Published: January 04, 2008 10:57 PM EST
By: Isaac Joseph Davis Junior (Juniorscave.com)
Acoustic / New age / Ambient
We are pleased to introduce to our audience/readers Lawrence Blatt. The extremely talented San Francisco's musician has been playing acoustic guitar for over 30 years. Lawrence’s music has been called heartwarming, soothing, and relaxing; we tend to agree. We recently reviewed his EPK (Electronic Press Kit) on Sonicbids.com (Music Resource/Submission Online Giant) and were very pleased with what we heard. Here is a delightful spotlight with the entertainer.
Isaac-Joseph: Thank you for doing an online interview with the magazine. Give a little background about who you are?
Lawrence Blatt: I am an independent musician, composer and recording artist. My current musical interests include composing and performing solo instrumental works for the acoustic guitar and other stringed instruments. I have released two solo instrumental albums. The first was entitled "Out of the Woodwork" and was released in December 2006. "Out of the Woodwork" was selected as a finalist for the best album in the "New Age" category for the Independent Music Awards for 2007. My latest release is called "Fibonacci's Dream". Fibonacci's Dream takes you on a journey of music and math and contains 13 original compositions that span from solo acoustic guitar works to richly layered multi-track instrumentals. In addition to guitar, bass and percussion instruments, I used some unusual stringed-instruments on this album including a charango, ronroco and a 100-year-old Ditson mandolin.
Isaac-Joseph: Although your style is acoustical, you introduce other elements into your music such as classical. Describe a little about your training in classical and other genres. How did your training helped you to come out as a solo instrumentalist?
Lawrence Blatt: I have been playing guitar for over 30 years and I started my musical training at a very young age playing classical violin. To really understand my musical compositions I guess I have to start at the real beginning, that is, the beginning of my interest in music. As a child, I was living in the San Fernando Valley in Southern California. Like all kids at that time, I played baseball, morning, noon and night. But there was something else brewing inside me and by the age of eight, I had an intense yearning to play the violin. I know that sounds weird however something inside me was begging to play. After several months of pleading with my parents, they agreed to let me play and found a wonderful teacher. My teacher was at least eighty years old, fairly disheveled, always traveled with a violin and a viola and would come to our apartment for my weekly one hour lessons and would stay two to three hours or until my parents kicked him out. He would hand-write all music from memory on staff paper and he built within me a strong sense of musical logic with his explanation of scales and chord theory. I did not know it at the time but he was building the foundation of my musical landscape.
As I grew older, I continued my interest in the violin and I found myself playing in the Indianapolis Youth Symphony. Playing in the symphony exposed me to the great composers such as Mozart, Bach, Mendelssohn and my favorite, Bernhard Heiden. Playing classical music reinforced the foundation that I learned as a child. Much of classical music is based on the concept of theme and variation where an initial musical passage is replayed by various instruments sometimes in slightly different patterns or in a different key. If you listen to my compositions, you will hear theme and variation throughout including the use of Passacaglia where a repeating baseline is used for the entire piece.
Isaac-Joseph: Since you are a solo instrumentalist, to convey your emotions and feelings you use other methods. Describe these methods and how effective you feel that you get your feeling across in your music:
Lawrence Blatt: As a solo instrumentalist, I have to let my guitar be my voice. I try to create moods and express feelings by using alternate tunings, by careful attention to musical dynamics and intonation and by layering percussive sounds behind the main voice of the guitar. Sometime playing a phase softer or louder can have a significant impact on what is communicated. In some cases, being a solo instrumentalist is difficult since I cannot use lyrics to directly express my thoughts and feelings. In another sense, this is highly cathartic as my music can communicate in any language and I can create new patterns of communication through sounds and rhythms
My music ranges from soft contemporary compositions to mysterious pieces that could be set in the 18th century. When composing for my solo albums "Out of the Woodwork" and "Fibonacci's Dream", I did not set out to make an album in any particular genre but rather I composed music that conveyed my feelings and emotions. Some of these pieces manifest themselves in folk others in the world music genres. Personally, I don't really understand the need to bracket music into any particular genre and I don't pay any attention to genres as I write my music. For me, my music creates a personal oasis and space of solitude in a busy life with each piece serving as a mnemonic marker of life events, places I have been and people that I have known.
