You can't help but be impressed by composer/producer Paul Schwartz's
accomplishments. A prolific composer, Paul has an incredible number
of
projects both under his belt and on the go. His new release State
of Grace
II: Turning to Peace follows State of Grace,
which was Billboard's No. 11
best-selling New Age CD of 2001.
Paul's 1997 debut Aria spent over a year in the Top
Ten of Billboard's
Classical Crossover chart and re-entered the chart in May of 2000.
The
sequel to his debut, Aria 2: New Horizon, featured guest
performances by
Tony Award nominee Rebecca Luker and popular smooth jazz guitarists
Marc Antoine and Peter White, and was #3 for the year on Billboard's
Classical chart in Billboard's Indie Special 2000.
In addition to scoring various independent films (including Ratchet by Altar
Rock Films), Paul's first entirely self-composed recording, 2002's
Earthbound, has sold over 250,000 units domestically.
You can learn more about Paul and his music, by visiting his website.
Jamie:
On State Of Grace II you use orchestral/choral textures,
synths,
acoustic piano, electronic drum beats, and soloist such as vocalist
Lisbeth
Scott and guitarist Carlos Santana. And you blend them all with
such
beauty. As you say in your liners notes, you based this record on
two Latin
texts: the Magnificat and the Stabat Mater. How much do you feel
these
texts helped in unifying the sound of this album?
Paul: Actually, I've been developing
the sound that characterizes this new
record for a number of years. It really goes back to the first ARIA record,
when I got the gig to do it before I really had any idea what or
how I would
proceed. In the course of doing that one, and then ARIA 2,
I discovered that
I had sort of developed a style that merged most of the sound worlds
that
interested me.
However, the use of the choir is something that is particular to
this new CD,
at least in as much as it is so pervasive throughout. I've done
choirs before,
but not to this extent. Since I was setting religious texts that
have been set
chorally for literally a thousand years or more, it felt natural
to seriously
merge the choral sound into my already existing beats-synths-orchestras-
solo-singer thing. The choirs become the primary symphonic sound
(symphonic in richness, range, and harmonic density) and the actual
orchestra becomes supportive. At times, such as in the MAGNIFICAT
(track 1) I kind of play them off each other in an "OK, you top
this...." mode,
until they join together for the big moment.
Also, I have been accused upon occasion of trying to do too much
on my
records: too many sounds (solo piano, orchestra, solo voice, choir
etc......)
That's just how it comes out. I finish one song, and start the next,
and
whatever comes into my head or out of my fingers is what gets done.
Incidentally, with the exception of CURACION, and TURNING TO PEACE,
which were recorded some months before the main body of this record,
the
order of the songs, is the order in which I wrote them. I wanted
to put myself
through the journey.
Jamie: That
sounds like a great way to work! I tend to work on a whole
bunch of material over a long time, but I'd love to try writing
a record
sequentially. Did you find that by writing the pieces in order that
you wrote
"differently" than on your previous albums?
Paul: Not
as such. It just came out that way. However, right at the beginning
of doing this one, I took a week off and went to write a new song
with David
Foster for the new Josh Groban record. It was very interesting working
with
David, because he is so fluent. I'm one of those people who agonizes
over
everything for hours, if not days. David just sits down and does
it, and trusts
his instincts. So I came home with that kind of approach in my head,
and
decided to be more relaxed on STATE II, with the result
that I wrote with
great freedom and ease. I put the obstructive critical demons away.
And I
think the music shows that. Some of my other stuff is kind of convoluted
and
twisted, but this one has a clarity that is a bit different.
Jamie: I
read an interview with Pat Metheny a long time ago and he said a
similar thing about trust. I think it's a real challenge to learn
to trust yourself,
but, for me, sincerity is the key. I try to be as open to music
as I possibly
can -- and hope for the best!
You work with a lot of different artists (players, producers, etc.).
I'm guessing
that not every artist affects you deeply as David Foster did, but
how do you
feel working with other artists changes your music?
Paul: On
my own records, I'm fairly controlling. The actual music I never
collaborate on, with very rare exceptions (Santana). I look to collaborators
for lyrics, and singers to bring an interpretative spark. Lisbeth
inevitably
phrases things in ways that would not come naturally to me. So it
becomes
something new. On the song RAVENS from EARTHBOUND,
by the time I
got to the vocal session, I hadn't really figured out how the melody
line of the
verses sat rhythmically. So I just told her to make it work, and
she did in a
very natural way, despite the fact that the melody is kind of irregular
and
jagged.
