theaussieword.com catches up with Mietta for a special interview…What can you tell our readers about you? I’m an Australian/Italian musician, and a very good cook! 🙂
How and where did it all begin? I’m guessing this is a music related question!! It all began in high school I guess. I was always wagging class to hang out in either the drama room or music room. I started singing lessons at a very young age and always loved it. I was a dancer for most of my life until the age of 20. I studied full time dance once I left high school, and began to lose interest in dancing more and more. As part of our dance course we were required to take singing lessons once a week. I would hang out all week for my singing lesson, and finally realised music was the path I needed to take.
What had you first interested in music? I guess my family. My grandfather was my first music teacher. He was a violinist and orchestral conductor. He taught me how to play piano, but is non-existent Italian patients meant my music lessons were fairly short-lived! Also my father is a blues guitarist and mandolin player. There has always been a huge presence of music in our family.
Who motivates or influences your quest to make great music? A lot of the time it’s my peers. There are so many incredibly gifted and hard-working musicians here in Melbourne who are a constant source of inspiration. You just need to walk down the street and you’re watching world-class music. It’s very inspiring living in a city like Melbourne.
Do you have any planned tours coming up? Well, the big album launch tour is literally weeks away. We’re playing 3 shows; Melbourne, Ballarat and Sydney. Hoping to generate some real interest form this release and to be playing at some festivals later in the year and early next year… Will keep you posted!
What are some of your biggest goals you hope to accomplish as an artist? I’d love to be making a solid living off my original music. Touring internationally and collaborating with musicians who I really admire. What can fans expect from you in the coming months? Just a lot more performing. I’ve been preparing for this release for most of the year, so keeping the performances to a minimum. Now I’m ready to be playing the music as much as possible all over the country.
Success, what is the secret to it and what has been your biggest career highlight so far? Success is a hard word to describe. I think it has such a different meaning to every person. I believe working hard and staying focussed is key. Learning to be satisfied with the small victories along the way is how to feel like you’re accomplishing things while being patient for the larger, end result to be obtained. It’s really a matter of feeling content in the place that you’re in at that moment because that’s all you really have. It’s a long road to achieving that. Biggest career highlight so far would have to be recording music in Madrid with very inspiring musicians. I can’t wait to get back there and record and perform again. Also, finishing my first album!!
Which stars of the music industry do you find inspiring? One artist that I discovered a couple of years ago is a composer/bass player/vocalist named Espernaza Spalding. To me, she seems to have it all in a way. I have followed her career quite closely. She has immense respect from her musical peers, and plays in a number of projects, not her own, as a bassist. She continues to write incredible music and collaborate with esteemed musicians/producers and engineers. She a music lecturer at Berklee College of Music, and comes across as a very focussed and humble person.
How would you best describe you and your music to your fans? This album is particularly luscious/cinematic. Tied in with the world-music flavours it’s quite emotional/triumphant music. I’m looking forward to playing some smaller intimate shows too.
What can you tell us about your latest album? It’s been the most exciting yet challenging thing I’ve ever done. So much has gone into this project. I’m glad to have it nearly behind me and enjoy seeing some of the hard work pay off, (hopefully!) In terms of the music, it’s a very ambitious project. So many people involved and hours of hard work. Hope you all enjoy it.
Are there any new exciting projects in the works? I’m booked in to start recording on my EP in September. This recording will be a MUCH smaller scale project, and only 5 songs. I’m just really excited to start recording new music.
The music industry is huge, where do you see yourself a few years from now? I see myself overseas to be honest. I’m realising more and more the challenges of being a musician in general, but a world-music artist in Australia can only take you so far. I think Europe and the US will provide a larger audience for me. Of course Australia will always be home and I’ll never stop making music and performing music here, I just want to leave myself open to all possible opportunities.
Name a few of your favourite Aussie artists. Hailey Cramer, Saskwatch, Ngaiire, Arte Kanela, Nathan Slater, Ainslie Wills, Hiatus Kaiyote just to name a few!
The shape of the music industry has changed significantly over the years, including the use of social media, how do you feel about the industry as a whole and what does it mean to you in getting your records out into the public eye?
To be honest, this is my first major launch so I’m still learning about the industry itself. It seems to be an endless pool of who you know and knowing the right people and places to head to. It’s a whole other beast to tackle in terms of refining where your music should be placed and what audiences will respond best. Having said that, at this stage, it’s very important for me to spread the word of this record as far and wide as I can, then I can slowly find where I slot into the Australian musical landscape.
Thank you for the interview! What can you leave fans of theaussieword.com with here today? “Music is enough for a life time, but a life time is not enough for music.” Sergei Rachmaninoff
Website: www.miettamusic.com
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