Leonel Kaplan
from Argentina
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Interview: 10 questions
1. When did you start making music, what is/was your motivation to do it?
i started playing when i was 12 years old and had never stop since then…
2. Tell me something about your living environment and your musical education.
i am a self educated artist. i live in Buenos Aires, which is a great city, though not for sound art. so i feel lucky to travel once a year to europe and the states to meet my fellows and do music. i am married and have a son. my wife is a painter.
3.Is making music your profession? What is the context in which you practice music nowadays?
yes it is, but i live giving private lessons. unfortunately i don’t have time to practice, so i do on stage.
4. How do you compose or create music or sound? Do you have certain principles, use certain styles etc?
no… it depends… sometimes.
5. Tell me something about the instruments, technical equipment or tools you use?
I play the trumpet, and i use an old ibook g3 for composing.
6. What are the chances of New Media for music production in general? And you personally?
art will always get its way out, doesn’t matter how. i just wish to project my work… isn’t easy living in south america.
7. How about producing and financing your musical productions?
i would love to receive support from institutions and stop thinking of money.
8. Do you work individually as a musician/sound artist or in a group or collaborative?
If you have experience in both, what is the difference, what do you prefer?
being basically an improviser, I have a lot of experience in collaborative groups. but i am also a composer, so i know about solitude too. guess the difference are which whom you are fighting: with yourself, with your partners. both things are very exciting for me, though on stage, i prefer to work within a group.
9. Is there any group, composer, style or movement which has a lasting influence on making music?
i am influenced by my friends, i’ve been so lucky to work with such brilliant artists: percussionist lê quan ninh, is a master of sound projection. saxophonist michel doneda is pure soul explosion. poet and dancer ly thanh tiên is just a genius, somebody beyond our understanding. trumpeter axel dörner brought a new perspective over the trumpet. i’ve learn all from them, and in the most beautiful way: on stage, driving a car, having a meal…
10. What are your future plans or dreams as a sound artist or musician?
dreams and plans are two different things: future plans are my european and states tours. have very nice things to do: dave douglas invited me to NY, a workshop for homeless people in london, etc… dreams: to fix the hole in my roof, paint the house, rich end of the month, and have the chance to live of my art.