Jamie: I
find the "best" singers tend to know what works for them -- both
in
terms of their voice and in their phrasing. That said, I think if
your name is on
the front of the record, the music and performances have to work
with both
the singer's and your own aesthetic.
Many composers (including myself) are now writing directly into
the
computer. And many of the tracks that are recorded/sequenced during
the
writing of a piece end up on the final master. For me, the studio
has, in
many ways, merged composing and recording. Could you tell me a bit
about your writing/recording process?
Paul: I
usually start at the piano, to get harmonic ideas. In fact, while
I was
mixing ARIA 3 last Winter, I went into the live room
at the studio, sat down
at the piano, and sketched out the harmonic structures of both the
MAGNIFICAT and the STABAT MATER in around 15 minutes.
I do sometimes start at the computer, if I am specifically concerned
to get a
groove set up, or a particular synthetic sound-world. Sound selection
and
tweaking is a big part of the work that I do, because the synth
sounds have
to work with the live elements. It can be tricky. The bulk of the
work is done
at the computer. I use Digital Performer. I play in all the groove
and synth
elements, and can spend enormous amounts of time fiddling with stuff.
I've
been known to spend an entire day trying to find the exactly right
place for a
high-hat hit.
All of the orchestral writing is scored on paper first. I know what
the
harmonies are, but I need to work the voicings and parts out on
paper. If you
play whole string orchestra parts in, they tend to sound like keyboard
parts,
not idiomatically correct for strings. I then play them in using
samples, one
line at a time, and pan them to approximate the way the real orchestra
will
sit in the room. I usually divide my strings : Violins 1, 2, and
3, violas, cellos,
and bass, with the cellos sometimes divided. The sampled parts are
eventually replaced by a real orchestra just prior to mixing.
When I am happy with the rough mix and arrangement, I record all
of the
synth elements into Performer as audio, and save as an OMF file.
I then
open it in Pro Tools, which is the platform that I use for all vocal
recording,
orchestral recording, and mixing. I find that I can save a tremendous
amount
of time at mixing if I set up the delays I want etc... prior to
letting Peter get
his hands on it. Delays play a very important part of how I like
to mix: I like
to create internal rhythms with them.
Jamie: Sometimes
the "effect" is the sound -- or at least a huge component
of it. Some of the Edge's guitar sounds comes to mind. The timed
delays
play a defining role in that sound.
I think it's interesting how technology can change the overall sonic
makeup
of recorded music -- both for good and bad. To me, your music sounds
great.
How important is sound quality to you? Any thoughts on the newer
audio
formats (ie. MP3, SACD, DVD-A etc.)?
Paul: Sonic
quality is of paramount importance to me. I spend roughly 50%
of my budgets on mixing: trying to get the best possible sound.
The newer
portable formats like MP3 have their uses, but not for me as final
product. If
you're making thrash-metal, it may not matter that much that MP3
is
degraded relative to redbook. But anything with exposed classical
writing
really loses something.
In ten years, there will be some format or other that is downloadable,
and
that has decent quality. That's the way we're headed for sure: away
from
solid embodiments of music and into data streams. The moment I get
some
kind of computer hooked up to my main stereo system is when I'll
know it's
arrived.
Jamie: It
certainly seems like the music industry, and probably at a
somewhat later date, the film industry will end up moving to some
kind of
on-line and/or on-demand system. The challenge will be to get the
younger
generations who have, in many cases, never paid for music
to grasp that
recorded music doesn't magically appear out the air. You talk about
this in
your August 3, 2002 essay entitled "Music,
musicians and the future". Have
your views changed in any way since then?
Paul: I
think that my views remain largely the same, with some caveats.
The on-demand streaming model for entertainment is inevitable. And
yes:
the current generation mostly blamed for piracy is not schooled
in having to
pay for music, particularly in record stores. On the other hand,
they're not
schooled in having to pay for cable TV, food, rent or clothing either.
We're
talking about a group of people who are mostly 18 and under. Whatever
they
do spend money on, by and large they get it from Mommy. When they
are
older, and actually have bills to pay, I don't think that the issue
of paying for
music will be so alien to them. It will be part of whatever entertainment
package that they either subscribe to, or on a per-use basis tied
to
something like their cable or satellite TV bill. Just like pay-per-view
is now,
only lots less money per use, and far better streamlined as a process.
