November 10, 2024

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Interview with Meddy Gerville: Always the same, to discover to the whole world my mix between Jazz and Maloya: Video

Jazz interview with jazz pianist Meddy Gerville. An interview by email in writing. 

JazzBluesNews.Space: – First let’s start with where you grew up, and what got you interested in music?

Meddy Gerville: – I grew up in Reunion and that’s where I was born. I still live there now.

Music is my passion, a kind of escape but also the best way to share the culture of my island.

JBN.S: – What got you interested in picking up the piano?

MG: – I started music with my father at fourteen years old, but we were two saxophone players, so my dad told me to play keyboard.

JBN.S: – What teacher or teachers helped you progress to the level of playing you have today? What made you choose the piano?

MG: – I was self-taught until the age of 18 and I went to Paris to really learn music to do my job and that’s when I trained with Samy Abenaïm who is now dead and Bojan Zulfikarpasic. For singing, it was alongside Marc Thomas, who unfortunately passed away, that I learned a lot and gave me a taste for Jazz.

JBN.S: – How did your sound evolve over time? What did you do to find and develop your sound?

MG: – I think that it was very natural for me to find my way into music. The mixed between the music I learned (Jazz) and my local music (Maloya Séga) was very obvious.

JBN.S: – What practice routine or exercise have you developed to maintain and improve your current musical ability especially pertaining to rhythm?

MG: – I am still typing hands, feet, composing, writing new grooves, I think I live the rhythm of my island deep within me, but also not only the rhythms of Reunion but also those of any country.

JBN.S: – Which harmonies and harmonic patterns do you prefer now?

MG: – I still love the harmonies that made me what I am today, namely those of Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Brecker Brothers but also Bach and I also love film music.

Image result for Meddy Gerville Tropical Rain

JBN.S: – What do you love most about your new album 2017: <Tropical Rain>, how it was formed and what you are working on today. Next year your fans like we can wait for a new album?

MG: – Each track represent something different for me and each things have his importance, so I can’t really choose.

Today, I’m working more on how to communicate on my music, videos, social networks, and contacts of people who could help me that my music is more recognized.

An album is a lot of work for me as I write music, lyrics, arrangements, sound and mixing in my studio and in the end, my music is so little heard. That’s why I’m starting now in the video to try to reach a larger audience.

I have lots of new titles that sleep, but I prefer to focus on the communication of the old titles and especially the album “Tropical Rain” that came out less than a year ago.

JBN.S: – Which are the best ten jazz albums for you this 2017 year?

MG: – Tropica Rain !!! LOL !!! Sorry but I do not have much idea about it.

JBN.S: – Many aspiring musicians are always looking for advice when navigating thru the music business. Is there any piece of advice you can offer to aspiring students or even your peers that you believe will help them succeed and stay positive in this business?

MG: – I have not yet found the key to the mystery but I think we must play music with our heart before anything else and also think of finding all the means to spread it in this world that continues to evolve.

JBN.S: – Аnd furthermore, can jazz be a business today or someday?

MG: – I don’t think so…

JBN.S: – How can we get young people interested in jazz when most of the standard tunes are half a century old?

MG: – I think Jazz is not dead and continues to evolve as it has always done. I always try to educate young people through my music, which I think is modern jazz.

JBN.S: – John Coltrane said that music was his spirit. How do you understand the spirit and the meaning of life?

MG: – I would not say as much. I respect, but for me the spirit or the soul is more related to the religious side.

JBN.S: – What are your expectations of the future? What brings you fear or anxiety?

MG: – I’m not really afraid, I have faith, but it’s true that I sometimes doubt. The man is so made.

JBN.S: – What’s the next musical frontier for you?

MG: – Always the same, to discover to the whole world my mix between Jazz and Maloya.

JBN.S: – Are there any similarities between jazz and world music, including folk music?

MG: – Yes, like any music, it normally serves to soften the mores.

JBN.S: – Who do you find yourself listening to these days?

MG: – I still like listening to the same albums (Corea, Hancock, Brecker or Sting), but I follow also new artists like Jacob Collier, Dirty Loops, Snarky Puppy …

JBN.S: – What’s your current setup?

MG: – I have several, but the most flexible is the trio or the solo.

Interview by Simon Sargsyan

Image result for Meddy Gerville