C: You seem to be an accomplished guitarist, do you play any other instruments, and which instruments have been most helpful in composing classical music?

FC: Thanks! Yes guitar had been a very important part of my musical background. I started to make and play music by myself with guitar, at 14 or 15 years old. It was for me a time of rock, blues and metal, but also classical, funk and pop. But I quickly fell into Jazz, because I was in need of freedom and improvisation. I did a lot of gigs and had a lot of different experiences in those genres, including giving guitar master-classes at 21 and after. Years later, in 2012, I was a Jazz co-finalist for the international Six String Theory Contest, and so traveled to the USA to meet and play with some great musicians there. That’s where I really heard about the Berklee College programs, because they were sponsors of the event. During all these years, I worked in a lot of other styles and instruments, especially piano and singing. Keyboard was an absolute necessary thing for me, and I was so passionate about it. This attitude, in combination with some harmony and counterpoint studies at the Conservatory, with a very strict (but good) teacher, helped me a lot concerning classical and orchestral composition. Besides that I was a tenor singer in the official choir of the Aix-en- Provence Cathedral, and honestly that’s one of the best things I’ve done so far. The amount of great classical pieces that I have been able to read, analyze and “live” through concerts quickly became an outstanding source of motivation and inspiration. I miss that today, but don’t have the time anymore {Felix smiles}.
I love playing different instruments on my tracks, and even if I’m clearly not a master on everything, it’s always a great source of fun and ideas. You can hear, for instance, that in one of my last electronic action tracks- Hybrid Jungle 2- besides percussions, almost 100% of the sounds are done with one wood flute (yes, even basses, wobbles and synths, tweaked and mangled a lot, but those are flutes) I recorded myself. This opened doors to sound-design, of course. I don’t know if it helps for classical composition, but it’s true that I’m always thinking of the instruments playing and their behavior when I am composing. Piano of course, is the king of instruments. It’s an incredible instrument! When used correctly, it allows improving vertical harmony hearing extremely well. It is just necessary when composing music.  

C: How did it come about that you recorded one of your pieces at Abbey Road- the famed recording studio of the Beetles?

FC: The Abbey Road recording was a wonderful opportunity I had thanks to the Berklee College of Music. I got the scholarship in 2014 and went to Berklee Valencia. It was in fact, the last project I had to complete for my film scoring Master program. It was an amazing experience. My mates and me were so excited; we were like living a dream! But honestly, it was extremely difficult and insanely stressful. It put so much personal pressure on me, it was crazy. Come on, I was at Abbey Road, Aliens, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings etc., I had to do it right! I composed, arranged and edited the score in 2 or 3 days, almost no sleep (I started a new piece 3 days before), and took the plane while still making revisions and practicing the score (for conducting) during the trip. All of that alone, with just an 18min recording slot. I can say it is very scary actually. You are on the podium and suddenly it’s finished! I did quite a bunch of recordings like that, so it really gave me that experience.

C: Do you have a personal music studio? If so, what is your favorite piece of equipment?

FC: Yes, now I have a really good home studio here. It is very important for me to be able to evolve in an inspiring environment, and a studio is a place like that. I worked a lot in the producing aspect of music for the last years, and now I’m very passionate about it too. Yes of course, my favorite piece of equipment is my dear Universal Audio Apollo interface. My system is composed of the Apollo 8 and it's little sister the Twin. With that centerpiece, I can make almost whatever I can think of, high-end sound all the way! I’m also planning to go for the summing route soon, just still hesitating which product I’m going to choose...

C: What additional musical styles do you compose for, and how did you get started in composing for orchestra?

FC: Well, I’m mainly invested in media music, so it can vary a lot, and that’s why I like it! I still love recording guitars, so rock and Jazz stuff all the way. I’m a huge fan of electronic music so I love to combine things too. Mediterranean music is also a big part of my background, especially Corsican music, a place where I have origins. The orchestral preference is something I have had since my earliest childhood, as I was listening to a lot of classical and orchestral film music through various medias. So it’s been a while that I have had the texture and shape of these sounds in my mind. I personally think that our memory is the most important teacher we can have. Listening to scores, knowing them, reading and knowing the scores by heart are essential things for a composer. We are our own teachers and the masters drive us. Some external teachers can help a bit to solve some technical problems, but in the end, composition is something extremely deep that can only happen within our minds. It’s about eating and eating and eating music, in order to digest it and re-create it later- in another way.  

