interview with Franco Fabbrini
Have any of you played in other bands? Of course, each of us has a long career behind us
How is it that you started playing music? I started as an autodidact by transcribing an Andres Segovia album by ear. It was a fantastic ear training school
What are your names? / Who plays what? / How old are you?
Glenn Ferris (trombone)
Mirco Mariottini (clarinet)
Giulio Stracciati (electric guitar)
Franco Fabbrini (electric bass)
Paolo Corsi (drum)
I am sixty
Have you had other previous members? No
Did you make music even when you were young? Not with this band. Yes with a lot of other bands
Where are you from? Siena, Italy
What year did the band form? 2015
What's your style of genre? Jazz, funky and soul jazz
What inspires you? Speaking for myself, since I am a instrumentalist and arranger, it depends on the instrument I am playing. The thing I like most about it and make sure what I'm playing works.
How often and where do you reherse? Depends on the commitments (tours, gigs, etc.)
How have you developed since you started with the music? Studying daily and attending seminars with prestigious musicians. Another way to learn and evolve and try to teach well and honestly
Do you have other interests of work outside the band? Yes, physics (I am graduated in biology too)
Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? Yes but it is not easy nowadays with the current situation regarding the possibility of performing live
Are you looking for a label, and what are your thoughts around that? Every time I start a recording job, it's the question I ask myself immediately. Also in this case it depends on the project, in most cases I opt for an independent label or produce the disc autonomously. In the case of the Glenn Ferris Italian Quintet, we recorded a beautiful CD "Animal Love" and published it with the Italian label "Improvvisatore Involontario" which is very active in the independent circuit.
What made you decide to make this music? Sharing a project with Mr. Glenn Ferris is an extraordinary opportunity not to be missed and I must say that the results were excellent also thanks to the rest of the band composed of extraordinary musicians
What are your songs about? I don't have a precise answer, I have many sources of inspiration
Who does the composing and writes the lyrics? With regard to this group the greatest number of compositions are by Glenn but also Mirco and I (the clarinetist) compose for the project
Do you start with the music or the lyrics? Even here it depends a lot on the subject and the style, I don't have a precise answer
Do you compose in a certain enviroment? Mostly in my studio. But even here the answer is very difficult ... one of my most inspired songs I composed in mind in Barcelona waiting for the subway ... When I returned home I simply wrote on paper what I had stopped in my mind and it worked !
Have you done any covers live? Yes of course!
What language do you sing in? Both in Italian and in English
What ages are most of your concert attendants? Very variable age. Very often I share projects with my students
Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary? I vary very often
Do you have a regular place you play live often? No
What was your first gig like? Nice
What was your latest gig? A performance concert for the school where I teach (Siena Jazz University)
Have you had to cancel a gig? Unfotunately yes
Where have you played live this year? Mostly in Italy then Austria and Georgia (the Asian one)
Where do you plan to gig the coming year? Italy, France, Spain and Belgium
What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records now a days? I think it's inevitable ... Anyway, I prefer that someone listen to my music anyway.
How do you think the music industry have changed because of this? In my opinion, paradoxically, the availability of free music on the internet has raised the level of live performance (in some genres)
What do you think of my work? I really appreciate your work, it doesn't happen very often that someone asks you for an interview (at least in Italy)
How do you think and know that this interview will help you in the music business? I honestly don't know, but the mere fact that someone talks about you and what you do is important
Do you have any role models or idols? Too many… J
Why do you think that they exist? I thank them
Is it easier to find inspiration from older bands, or bands that are more active today? Both of them
What have been your biggest obstacles? As for Italy, absurd laws about live music, very high taxes and a wicked cultural policy
Do you have any new material? I'm working on my project as a leader
What are your web sites?
https://www.facebook.com/franco.fabbrini.musician/
https://gfitalianquintet.wixsite.com/gfi5
https://www.facebook.com/GlennFerrisItalianQuintet/
What are your plans for the future? Focus on my project as a leader
Do you have something to add? No… J
