Starting at a very young age, Antoine Boyer has been getting recognition from his peers and being an awarded musician is always both surprising and worth talking about.
A bit of an introvert, this young man overflows his musical talent into Classical music as well as into the Gypsy Swing. What’s your secret, Antoine Boyer?
1 – What has inspired you to start playing music? Tell us about your influences and what was going on around you at the time.
In my family, we always listened to Django’s music, Francis-Alfred Moerman, Angelo Debarre, Bratsch, etc. One day, my father asked me if I wanted to start playing guitar. So we started learning together… Since this moment we played together until about 2014.
2 - Quando começaste a aprender guitarra com o teu pai, quem foi o teu mentor, como aprendeste a música?
We learned a lot from Mandino Reinhardt, and we did a large number of his Master classes. Although in other ways, we also learned a lot from Francis-Alfred Moerman. We recorded my first CD exclusively with his compositions.
3 – Did you start with Classical, Jazz, or both at the same time?
Comecei a usar o estilo manouche aos 6 anos, mas só há cinco anos é que comecei a usar o estilo clássico.
4 – What were the biggest challenges you have faced to progress in your practice, performance, and musical career?
The biggest challenges were big concerts like Samois (in 2011) or the one for the Homage to Francis-Alfred Moerman. Another big challenge was the classical guitar competition this year (I won!), which really pushed me to work with a lot of accuracy over a few tunes.
Each new project or event is a sort of challenge. Like now I am working with the Flamenco guitarist Samuelito. We have a duet that mixes gypsy and flamenco guitars, that very new and challenging. And for example, Classical guitar competitions are also very challenging. That really pushed you to work with a lot of accuracy over a few tunes.
5 – What was it like winning the Montigny Classical Guitar Contest?
Muito encorajador !!!
6 – About the Classical Guitar contests, how much does that change your habits, what influence does it have on your mental focus, and your stress management?
Actually, It doesn’t change my habits a lot. I just have to work a little longer each day as the date of the contest is getting closer.
7 - Lembras-te do teu processo de prática quando começaste a tocar? Quanto é que mudou ao longo dos anos?
Sinceramente, não me lembro, mas sei que a minha forma de trabalhar mudou muito depois de começar a tocar guitarra clássica. É uma abordagem muito diferente (mas também muito boa) do processo de prática.
8 - Que semelhanças e diferenças encontra no processo de praticar e tocar Jazz e Guitarra Clássica?
What I like is that both jazz and classical help each other. What I mean is that one prevents me from being bored by the other. They are very different languages, and that’s very interesting to learn from both at the same time. You don’t really find jazz-like improvisation in Classical music, for example, and so I can’t work on jazz like I work on classical.
9 – Tell us about your routines. How does a regular day in your life look?
Since I have to work on both jazz and classical guitar, I dedicate a few hours a day to each subject. I usually work for around one hour, then take a break, resume another hour, and so on.
10 – Do you consider yourself to be more at ease in a contest or on a jam session/local concert?
These are completely different! The contest tends to be a little bit more stressful because you play alone… In jazz, I usually play with other musicians, so it feels very different.
11 - O que é que valoriza mais nos músicos que gosta de ouvir?
What I value the most, I think, is what we can feel when we hear a musician. I’m driven by their musicality! But it is difficult to say… There is no specific rule.
12 – Do you meditate, practice your focus, or cherish a clear state of mind?
Yes… more or less. I try to do things in a simple way, but the best way I can.
13 – What does it feel like to have the opportunity to play with some of the greatest Manouche musicians (Stochelo Rosenberg, Robin Nolan, Adrien Moignard, Paulus Schafer)? Tell us about those experiences.
It is very nice, of course! Each time you get the chance to be around these guys, you receive something different. It makes me learn a lot.
Vou dar-vos um exemplo. Trabalhei com Philip Catherine durante 3 concertos. Tive de trabalhar muito porque o universo musical dele é completamente diferente do que eu conhecia (não é nada manouche), e por isso cresci muito!
E o Stochelo, por exemplo, conheci-o pela primeira vez em Seattle. Ele é um gajo muito, muito simpático!
14 - Lembra-se de algum conselho específico que estes tipos lhe tenham dado?
I have received a lot of small, important hints or advice from a lot of different people, and that helps my way to see and understand the music I listen to or play.
15 - Por que é que gostaria de ser reconhecido? Qual é o aspeto mais importante do seu percurso de vida que gostaria que as pessoas recordassem?
I usually don’t think about this aspect. I simply try to do the best I can in different styles of guitar. Then we’ll see what happens!
16 – What would you say to Django if you had the chance to meet him? What would be the record, the musician, or the song that you would always refer to in a conversation about Django?
To meet Django?! That would be awesome… I think I would just stay put without talking. It would be better for me to just listen to him! But I would refer to him as a lot of very good musicians. It’s hard to know which one to choose, but I really love a lot of musicians in different kinds of music: classical, jazz, flamenco, Balkan, African, and so on.
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