本当にいろんな音楽を聴いてアイディアをもらっているけど、唯一最大のインスピレーションの源は、音楽をプレイすることを通じて築く、人との長い付き合いだと思うんだ。最近ではEivind Lonningと一緒に仕事をしてすごく刺激をもらっているし、僕がレギュラー参加しているバンドMURAL、CircadiaやThe New Songsとやるのも面白い。こういう関係性が、無限のインスピレーションを生み出しているのかもしれないね。
最新作『All Your Limbs Singing』はどのようにして制作されたのでしょうか?
『All Your Limbs Singing』はベルリンのStudio P4で2013年にレコーディングしたんだ。アコースティック・ギターには最高の部屋だよ、大音量だけどドライな音でね。実際、このアルバムではわずかに電子楽器が使われているって言ったレビュアーもいたんだけど、全ての音がアコースティックの12弦ギターで、オーバーダブなしで作られてるとは思わなかったんだね。僕の、倍音をフィルタリングしていくやり方はすごくエレクトロニックに聞こえることもあると思う。パフォーマンスの後、パソコンはどこにあるんだってよく聞かれるけど、全部アコギの音だって言うとみんなすごく驚くんだよね。高調波スペクトラムは、アコースティック・ギターで僕がすごく興味を持っている分野なんだけど、それによって音楽がすごくオーケストラ的に聞こえるんだ。プレイしているのが1本のギターだけであってもね。
僕が関わってるレーベルSOFAからは、ノルウェーのアーティストがたくさんリリースしてるんだ。僕たちのウェブサイト(http://www.sofamusic.no)をチェックしてもらえれば、面白いノルウェー音楽が見つかると思うよ。Sheriffs of Nothingness、Streifenjunko、Ingar Zach、Martin Taxtなんかは、このレーベル所属のグループだよ。
近い将来の予定を教えて下さい。
来年の初めに、ノルウェーのレーベルHubroから新しいレコードを出すんだ。Trondeheim Jazz Orchestraのシンガー、Jenny Hvalと一緒にやったものなんだけどね。これについてはすごくエキサイトしてて、今はミックスの段階だね。あとは、来年のどこかでまたソロのレコードのリリースも予定してるんだけど、これにはかなり電子音とエレキギターを使うつもりだよ!9月4日には、Jim Denley とIngar Zachとのトリオ、MURALでも、ヒューストンのRothko Chapelでレコーディングした3CDのドキュメンタリーをリリースするんだ。気になる人のために、日本ツアーにもコピーを持っていくよ。
日本のファンに一言お願いします!
8月の日本行きをすごく楽しみにしてます!東京、千葉、京都、福岡のコンサートで会おう!
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[ENGLISH VERSION]
First of all, please introduce yourself.
My name is Kim Myhr, and I'm a guitarist and composer from Norway.
When and how did you start to create the music?
I got my first guitar for my sixth birthday. And I guess since I was 12, I had really made my decision to become a musician.
What inspires you to create music?
I am inspired and listen to a whole lot of different music, but I think the single most important source of inspiration is the long-term relationships that you develop through playing with people.. It's very inspiring to work with Eivind Lonning these days, as it is inspiring working with my regular groups MURAL, Circadia and the New Songs. These relationships can be an endless source of inspiration.
How did you make the latest album "All Your Limbs Singing"?
All your limbs singing was recorded at Studio P4 in Berlin in 2013. It's a wonderful room for a acoustic guitar; a big but dry sound. Some reviewers actually said about the album that it had had very subtle use of electronics, but they didn't realize that all the music is actually made on an acoustic 12-string guitar without overdubs. I think the way I'm working with filtering harmonics can sound very electronic sometimes, people are often asking where my laptop is after performances, and they are very surprised when I tell them that everything came from the acoustic guitar. The harmonic spectrum is an area of the acoustic guitar which interests me a lot, and it makes the music sound very orchestral, even if there is just one guitar playing.
You collaborate with many kind of artists. How is the collaboration for you?
I think collaboration is a very important and fruitful way of making music. Often in western music you have a separation between composers who conceptualize the music, and musicians who perform it. I think we are now at a stage where musicians themselves are making and playing music together, which I think is an incredibly positive development. Improvisation has been very important in this regard, though I think a lot of improvisers these days are not necessarily so concerned with the actual improvising, but more thinking of how people can make music together. That said, improvisation is still a very important element in the music.
You will come to Japan soon. I think this tour will be your third time Japan. How do you feel about "Japan"?
This will actually be the my fifth visit to Japan. I just love coming there, it's always a very exciting place to visit. And the best food in the world!
Do you have some Japanese favorite artists?
I've known Toshi Nakamura and Tetuzi Akiyama for a few years, and I really appreciate their music. We are actually opening our Japan tour with a quartet set with them at Ftarri, which will be exciting. Apart from that, there is really a lot of great experimental music coming from Japan.
Could you tell me some recommend artists in Norway?
The label I'm involved in, SOFA, is releasing many artists from Norway, and I would recommend to check out our website www.sofamusic.no for interesting Norwegian music. Sheriffs of Nothingness, Streifenjunko, Ingar Zach, Martin Taxt are a few of many groups who are putting out music on the label.
Please let me know near future plan.
I have a new record coming out early next year on the Norwegian label Hubro: a piece with singer Jenny Hval for Trondheim Jazz Orchestra. I'm very excited about it, we are mixing the record these days. Also, I'm releasing another solo record sometime next year, but this time there will be lots of electronics and electric guitars! On September 4. the trio I have with Jim Denley and Ingar Zach called MURAL, is releasing a 3CD document recorded at the Rothko Chapel in Houston, Texas. I will be bringing copies of it on the tour to Japan for those interested.
Please give a message to Japanese fans!
Very much looking forward to coming to Japan in August, and hope to see you at our concerts in Tokyo, Chiba, Kyoto, Kobe and Fukuoka.
INTERVIEW in July 2015
TRANSLATED by Naoko Yamada
TEXT by Masato Hoshino