NESSAholics.com
Vanessa Carlton => General Vanessa Carlton Discussion => Topic started by: JazzyManda on September 06, 2003, 02:08:10 pm
-
i was in my music store looking at pianos and the guy handed me this magazine, and the first page had a story on Vanessa and how she uses yamahas. i think the pic is her in her apartment in new york. it's really cool. my mom is going to scan it but for now i have pics on my digital camera. i'll type up what the interview says since the pics are kind of small.
(http://www.angelfire.com/jazz/manda/Amanda_s_Pics_048.JPE)
(http://www.angelfire.com/jazz/manda/Amanda_s_Pics_049.JPE)
(http://www.angelfire.com/jazz/manda/Amanda_s_Pics_050.JPE)
here's the cover of the magazine i got it out of
(http://www.angelfire.com/jazz/manda/Amanda_s_Pics_051.JPE)
here are the scanned ones. my mom tried her best. lol. they're still kinda dark. but, oh well. it's something
(http://www.angelfire.com/jazz/manda/vc1.jpg)
this ones a little blury.. woops
(http://www.angelfire.com/jazz/manda/vc2.jpg)
there ya go
Amanda
-
here's what the bold white part on the bottom left says :
In her hit song, "A Thousand Miles." singer/songwriter Vanessa Carlton sees herself as "making a way through the crowd." Carlton does indeed stand out from the current crowd of young female singer/pianists. On her debut album Be Not Nobody, her heartfelt, confessional vocals combine with intricate, multi-layered piano and orchestral parts to create a distinctive whole.
then the white square with all the writting and the little pic of her in there says :
CARLTON'S MUSICAL TRAINING BEGAN EARLY. "My mom was a piano teacher." she explains. "There were always a lot of other kids around, and a lot of music going on. I was much younger than most of them, but I was pretty adamant about wanting to be part of it. As the daughter, I got special privileges, and I loved sitting down at the piano."
These special privileges included a selective approach to learning the piano. "I was able to get out of the theory and so forth," admits Vanessa. "I loved to play, but when it came to doing the exercises, I'd run upstairs and watch TV instead! I could always read music, but my mom didn't push me on the technical stuff--and in the end, it was quite all right."
Carlton's father provided the pop side of her early musical education. "At home, there was never any pop music on the radio--I only listened to classical music," she remembers. "I didn't have my own stereo or Walkman or anything. But I'd go on rides to the airport with my dad, who was a pilot, and he'd give me another kind of music lesson. So at four years old, I'd be introduced to all these bands. He'd say, 'Okay, Vanessa, this is the Grateful Dead.' And I'd ask, 'Are they dead?' And he'd very patiently say, 'No, they're not dead.' I learned a lot about different kinds of music from him, very early on."
As Vanessa grew older, did she ever want to rebel against the piano? "Never. I had such a feeling of camaraderie with the piano, due to my mother. She never taught me in a way that made me feel confined. There are times in life when you have to do things you don't want to-- like in school, you have to do your homework. But she allowed me to learn piano on my own terms."
Carlton began composing piano music at the age of eight, and she still does most of her songwritting at the keyboard. "When a melody comes out, it's always first expressed through my hands," she says. "I just sit down and start putting things together--it's kind of like a puzzle. Since I don't know formally what the options for chords should be in different keys, when I do find the chords I want, they might not be the most typical ones. It makes things more interesting. The process becomes more about hunting or seeking. So i'll just play around, and then when something comes together, I start singing over it. I refine it by playing it over until it's a theme, then go on from there until it's a song."
Vanessa's experience with Yamaha pianos dates from her early years. "We always had a Yamaha at home," she says. "In fact, the Yamaha piano in my apartment in New York, a C2--it's the same one I grew up with. I've always loved the sound of that piano. It's very pristine and bright--it sounds more alive than a lot of pianos, and it's easier to play."
Vanessa chooses Yamahas in the studio as well. "On my first record, I played a Yamaha grand that sounds beautiful," she says. "But my second record will have a sound that's not quite so refined and perfect. I'm going for a slightly more beat-up piano with a distinct personality, like the one I have at home. There's a spontaneity I'd like to find that I haven't yet. I find recording really grueling, when you're searching for the perfect sound, as opposed to finding the right feeling and representing the song in a way that's not so thought-out. I want the music to come alive as it happens."
As a female songwriter who plays piano, how does Carlton feel about the inevitable comparisons with other female songwriter/pianists? "By now i'm familiar with the way the media works," she reflects. "It's easier to just say, 'Oh, she's like Fiona Apple or Tori Amos than to describe how my music is unique. I guess it makes it easier for people to find instant familiarity with new music, though it's kind of annoying. There are similarities betwen pianists, or guitarists, but comparing people only by the instruments they play seems a little too easy."
yeah, i thought it was a cool interview thing
what do you guys think?
Amanda
-
Really cool interview! The bit about the Grateful Dead is so cute :) Thanks for posting it!
-
thanks, I enjoyed reading it
-
no prob guys.
i was so excited when i found it. yep, i'm like "omg!! i have to post this!!"
lol
Amanda
-
i have a yamaha folk acoustic guitar, i love it...lol.
and i always see nessa playing a yamaha.
thanks for the article!
-
is that an old pic...it doesn't look like she has bangs, or has her hair grew back...?
-
is that an old pic...it doesn't look like she has bangs, or has her hair grew back...?
she grew em back, cuz at the provoice thing she didn't have bangs
Amanda
-
awesome :) thanks for posting!
-
Those pictures of her are so cool (can't wait to see them bigger)! Thanks so much for typing that out, i know how much hard work that is- especially with an article so long. I loved the bit about the Grateful Dead too- little nessa! awww.
Why on earth wasn't she on the cover!? We need to start a Nessa cover campaign!
-
Those pictures of her are so cool (can't wait to see them bigger)! Thanks so much for typing that out, i know how much hard work that is- especially with an article so long. I loved the bit about the Grateful Dead too- little nessa! awww.
Why on earth wasn't she on the cover!? We need to start a Nessa cover campaign!
no prob guys. yeah, it did take a while to type out, but, hey, oh well.
yeah, i'll have it bigger on monday i think.
i think norah jones was on the cover since she got all those grammy's.
oh well.
Nessa looks better anyways. lol
Amanda
-
THANKS! cool article and pics! 8)
-
The pics won't wrok,but awsume article thanks
-
The pics won't wrok,but awsume article thanks
exactly what I was gonna say except maybe
"The pics don't work..." haha!
-
The pics won't wrok,but awsume article thanks
exactly what I was gonna say except maybe
"The pics don't work..." haha!
yeah, my angelfire acount says that my bandwith or something is like over used. yeah, so i don't know. they come back in like an hour or two...
sorry guys
but i can't pay to have a real angelfire account, so i have to stick with the cheap, free version....
EDIT: it says the pics will be up in an hour. it did that to me two days ago too.....
Amanda
-
bump for this thread i guess. lol. i scanned the pics guys. so take a look
Amanda