Thursday 07 April 2016
Interview with Cesar Latorre in Linto Editor: Gogo Dimopoulou
G.D.: What was your first interaction with music?
Cesar Latorre: I started playing the piano at the age of three. My mother had always wanted her children to study music. She herself wanted to have piano lessons but was never able to because she could not afford it. My older siblings took lessons first. My sister has always been an introverted person, who did not have many friends and spent much time at home. Whenever she returned home from music lessons, she wanted to teach me what she had learned considering this a game.
G.D.: The Cesar Latorre Trio was formed in 2005 by you, Petros Klampanis and Artis Orubs. How did you three meet?
Cesar Latorre: All three of us met in Amsterdam, where we went to study. As a jazz pianist, I had always wanted to be in a trio, so along with Artis (the drummer) we started playing as a duo and were looking for a bass musician for a project. During my third year of study, I played with Petros Klampanis, for the first time, in a contest in which we came second. It was a very beautiful experience. Peter was exactly what we were looking for after all.
G.D.: Your second CD, named "Collage", was released in April 2015. How was the title inspired?
Cesar Latorre: I live in London, which is a place with different daily rhythms. I was working quite a lot and I didn’t have the time I’d like to complete an album. So, in the only free time available I tried to write down some of my ideas in paper. When I decided to complete the album, I had to take all these ideas and unite them. So I named it "Collage", because it is a collage of different ideas. I somehow tried out a technique on composition, in which I would see how the energy of different ideas creates an overall effect. I hope I have succeeded.
G.D.: Could you describe the process of composition?
Cesar Latorre: There are many ways of composition. I have created pieces which haven’t been written in a specific way. For example, I began by playing the piano, and then I grabbed a pencil and wrote my idea on paper. Then I started playing again, and so on... While playing the piano, your hands play the way they are used to and this doesn’t let you try new things, so I prefer writing on paper so that I can focus on my “internal” sound. Of course, sometimes the tracks "pop" at once. In the last CD, (Collage) I have tried to create various atmospheres, something that is new for me. I believe that through composition you become a better musician because it leads you to doing different things.
G.D.: Could you mention some artists with whom you have worked and they have influenced you?
Cesar Latorre: Everyone influences you. However, the one who has influenced me most was my teacher Kris Goessens, who sadly passed away a few years ago. He was an amazing piano teacher in Amsterdam, originally from Belgium, and the way he perceived music was truly wonderful. Spyros Manesis and Petros Klampanis have quite influenced me too. In Amsterdam you have the opportunity to play with musicians of different nationalities and they all have something to give.
G.D.: Will you please share your future plans?
Cesar Latorre: I hope I work less. At the moment I am working at a company in London. I feel pleased in this job, but it takes time and sometimes I do not play jazz as often as I’d like to. I have two main plans. By the end of the year I want to have completed a solo piano album that I have been preparing and to have composed music for a quartet or a quintet, because up till now I have only composed for a trio. I will be very happy if by the end of the year I have managed those two.
|
Our events |
