Daniele Montagner Of Ensemble Voyagers

Interview With Daniele Montagner Of Ensemble Voyagers

SBS:  Welcome to our pages!  Whether you’ve been here with us in some way before, or you’re brand-new to the site, it’s probably best to get an introduction from you so that we get everyone on the same page to start.  Tell us a little bit about the history of your music, and what’s happening with it lately!?!

Daniele Montagner:  Ensemble Voyagers founded in 2017 by Daniele Montagner, is an “open” project dedicated to the exploration of music ranging from the roots of Western civilization to the traditions of non-European cultures up to the present day, a historical and ethnic reconnaissance with contemporary contaminations and approaches.  The Ensemble has several recordings to its credit: “Chanson Balladée”, “Two Songs from Okinawa”, “El Cant dels Ocells”, “Ductia” and “Due Sonetti di Dante” written by Paolo Coggiola for voice and medieval consort, a composition that the Ensemble presented in public in October 2018 at the Teatro Filodrammatici in Milan (Italy), to these is added the album “Due Sonetti di Petrarca” by Paolo Coggiola in world premiere and recording, dedicated to Daniele Montagner and the Ensemble Voyagers.

SBS:  Let’s talk about the before and after of where you’re currently at.  What’s something about the music that you’re making now that you don’t think you could have done five years ago, and what’s something you think you’ll be able to do with your music five years from now that you can’t do today?  How have you grown as an artist/band, and what steps do you take to continue your artistic evolution?

Daniele:  After having been interested in the music of the troubadours and troveri, in the music of the European Middle Ages and other extra-European traditions of the same historical period, the Ensemble Voyagers has moved on to musical experiences suspended between ancient and modern, with four compositions dedicated to the Ensemble of the contemporary musician Paolo Coggiola, Two Sonnets by Dante and Two Sonnets by Petrarca, 4 songs for voice and consort of medieval instruments inspired by the lyrics of the two great Italian poets between the Middle Ages and humanism.  From a musical tradition therefore notationless culture, from the cantus firmus also crossing the traditions of traditional folklore we have moved on to a modern and clearly decoded writing, while maintaining a certain sound aura, a care and passion for an ancient-modern sound where the temporal perspectives are confused.  The Ensemble, in its instrumental-only configuration, is currently trying out a new recording adventure, two compositions for quartet and septet by Daniele Montagner: an approach that is certainly very different from what has been achieved up to now, two compositions that are experimental in some respects, constructed in the ancient manner of the “tabulae compositoriae,” but elaborated in a serial and fractal manner; a totally new experience.

SBS:  If you were to assess the overall health of the independent music scene right now, what would you say?  What are the positives and the negatives about the current state of independent music, and what do you feel like artists & bands can do to contribute to the community & help it grow beyond the music being made?  If you’re not actively looking to listen to the music of other independent artists/bands, is it really all that fair to expect anyone would listen to yours?  How do you help the scene around you grow?

Daniele:  It is certainly easier than it used to be for independent artists to freely publish their music without going through traditional labels.  Thanks to active musical micro-scenes, collectives, self-managed spaces, etc., there are more opportunities for emerging artists, free from commercial constraints and therefore in theory with more creative and experimental possibilities.  On the other hand, the hyper-digitalization of the market, the very low revenues of streaming, poorly paid concerts and the very fragmented music scene generate problems.  What to do?  Open up to new collaborations, listen to others, do not sectorize too much artistically, be professional, improve, help and help each other.  And above all, do not forget to be HUMAN.

SBS:  What do you consider to be the biggest accomplishment or achievement you’ve had with your music to-date?  How do you personally measure your own success – is that something that even can be measured?  Is it awards, accolades, chart position…or is your definition of success based on something entirely different?  Should success, however you define it, be something that artists are continually focused on – or is success something that naturally occurs in the course of doing what you love to do?

Daniele:  The question to ask yourself is this: “If no one ever listened to my music, would I still do it?”  Based on the answer that each person gives themselves, we can measure the “truth” and “beauty” of what each person is doing or pursuing.

SBS:  When you’re working on something brand-new, and something about it just doesn’t feel like it’s coming together the way that you think it should, how do you know when it’s time to give up on it, or how do you know that it’s time to dig in even harder and find a way to make it work?  Are there distinct red flags you can hear when something’s not working?  What are the signs you look for that tell you to stop forcing the material?  What would actually encourage you to keep going with the process instead?

Daniele:  When something is difficult to do or there are a thousand difficulties that force you to grow, it means that that is the path to follow.  It means that you have to perfect the idea, take risks, grow, dig deeper, reflect with a fresh mind on what you are doing and not be afraid of making mistakes.

SBS:  One of the points of general consensus in the art of making music, is that we all get our sound from somewhere…we hear what we like, then more often than not, we take tiny pieces of what we love to find our own voice & approach to go on and make music in our own way.  Essentially, what I’m saying is that it’s absolutely natural to be inspired by other artists/bands, and almost every artist/band ends up having that inspiration show up in their own work in some way, shape, or form.  What the real key is though, is retaining your own organic perspective – you still wanna be original too, right?  So how do you go about doing that?  Are there artists or bands that you know have been an influence on your style & sound?  How were you able to incorporate that influence without becoming too noticeably derivative and still be yourself?  Should we embrace and celebrate our influences more than we do?  It’s almost like we try not to admit influences exist in the pursuit of being original, but it’s like, bruh…if it’s there, we can hear it.  We all borrow something from those that came before us to some extent, don’t we?

