Interview with Massoud Godemann: Music my universe, love is the only thing that counts: Video

Jazz interview with jazz guitarist and bassist Massoud Godemann. An interview by email in writing. 

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

Massoud Godemann: – Grew up in Hamburg. Chuck Berry was my first Hero and he lighten me up … inspiriert me for my whole life … great Artist.

JBN.S: – What got you interested in picking up the guitar? What teacher or teachers helped you progress to the level of playing you have today? What made you choose the guitar?

MG: – To sing Songs is much more easy with a Guitar. Start as a scout in a pathfinder group at the age of 10, they want to sing…and i have had some classic lessons at the age of 9, so i ihad a little bit of guitarexperience, but  I did’nt had a popular music teacher till i met Les Wise in Vienna 1990. Later i studied with Joe Pass in Hamburg. He fall in Love with a nothern Girl. So i went back to Hamburg to met him and grow.

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

MG: – Its a question of the style you want to play..i start with Rock‘n Roll and Blues, went to heavy Rock, Progressiv Rock, than Jazz came along. The Gear gets bigger and bigger and now its only a tiny small amp.

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

MG: – Playing Melodies brings a good Tone and Phrasing. Listen and working with Drummers envolve your Rhythm. I have had 2 Years Drumlessons … and studying Pianioplayers envolve your sense for Harmonie … i studied a lot of Pianotranscriptions.

JBN.S: – Which harmonies and harmonic patterns do you prefer now? You’re playing is very sensitive, deft, it’s smooth, and I’d say you drift more toward harmony than dissonance. There is some dissonance there, but you use it judiciously. Is that a conscious decision or again, is it just an output of what goes in?

MG: – I try to find a way in between Consonance and Dissonance. Not to much inside, not to much outside. More Melodie than noodling Scales..its a question how you try to tell a Story. Its a long term thing… you have to decide, what kind of sound can discribe the feeling, the imagination that you have, but you have to experiment … its a balance between inside and outside Sounds, Klischees and Nonklischees, using II V I or try to prevent them. Drawing f.ex. in modal Sounds to create II V I Mimikries.

JBN.S: – How to prevent disparate influences from coloring what you’re doing?

MG: – You need a special view on things. You have to bring out your taste. It has to be unique how you work with Harmonies and which kind of resolutions your a looking for.

Listen to others its not a problem, when you know what you want …

JBN.S: – What’s the balance in music between intellect and soul?

MG: – 20% Intellect 80% Soul.

JBN.S: – There’s a two-way relationship between audience and artist; you’re okay with giving the people what they want?

MG: – I dont have problems, because the people know what they choose, when they visit a concert of the Bands i playing with. We have the great luck,  being well recommended by the press since 2005, so there is a lot of information available. They can also check youtube, my websites and google …

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

MG: – Go into your Folksongbooks of the region and try to find a sound that explains who you are…its the was the old folks get their standards from …

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

MG: – I am a passenger in this body and mind set and i try to get as much impressions from love as possible. Music, woman, children, friends, art … in my universe, love is the only thing that counts … love what you do, love what you are, love the people around … it makes creation much easier. The other side is hate and i cant handle it …

JBN.S: – If you could change one thing in the musical world and it would become a reality, what would that be?

MG: – No Digital Musiccopypossibilities!

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

MG: – Stravinsky, Bela Bartok, Miles Davis and Earth, Wind and Fire, Jeff Beck …

JBN.S: – What is the message you choose to bring through your music?

MG: – Try to speak in your own words. Don’t sound like an Avatar, you are here, so let me hear what you think …

JBN.S: – Let’s take a trip with a time machine, so where and why would you really wanna go?

MG: – Sixties please – happend a lot in Art, Music and Science … Jazz!

JBN.S: – So putting that all together, how are you able to harness that now?

MG: – I only want to be able to create and to feed my family with my music and have the chance to learn more…to do, what you want to do is a good goal, is‘nt it?

Interview by Simon Sargsyan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtGVZ3ILP4Y