Isaac-Joseph: Let's focus in on your latest release entitled "Fibonacci's Dream". Describe the creative process in making this album and what can we expect from this release:
Lawrence Blatt: The compositions on "Fibonacci's Dream" were written utilizing the mathematical theories espoused by Leonardo Fibonacci, the extraordinary 13th Century Italian mathematician. During his life, Fibonacci traveled throughout the Mediterranean region and studied mathematics with several Arab scholars. By the age of 32, he published a book called "Liber Abaci" (Book of Calculation), and introduced Europeans to the use of Arabic numerals (the system we use today). In his book, Fibonacci explained the solution to the question of how fast a hypothetical population of rabbits could breed. The solution encompassed a derivation of a series of numbers that have far reaching implications to explain physical realities found throughout the universe. Assuming that there was one mating pair to start, Fibonacci calculated that each generation of rabbits would increase by the sum of the two preceding numbers of rabbits. Fibonacci derived a series of numbers using this formula.
0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89,……………….
Fibonacci further realized that these numbers could be expressed as a ratio, and he derived the calculation of Phi, "The Golden Ratio". Expressed mathematically as:
1 +v5/2
The "Golden Ratio" is approximately equal to the number 1.618.
OK, I know what you are saying?what does all this have to do with art and music? The answer is: EVERYTHING!!!
Fibonacci ratios and numbers are found all over the natural world and in our every day lives. The petals of a Sunflower and the arrangement of seeds in a pinecone both contain Fibonacci numbers. The Golden Ratio is seen in the turns of a nautilus shell and the shape of cochlea inside our ears that both increase in size by a factor of 1.618 with every turn. The proportions of the human body are based on Phi and the Fibonacci number 5 and artists from Di Vinci to Seurat and Mondrian have utilized Fibonacci mathematics to improve the aesthetics of their artwork and designs.
Much of musical theory follows Fibonacci mathematics. Musical scales are based on 8 notes and an Octave is separated by 12+ 1 tones (8 and 13 are Fibonacci numbers). The basic structure of a chord uses the Fibonacci sequence 1, 3 and 5. Many great composers from Mozart to Beethoven to Bob Dillon have either consciously or subconsciously applied Fibonacci mathematics to their music.
With Fibonacci math in hand, I set out to compose the pieces for my album "Fibonacci's Dream". I tried to lace Fibonacci numbers and ratios in each composition. To hear the Fibonacci influence, look for phrases that are repeated in a Fibonacci sequence of numbers, melodies that follow tonal intervals separated by Fibonacci numbers and verses increasing in length by the Golden Ratio.
Isaac-Joseph: One of the interesting facts that I learned from your bio is that when recording you can be heard playing two "very special guitars." Can you elaborate on these two special guitars and how do they add to the overall quality of your music?
Lawrence Blatt: I believe that every guitar has its own unique voice as each piece of wood is different and any small fluctuations in the carving can have a large impact on the final resultant sound. The steel-string-guitar is basically a modern instrument and we are now living in the "Golden-Age" of guitar making. Put more simply, guitars made today are the best guitars ever made. Leading this revolution in guitar making is a number of small independent luthiers (literally "the makers of lutes") that produce between ten and twenty guitars per year. I am fortunate to own guitars made by independent luthiers and I used two very special guitars when recording. The first is a custom steel-string guitar made by Edward Dick ( http://www.evd303.com/guitars.html). This guitar has a spruce top and Indian rosewood back and sides. It's slightly bell-shaped body produces a warm deep sound. I waited almost eighteen months for this guitar to be completed and I worked very closely with Edward during the construction to build the guitar to my exact specifications. The second guitar I used was a small bodied-12-fret parlor guitar made by Kathy Wingert ( http://www.wingertguitars.com/guitar03.shtml) with a German spruce top and Brazilian rosewood back and sides. For "Fibonacci's Dream" I also experimented with some unusual stringed-instruments. If you listen to "Una Vida" and "Song For Chava" tracks 2 and 11 on the album, you can hear me playing a charango and a ronroco. Both of these instruments are indigenous to South America and both are derived from the lute brought to the region by the Conquistadors. Each is stung with 10 strings paired in 5 courses. This setup allows for "BIG" chords to be played from a tiny instrument. The solo at the end of "Una Vida" is a single charango.
Isaac-Joseph: If you have an opportunity to collaborate with someone, who would it be and why?