Daniele:  What you say is right: we are all children of an idea.  We have all had a reference, an inspiring beacon that perhaps changed over time: it is our roots that must be cultivated and that allow our individuality and vital and creative originality to evolve and give its contribution to the human community.  We are continuously stimulated by everything, the creative obsession is that bright spark that balances, harmonizes and recreates new forms of reworking reality.

SBS:  Has there ever been a time where you wrote something inside one of your songs…maybe it’s a lyrical line, or maybe it’s a riff of some kind…something that you did, where you surprised yourself?  I like to think we all have a moment or two where we can stand back and be amazed by something we created, and appreciate the fact that maybe, just maybe, we exceeded our own expectations of what we thought we could accomplish – you know what I mean?  Get as specific as you can so the fans out there know what they should be paying attention to when they hear it – what’s your favorite thing that you’ve written on the inside of one of your songs, and why does this particular piece resonate so much to you?

Daniele:  Yes, the most beautiful moments when I listen to what I played in concert or on records are that moment of surprise dictated by the “truth” of that moment, unexpected, because it’s beyond my expectations.  In fact, the synthesis of every interpretative effort is to go “beyond,” to touch, to open and to enter into that ineffable magical world of dreams that we all yearn for.  But they are personal sensations, it is not possible to make a map of them, because they are small things, they are intimate moments, small secrets of the soul.

SBS:  I’ve been having a lot of great debates lately about whether or not everybody that’s making music has the right to be heard…and you’d probably be surprised by how different people seem to feel about this issue.  I know where I stand on it, and I think you can all probably get an idea of what my position would be from this free interview we’re doing here & the way we run things at sleepingbagstudios…but regardless, I’m putting this question out there to you, because I’m interested in YOUR perspective.  Just because you’ve made a song, does that mean people should listen?  If your answer is yes, do your best to explain why you feel that way & why we should make a sincere effort to listen to the music of others.  If your answer is no, explain why you feel that way, but also explain why people should still be listening to your music if that’s the case – what would make your music the exception, and not follow the rule?  Is there any value to an idea that’s not finished, or a song in its demo stages, or maybe something that’s not recorded in a top-shelf studio or with good equipment – somebody still took the time to make that song to the best of their ability with the means they had to create it – should that be listened to, or not?

Daniele:  The answer remains the same: let’s not forget that we are HUMANS!  Being listened to is a human act, not a market obligation, and being an artist, in my opinion, passes through this approach.  The creative act is pure in itself, unconditional, without pretensions, it is an act of love.  Confusion always arises when you mix art, business and money.  They are incongruent concepts.

SBS:  There are ups and downs in the dynamics of almost every album we listen to, with very few exceptions.  Even those exceptions, probably still come down to more of a personal preference about what we enjoy about music and how we personally hear it, rather than anything being completely and totally “perfect” – you know what I mean?  Does an album actually need to have some kind of up/down dynamics in terms of what’s appealing to the masses in order for the best of the best songs in a lineup to be fully appreciated?  Wouldn’t every artist & band avoid the ‘down’ side (less accessible/less popular for example) if they could?  Does the ‘down’ side represent something else perhaps, like the story of an album or journey of an artist?  Is the ‘up’ side of a record as potent or noticeable if it doesn’t have a ‘down’ side to go with it?  Would a completely balanced album somehow be boring if it didn’t have the ups/downs that most have?  Do we HAVE to like every single song on a record for it to be considered complete?  Are the dynamics of an album something anyone can really steer in the direction they want to, or are all artists & bands simply going with the strongest material they have created at the time?

Daniele:  An album should be what an artist elaborates at that moment, certainly the combination of the various songs should have a rational congruence a bit like dishes are combined in a lunch, but it is not always possible.  This aspect is more part of marketing and packaging than of the artistic aspect.  An album is like a photograph, a snapshot of that moment of the artist’s soul, it is an existential document.  The maniacal, obsessive and fetishistic attention towards the container rather than the content is a drift of the current times.

SBS:  I wanna send out a shout-out to YOU from me personally – I appreciate everyone that has taken the time to talk tunes with me throughout the years, and I appreciate the time YOU have taken with this interview too.  Because this one’s a little different in the sense that it’s been sent out to multiple people and is a little more generic in that regard, I have no doubt whatsoever that we probably didn’t get to talk to you about something you wanted to talk about – so let’s fix that!  This final space is what we call the SBS Open Floor – a spot where you can say anything else you want to say to the people out there.  It can be anything at all…your main websites…something else you want them to know about you and/or your music…your favorite bands in the scene right now…the secret 11 herbs and spices to the Colonel’s secret recipe – you get the idea, and it’s probably best you choose something that suits you rather than take any of my suggestions, but feel free to take the SBS Open Floor for a ride.  Whatever it is you want the people to know, now is the prime time for you to tell’em!  Thanks again for everything – keep in touch!

Daniele:  Thank you for your time and attention! I conclude with a small amusing writing by W.A.Mozart:

Vienna 9 July 791

P.S. To N.N. transmit the following:

= = = = = = = = =

= = = = = = = = =

= = = = = = = = =

= = = = = = = = =

What do you say? Will he like it?

Adieu

Find out more about Ensemble Voyagers at Facebook here:  https://www.facebook.com/EnsembleVoyagers

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