Whoever solves the technical issues of delivering film and music
on demand
at high bandwidth with a minimum of delays etc.... is going to be
in the
driver's seat as far as distribution goes, because it may require
the consumer
to have a dedicated piece of equipment to take advantage of the
service. The
computer offers no technical barrier to downloading, because you
use the
same machine to steal music that you use to write your homework.
If the
box where the music and film comes from is dedicated to just that,
it
becomes harder to rig the system illegally. Right now, pirated MP3s
are a
problem because there really is no better alternative being provided
by the
industry. When you can get the same thing, only much better quality,
for
only a little money, built into a bill you are already paying, I
have a feeling
that the piracy issue will diminish.
Jamie: Great
points! I think you're right on about the price/quality equation.
Apple's iTunes has done pretty well because they looked at the "problem"
from the consumer out and designed their system around ease of use.
Certainly control of distribution is important, but in the end,
businesses
that fulfill their customers wants and needs succeed.
On a completely different note, what music do you listen to for
inspiration?
Paul: There's
research, and then there's inspiration.
I listen very eclectically for research: everything from weird new
remix stuff,
to obscure Greek folk singers, to whatever is the current hip hop
sensation.
You never know what is going to spark some kind of resonance. And
as
Stravinsky said: "good composers borrow, great composers steal."
I don't listen to get compositional inspiration as such.
But the music that fills
me emotionally the most is great classical music. Bach in particular.
Choral
religious music in general. I think it has something to do with
what they are
aiming at. Too much contemporary pop music (which is what I am part
of,
albeit in a slightly strange way) aims very low. It's generally
about love,
unhappy love, desire, etc..... When Bach set the texts that became
the
Matthew Passion, he was aiming for something ineffably high, spiritual,
community building, something that raises all of us up. You don't
have to be
a Christian to appreciate his reach, any more than you have to be
a Muslim
to appreciate the glories of the architecture of Isfahan. The effort,
the
intention is there no matter your ethnic or religious background.
I also have a weakness for chamber music. It's so pure, stripped
down,
nowhere to hide. I am drawn to that. I 'm doing an all-solo-piano
record some
time in the next 2 years, but I am also fascinated to try to write
what would
be essentially my kind of pop record, just for string quartet. Don't
know if it's
possible or how I would approach it, but it intrigues me.
Jamie: I
have no doubt you'll figure it out. The history of music has been
made by people saying: What if? I think that artists are defined
as much by
where they've been and currently are, as by where they're going.
I've never
stayed in one artistic place for very long and that may not be a
very good
thing. But if I hadn't spent all those years playing freely improvised
music,
would I be where I am today.... who knows?
So what are you working on now? Any projects other than your upcoming
solo piano record and pop string quartet album that you'd like to
talk about?
Paul: At
the moment the things that I am mostly focused on are: 1) a music
theatre piece I wrote called SUMMER, which is having
a reading in 5 weeks
time in New York, and 2) I am getting ready to play some of the
music from
my records live. The band will be me and Lisbeth, with a drummer,
guitarist,
violinist, and possibly one more player. We'll be doing music from
almost all
of the records I've made so far.
Longer term: there's the solo piano thing, which I have to get my
head
around, and there's also a very interesting idea that Lisbeth, Peter
Cobbin
and I concocted this past July while we were doing STATE II,
which would
involve making a record of her voice with a kind of jazz trio (piano,
bass,
drums) but the music would sound like me. Sort of a new classical-pop
crossover sound, but housed in a jazz ensemble. (Sometimes music
is like
cooking: you can combine unlikely ingredients and come up with some
really delicious recipes, or it can just taste awful. I think I'll
only find out when
I get into the kitchen.)
BMG have already told me they want me to do a STATE III in 2005, so that's
in the future. And I plan to make another true "solo" album like
EARTHBOUND, but this time I will own it outright. (I got
back the rights to
my artist-name.)
Also, I am beginning to explore the world of film scoring. I just
got an agent
for that purpose in LA, and we'll just have to see if it leads anywhere.........
Jamie: Wow
-- you certainly are a busy guy! Film composing is an
incredibly competitive area, but I can definitely see you making
a go of it.
Do you think you'll get your live show up to Toronto? It would be
great to
hear you live and get to meet you in person.
Paul: There
are no Canadian plans as yet, although it would be great to get
up there.
Initially it will just be New York and LA.
Jamie: That's
too bad.... hopefully you'll add some Canadian dates.
Thanks for taking the time to do this artist-to-artist conversation
and best of
luck in the future!
Paul: And
my thanks to you......
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