An espresso with…
Danilo Gallo

Image Credits: Danilo Gallo © Danilo Gallo

July 03, 2018

To play, to travel, to know places and people is already a dream

Danilo Gallo is a creative and versatile bass player capable of being at ease and personal in all the musical languages in which he is involved. We interviewed him on his recent tour in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Doha.
 
> Ivano Rossato
 

 
How do you make your improviser’s soul coexist with that of a session musician struggling with more defined musical structures?
It might seem that, for an improviser, structured music is limiting, but in reality improvisation means going to touch meanders, microcosms that do not necessarily mean playing free notes on a free structure or a free rhythm. There is also the improvisation of the timbre, that of the breath and that of the pause. These are all small cells that together make the difference between organized music played by improvisers and one played by non-improvisers.
 
What are the characteristics you look for in another musician?
When you improvise you create the famous interplay. Affinities are created that often are not even attributable to an explanation or a decision. For me the ideal condition to look for is to feel good together and, above all, respect and mutual trust. It is essential to know how to rely on the role that your colleague musician is currently providing and offering, which is not decided before and therefore we must know how to wait and then propose again. This is the game.
 
In light of your experience with El Gallo Rojo Records, what is your opinion on the future of the production and distribution of musical contents?
El Gallo Rojo was an experience of sharing ideas, musical projects, attitudes, aperitifs, holidays, friendship, human and musical growth of a collective. The label was just one of the many manifestations of this relationship. As a member of the collective, I never considered myself a record producer in the strict sense of the term, but the “co-holder” of a “moving container” in which some musical ideas sedimented and were phonographically documented to give space to others to come. I believe that today any production and distribution system can be valid. It’s true, it’s the era of Spotify, YouTube etc … and you can make a lot of talk about the fact that a phonographic support can be obsolete and things like that. But we live in an age in which we can choose how to produce, how to divulge and how to make use of it. The palette is wide, and one medium does not exclude the other. The real problem is not how to distribute and how to arrive, but how to be able to intrigue and ensure that listening can be passionate and authentic, and not fleeting or “clickable”. This is a broad discourse that touches socio-cultural aspects and I would even say anthropological.
 
Danilo Gallo Jazzespresso magazine Rossato interview
 
Is the musician just an entertainer or does he still have the role of “educator”?
I believe that the musician is not a teacher in the strict sense, and therefore does not have a real educational role. However, he is a person who communicates with other people through the medium he has, his instrument, his music, his groups, what he can say through his notes or his singing. So he somehow has the opportunity to express his thoughts. This is a privilege, it does not happen to everyone to be able to put in front of tens, hundreds or even thousands of people and be able to say their own. The musician has this privilege. This communicative aspect is subjective, I have nothing to teach anyone, I simply say who I am, what I am and how I think. I do not believe in musicians as educators but I believe in music as a form of education.
 
What is the main advice you would give to a young musician wishing to pursue a professional career?
My advice is to never think that it is a “job” in the strict sense, where you learn concepts and skills to “produce” and that’s it. But also and above all that it is the wake of a conscious dream, which is the privilege of doing the most beautiful and intimate thing to be able to live. I suggest to always keep the thought of “what I will do when I grow up” as if it were a goal never reached and commit to it and always have so much curiosity so that the study is always parallel and functional to their sensitivity and their soul, then subjective, never detached and objective.
 
 
 
Reservados todos los derechos – All rights reserved – 版權所有 – 版权所有;  An espresso with… Danilo Gallo copyright Jazzespresso 2018.
Jazzespresso es una revista, un sitio web, una red, un centro, que conecta todas las almas del jazz de todo el mundo. América, Europa, Asia, Australia y África: noticias de todo el mundo en una página en cuatro idiomas. Un punto de referencia multicultural en inglés, chino y castellano para los amantes de esta música en todos los países. Para el aficionado o el profesional que quiere mantenerse informado sobre lo que está ocurriendo en todo el mundo. Manténganse informados!
Jazzespresso is a magazine, a website, a network, a hub, connecting all the souls of jazz all over the world. Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa: news from all over the world on a page in four languages. A multicultural reference point in English, Chinese and Spanish language for the lovers of this music in every country. For the amateur or the pro who wants to be updated about what is happening all around the world… Stay tuned.
Jazzespresso 不只是一個爵士樂雜誌,也是一個能將擁有各種不同精髓的世界爵士樂,包括美洲、歐洲、亞洲、澳洲及非洲各地,互相連結起來的網站及交流站。以中文及英文寫成的內容將是一個新的多元文化交流的參考點,為各地的爵士音樂愛好者提供來自全世界最新的消息。請持續關注!
JazzEspresso 不只是一个爵士乐杂誌,也是一个能将拥有各种不同精髓的世界爵士乐,包括美洲、欧洲、亚洲、澳洲及非洲各地,互相连结起来的网站及交流站。以中文及英文写成的内容将是一个新的多元文化交流的参考点,为各地的爵士音乐爱好者提供来自全世界最新的消息。请持续关注! 
 
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