Interview with Joaquín Muro: The intellect takes the lead in the practice room: Video

Jazz interview with a bad musician, as if trumpeter, problematic person Joaquín Muro. An interview by email in writing. 

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

Joaquín Muro: – I was born and grew up in Buenos Aires, capital city of Argentina, where I still live. I got interested in music since a very early age: My parents and grandparents listened to a lot of different types of music and took me to a lot of concerts. Also, since I am an only child and my parents worked a lot, I had a lot of time alone when I came back from school, and used to listen to a lot of records. At age 9 I started studying drums, and later on I switched to the trumpet. Since then I always studied music and always knew I wanted to be a musician.

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

JM: – This is a difficult question to answer because I believe that my sound it’s still developing. But I think I’ve reached a point where I can express myself freely and feel comfortable with the instrument and my music, and that took me a lot of years of listening, studying and analyzing a lot of music, and of course practicing with a lot of discipline, mainly doing bunch of long tones every day (laughs). And obviously the work continues, it’s endless.

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

JM: – You know that the trumpet it’s a very demanding instrument. I practice every day and I try to have a balanced practice routine. I do the rudiments every trumpeter does, I play classical exercises and excerpts, transcribe solos and modern tunes, scales, arpeggios, etcetera. About rhythm, I had a lot of rhythmic training because like I told you, I started as a drummer. I practice everything with a metronome in different tempos and time signatures, I like playing in odd meters, I’m really a fan of irregular rhythms.

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

JM: – I think it’s impossible to escape from our influences, because I think that we learn music mainly by hearing. But in my opinion having a wide spectrum of influences it’s the best way. If you become obsessed with an artist and you only study his music, it’s highly probable you end up sounding a lot like him/her.

JBN: – How do you prepare before your performances to help you maintain both spiritual and musical stamina?

JM: – I do a lot of practicing the weeks and days prior to the gig, but the day of the concert I try to stay fresh. I have a very reduced routine that I made especially for concert days, and I play just one or two times the most difficult passages of the concert, if there are. Then If I can, I try to take the day off and do things that doesn’t have to do with music at all to save all my musical energy and creativity for the gig.

There could be talk or advertising about your CD

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

JM: – The perfect balance between intellect and soul for me it’s that the intellect takes the lead in the practice room, but when it comes to being in the bandstand, it’s all soul. Music is a way to express yourself, so you study that way of expressing yourself and then simply unleash your feelings and say what you want to say on stage.

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

JM: – Since I do a lot of session and teaching work, I’m very used to adapt myself to various musical situations and giving the people what they want. So, when it comes to my music, my priority it’s to stay faithful to my essence and compose and play 100% what I want and feel. It’s my own space in music you know, like my little room.

JBN: – Please any memories from gigs, jams, open acts and studio sessions which you’d like to share with us?

JM: – Well, there were a lot of beautiful moments thanks to the music, but I remember a few years ago, a few days after listening to Pedrito Martinez at La Trastienda, I went to a fellow musician’s birthday here in my neighborhood, and Sebastian Natal, Pedrito Martinez bassist, came along. We jammed salsa all night, it was super. Also playing in Buenos Aires jazz festival 2018 and 19’ with Gary Smulyan and Ingrid Laubrock were great experiences.

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

JM: – I think the best way is not to isolate ourselves and to be connected with the world we live in, the people, and the new music that comes out. Jazz has always found the way to reinvent itself. But also accept that jazz it’s not mainstream, and despite that, there is a large community of people interested in it, and we should support ourselves in that community, and try to get more people interested by being open.

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

JM: – That’s a difficult one. I think music is the spirit of every musician. I do not know the meaning of life, but considering that it is a beautiful journey that can end at any time, we must never forget that we choose the music to enjoy. Nor should we ever forget to play with the joy with which we did it, for example, when we were children.

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

JM: – A more democratic way of music distribution. There are lots of incredible artists that because of the algorithms doesn’t get any views or plays, and that’s unfair.

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

JM: – Ambrose Akinmusire – on the tender spot of every calloused moment
Juana Sallies – Paralaje
Miguel Zenon – Tipico
Guillermo Klein & Los Guachos – Cristal
Camila Nebbia & Axel Filip – Intransigente (single from their album Colibri Rojo)

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

JM: – That of being a good person, of transparency, honesty, love, humility and solidarity. I don’t think anything in this life is worth much if you’re not a good person.

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

JM: – I would go back to 2013, just before my first teacher passed. I would give him a copy of my record, tell him that I followed a music career, thank him for all his wisdom, and tell him that I love him. I really miss him.

JBN: – I have been asking you so far, now may I have a question from yourself…

JM: – What is it, from the point of view of a jazz critic, what catches your attention when you listen to a new jazz artist? What do you look for?

JBN: – The swing. New music.

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

JM: – Hoping to continue my long journey as an artist with the same amount of passion, love, and exploration spirit that I had until now. Thanks for the interest and the possibility of making this interview!

Interview by Simon Sargsyan