. The further you plunge into that idiom, the better you can express yourself. Technique is nothing but a tool to reach the depths. An essential tool to express what you have to say. |
TDL: Are you able to fully express yourself through your music? If so, how? |
PC: I don’t know if I fully express myself, but I can think my life without it, that’s for sure! |
TDL: You have been a guest teacher at many distinguished places. What are your students looking for most in the Marimba? |
PC: As teacher I am mostly concerned with the individual. Everyone is different and looking for different ways of approaching music and a particular work. It’s very challenging and fulfilling to teach. I learn immensely. |
TDL: Can you explain what you feel is the most challenging discipline of learning to play the Marimba? |
PC: Everything about marimba playing is challenging! But in many contemporary works, you nearly have to learn a different playing technique per piece. That is interesting but can be also be exhausting. |
TDL: In an orchestra, you have to play as a team. As a soloist, how do you balance the performing aspect of playing solo vs. orchestra? Do you have to change your playing style when playing in an orchestra? |
PC: Interesting question and not so often discussed. It can be quite tricky to project your musical thought whilst in front of 80 musicians. In order to project and articulate, I try to avoid hard sticks at all costs and really go for a heavy arm stroke when possible. If you really let the weight do its job, you can get a huge sound of most marimbas. |
TDL: For the beginning Marimba player, what is the number one key to sticking with it? |
PC: Patience and determination! That’s two keys, but I think they go nicely together! |
TDL: What instructional media would you recommend for the beginning, intermediate, and advanced Marimba player? |
PC: Leigh Stevens’ “Method of Movement” – absolutely precious! Also Bart Quartier’s Image and the funny marimba series of Zivkovic. |
TDL: As younger musicians move up in skill, how do they get involved with an orchestra? |
PC: Depends on countries I suppose. In the UK, where I studied, there is a strong orchestral tradition and most youngsters play in orchestras and ensembles since their early teens. When they go to music college, some are already seasoned ensemble musicians. |
TDL: What are some of your most memorable performances, and with who? |
PC: Hard to say… But I remember a performance in August 1993, in France, I was still in my teens, where I performed Zyklus by Stockhausen, after having worked the piece with Sylvio Gualda for two weeks. Gualda proposed that I perform this work after teaching me, so I was very proud of all the hard work. More recently, I loved playing with the Shanghai Quartet in Portugal and also performing for a packed Town Hall in Wellington New Zealand, premiering a new concerto by John Psathas, with an amplified ensemble. We had a 10 standing ovation! |
TDL: What made you choose to perform as a soloist, instead of in an orchestra, ensemble, or group? |
PC: I am an only child and spent a lot of time by myself when growing up, that might have influenced that choice. |
TDL: What has your reception been as a solo artist? |
PC: Even though percussion can be seen, in the classical music circuit, as a bit of a circus act, promoters and artistic directors are now starting to appreciate “deeper” programs and repertoires, so, we percussionists have to continue commissioning and promoting excellent music and composers, in order to “compete” with our colleagues (pianist, violinists, etc) who already have such a profound, meaningful repertoire. |
TDL: Have you seen the popularity of the marimba grow? |
PC: Absolutely. Everywhere I go as a guest teacher, there are more and more young musicians who consider marimba their first instrument. We have to thanks Keiko Abe and L.H. Stevens and Evelyn Glennie for their role in making percussion and marimba widely available and popular. |
TDL: Many people trying to learn an instrument will go to watch and hopefully learn from people like yourself. Many of those will quit due to frustration, boredom, etc. What words of advice would you give to the next generation of musician that is starting out today? |
PC: As I said in a previous question: Patience and determination! But also a never ending curiosity and an infinite will to improve yourself everyday. All of this done with honesty. Music only lives with honesty. |
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