C: Which historically classical composer has had the most profound effect on your career as a composer, and why?

FC: Well, it’s really hard to say. When I was young, I was listening again and again to the Rite of Spring through the Fantasia tape, and also Bach. I know it had a strong impact on me. Later, I fell in love with Arnold Schoenberg’s art. I have almost all of his scores, books and pieces, and know some of them really well, like the Pelleas, Guerrlieder, the Op.16 and the Piano Concerto. I am fascinated about his sensibility and philosophy; he really inspires me. Of course John Williams is one of my stars. I respect him so much; he is really the king, still today. And I really don’t consider him as a film composer, Williams is truly not. He’s just an amazing musician. I recommend to anybody to check his concert music, Jazz records, piano and conductor story, and listen to his music again and again.

C: What is your formal education in music, and how has the formal educational structure benefitted yourself as a composer?

FC: As I said, I started as a self-taught musician. It is very important because it shaped my mind in a certain way. Then, I absolutely wanted to enter the academic world, to learn everything I could, to fill the “gaps” because being self-taught is not an excuse not to grow. So to be brief, my educational background is composed of a Master in Musicology, harmony/counterpoint studies, and a Berklee Film scoring Master. The real benefits only happen when you are able to put 100% of yourself in the domain you are working on, and to fully concentrate on that one domain, for a certain time. One of the best thing I’ve probably done was my work through my harmony and counterpoint studies, combined with all the personal work I did, like with the Andre Geldage Fugue Treatise. Get really deeply into something, and when you do it, you can only come back stronger, and inspired.

C: How is it that you are sensitive to sound and music?

FC: I Really don’t have a clue {he laughs}! As a boy of the 90’s, I’m sure the media field influenced me a lot during my childhood. Fantasia, Sonic, Jurassic Park, all those things inspired me drastically. I remember being a child, and sometimes putting on my old Sega Game Gear just to listen to music and sounds. It was extremely powerful; I was fascinated, really. All my life had been driven by this sensibility.

C: There appears to be a deeply compassionate side to your orchestral compositions. Does this reflect any other causes that you feel strongly about in your life that is unrelated to music?

FC: Well, I hope! Thanks a lot, I personally take this as a great compliment. The Last Stand is a kind of autobiographical piece. You know, before going to Abbey Road, I was completely blocked, too much pressure and thinking. I didn’t have the inspiration. After some tries, I finally decided to dive into my own point of view. I wrote a script, which is about a runner who does his final championship, while thinking about what he has done in his life. In fact, I love running, and at the time I was continuously going to run on the Turia, this big and very long “road garden” throughout Valencia city. Beautiful place. I actually composed the main theme in my head on this road. “The Last Stand” means, in a way, that it is the final step for both the imaginary character and myself, going onto the podium of Abbey Road as conclusion of my Masters, and as the beginning of a new starting point in my life. So yes, this is completely related to my feelings. And as I love to tell stories through melodic development, I did that one more time for this project, with all my heart. It’s true that I am very dedicated to melody development. For me that is the only way to compose music. Everything needs to be controlled. Wagner wrote: “The only form of music is the melody”. I think this is spot on! Nowadays, the melodic sensibility is going down little by little in the “classical” music, and that’s a shame because the line is always the raw material that we need to build and develop an entire musical form, and to keep it's unity! Don’t get me wrong, I love to listen and make some textural stuff, but sooner or later, the melodic attraction always comes back. Maybe you could check out my Woodwind Quartet “The Lines of the Hands” (https://soundcloud.com/felix-carcone/les-lignes-de-la-main-atonal-fugue-for-wood-quartet) on my Soundcloud page. It is an almost atonal -but melodic- Fugato. This is for instance, the sum of some of these musical sides. 

C: If you were to compose an orchestral suite purely to complement the location of the performance, where would be your choice for the performance to given, and why?

FC: Well...I would love to come back to Abbey Road {He laughs}! I also have an idea in mind for which I would record musicians in Corsica. Maybe a project like that will happen someday. We’ll see...