Malta’s jazz man Manuel Pulis will be performing with Federico Carnevali Trio this coming week. Ramona Depares checks out what he has been up to in the meantime.

Manuel Pulis. Photos: Lindsey Bahia PicturesManuel Pulis. Photos: Lindsey Bahia Pictures

What have you been up to on the music front lately?

I’ve locked myself in my creative psyche and lost the key, seriously! Lately I’ve acquired greater understanding of the drums through performing regularly. Opportunities for playing jazz have become scarce and this is my main practice! Due to this, I have been faced with new obstacles regarding music and its process. Therefore, I began experimenting with production. I started writing jazz compositions with the intentions of turning them into EDM, using a music production programme. The experiments have lead to integrating laptops and electronic drum pads into my performances.

I’m collaborating with solo artists and DJs to see the capabilities of this set up, setting aside the conventional drum-kit and shifting my focus on live drum machines and electronic drum pads, with someone else producing heavy synths. My main fixation for these last months has been experimentation and testing the limits of improvisation in EDM with a whole new approach.

What can you tell us about the trio that will be performing in Malta? How did you get to know about them and who will they appeal to?

It all started when I found myself in a jam session at two in the morning in central Tuscany. That was the first time I played with Federico Carnevali, the guitarist, and that was how we spent our first meeting.

From then onwards we formed our musical outlets through jam sessions, building a good relationship.

The decision to come to Malta evolved from a casual holiday to recording some tracks and that’s how Francesco Pierotti got on board this musical endeavour. It wouldn’t be the first time Francesco has performed in Malta either; he taught at last year’s Malta International Double Bass Summer Camp, and got to play with acclaimed Maltese jazz musicians.

This trio will be interpreting arranged jazz standards and original compositions using a modern approach. This should appeal to not only those meticulous listeners but also to listeners out there looking for an experience.

Lately we are seeing a lot of pop-up gigs in innovative venues. How is the jazz landscape in Malta changing?

The jazz scene has been experiencing an influx of musicians asking the right questions and bringing in this ‘band’ mentality to the local landscape.

While jazz is an improvised form of art, it doesn’t mean that preparation should be bypassed. A certain amount of preparation is necessary to bond the musicians together as one. Events, lately, are ticking that box and this is creating new opportunities to perform. The only thing I have yet to see is regularity.

While jazz is an improvised form of art, a certain amount of preparation is necessary to bond the musicians together as one

You are also involved in a number of collaborations with different bands. What can you tell us about that?

I’m currently collaborating with Brikkuni, nosnow/noalps, Andrew Schembri for an upcoming EDM project, this jazz trio with Federico and Francesco and I also have intentions of reviving The Jazz Collective.

Being involved in these various projects keeps me very busy and, despite all that, I still have to compose music, practice drums and study. I must also take into consideration the varying characteristics of these different projects/bands and that has provided me with a platform where I’m able to adapt in the most complex situations.

Do you have a favourite project?

Apart from having a couple of albums to record, my current project with Andrew Schembri is my favourite. It’s based more on the electronic side of things.

What is the biggest challenge when you are collaborating with different people and performing different styles? Do you find the switch from one to the other difficult?

Sometimes. However, like I said, I have developed the skill of being able to adapt in complex situations, such as remembering the amount of music and still being able to respect the performance instead of just reading scores.

You also opened with nosnow for The Hives. What was the experience like?

Opening for The Hives with nosnow was exhilarating. There was a fridge full of beer, a platter full of cheese and a well-oiled performance by The Hives. What else can a man want? No seriously, I don’t really have strong connections to The Hives. They weren’t influential to me growing up, but opening for such a professional band was an enlightening experience.

Can you tell us about some of your favourite performances from recent times?

There are too many to choose from!

What is next after this upcoming gig?

The idea is to document where we are now with the trio and start collaborations between musicians from Malta and Italy to create a flow of more compelling events.

Federico Carnevali Trio is Francesco Pierotti on double bass, Manuel Pulis on drums and Federico Carnevali on guitar. The trio will perform on November 23 at Offbeat, Valletta.

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