Lawrence Blatt: I would love to play with some great singers. By that, I do not necessarily mean someone with a purely technically great voice but rather someone who can really feel the music. People that come to mind are Stevie Nicks, Ray Charles, BB King, Eddie Vedder (original lead singer for Pearl Jam), Brad Roberts (lead singer for Crash Test Dummies) and Macy Gray. I have several singer-song writer tunes that I have written that I would like to release at some point and I would love to find just the right singer to do the songs justice.
Isaac-Joseph: As far as your influences, who made the biggest impact of you as a musician and what lessons did you learned from them that you have incorporated in your own music?
Lawrence Blatt: This is a difficult question as I have had many great influences in my life. In general, I am inspired by creative people who can make something from nothing. This includes: scientists, artists, musicians, writers, designers, architects and engineers. I love people who make a difference in the world and those that are devoted to leaving the places they visit a little better then when they arrived.
As for music, my tastes are wide and varied. Like most kids growing up in the 70's, I was attracted to the sound of Neil Young on his breakthrough acoustic album "Harvest" and I learned every guitar part by painstakingly replaying each track on my turntable. I also loved the sound of Earth Wind and Fire and the early Commodore albums. I learned to play James Taylor, Cat Stevens and of course all of the Led Zeppelin acoustic licks. Living in Indiana, I was exposed to Bluegrass and Country Music and I still remember pickin-and-grinning with the boys at parties and on the porch in Carmel, Indiana. I was also exposed to music which has a unique feature of moving from major to minor chords in a single passage. Recently, I have been most inspired by Laurence Juber and Pierre Bensusan who are acoustic finger-style-guitar masters. They play with only their hands with no picks or electronic effects. This results in a pure acoustic guitar sound that cannot be duplicated in any other way.
Isaac-Joseph: What has been your biggest accomplishment in 2007 in your opinion?
Lawrence Blatt: 2007 marked the launch of my solo instrumentalist career. I was able to launch "Out of the Woodwork" and I receive exposure on hundreds of radio stations world-wide and the album tracked well on several radio tracking polls. As I mentioned, the album was also selected as a finalist for the best album in the "New Age" category for the Independent Music Awards for 2007. In addition, one of the tracks on the album, "Here We Go' has been licensed to appear in an upcoming feature film staring Tom Green. I also wrote recoded and produced my second album "Fibonacci's Dream" in 2007. This is the album that I just released. I was also involved in a great project where I participated in a compilation CD that was distributed to our troops in Afghanistan and Iraq as part of a holiday gift package.
By far my biggest accomplishment was just the realization of the fact that if you dream it, you can make it happen. As an independent artist, I am the writer, performer and producer of all my work. This can be overwhelming at times but can also be very gratifying when the work is complete.
Isaac-Joseph: What can your fans look forward too in 2008? Please elaborate on any new releases, tour dates, or anything else that you will we need to know?
Lawrence Blatt: I am just now in the midst of planning my 2208 activities. "Fibonacci's Dream" is being sent to radio stations world-wide and I am beginning to write and record material for my next album. I am planning to get more involved in writing music for soundtracks so you may here me in the background of a TV show or a feature film. I plan on continuing my use of exotic stringed-instruments and will use a 12-stringed mandolin and a baritone ukulele and some of the compositions on my next album. I also plan to start to do live performances in more intimate settings so look for me in coffee houses or small venues in your local area.
Isaac-Joseph: If you had an opportunity to take someone under your wings to teach him or your learned lessons, what advice would you give him or her as far as not being afraid to make the music that he or she wants to make?
Lawrence Blatt: I guess the best advice I can give is to follow your heart and your dreams. Do not let anyone tell you the type of music to make or set a style for your performance. I think people recognize quality whenever or wherever it emerges. Don't try to follow the latest trend but make the best music you know how to make. We are lucky to be living in a time where the internet has broken down traditional barriers that were put into place by the large record companies. There are many opportunities to be heard and you can amass a fan based of people who like your style of music whatever that may be. Work hard, live strong and above all, be yourself. That's about all I can say.
Isaac-Joseph: Final thoughts from Lawrence Blatt:
Lawrence Blatt: I just want to thank you for the opportunity to be heard and to thank your readers for making it to the end of my verbose answers to your questions. Hope you enjoy my music!!
