A
sonic feast of various stringed fretboard instruments and percussion,
Becoming is the latest recorded chapter from the international
guitar duo of Kevin Kastning and Sándor Szabó.
On the 69 minute, 14 track Becoming both guitarists are joined
by percussionist Balázs Major. Kastning is one of the
most prolific of all the experimental American guitarists recording
in 2013 and both Sándor and Balázs are from Hungary
so this is quite an international musical collaboration. Even so,
the all instrumental fare extends way beyond border crossings. Recorded
on location in March 2012 at the concert hall in Hungary where the
trio were set to perform that night, Becoming is filled with
all the dynamics and musical tension guitar fans have come to expect
from the versatile and always challenging guitar sound Kastning has
brought to the music world with the myriad of sonic complexities he
has recorded over the past decade on his Greydisc label. Perhaps the
most interesting part here—in addition to the wild guitars and
sounds brought to life here—is the sound that Balázs adds
on his percussion instruments which include unusual instruments such
as gongs, udus, and African clay drums. Either way Balázs never
dominates the spotlight, preferring instead to accentuate the delicate
array of unusual acoustic guitars both Kastning and Sándor
so skillfully perform on here—including 12 string bass-baritone
guitar, baritone classical guitar (Kastning) and classical guitar,
16 string guitar, 10 string viola caipira guitar (Szabó). Kastning
also adds some piano and Szabó a chinese instrument called
Guzheng. With their near telepathic guitar chemistry, Kastning and
Szabó, together with percussion master Balázs Major,
arrive with their greatest sonic achievement yet with the impeccably
written, recorded and performed sounds on Becoming. www.KevinKastning.com
/ www.SándorSzabo.com
/ www.Balázs
Major.com
mwe3.com presents an interview with
KEVIN
KASTNING,
SÁNDOR SZABÓ AND BALÁZS MAJOR
mwe3: Where does Becoming find you in 2013? Can you fill
the readers in on the story behind the making of the Becoming
album? It’s such a masterpiece of improvised guitar work. How
would you compare your sonic and compositional approach and sound
on Becoming to that of your earlier albums including Returning
released in 2010, Book Of Crossings and Triptych, the
latter of which also featured a trio sound. Where and when was the
Becoming album recorded, mixed and mastered?
KEVIN
KASTNING: Becoming was recorded on-location during the
2012 European tour in support of the Triptych album. We had
most of one day to record it, and it was all recorded on-location,
in a small concert hall in Vac, Hungary. This was in a large performance
complex; we had a concert in the large hall that night, but we tracked
in the smaller hall. In fact, this was the same concert hall where
the album The Book of Crossings of Sándor and I was
recorded; Becoming was recorded the day before The Book
of Crossings. So Becoming and The Book of Crossings
are in some ways very closely related due to being tracked on two
consecutive days in the same location in the same atmosphere. The
same spirit in our souls was experienced on both records. Same recording
hall, same equipment and instruments. We wanted to record a new trio
album, because Triptych was recorded on the 2009 European tour,
and in the three years since it was recorded, each of us had grown
and developed as artists; not only individually, but collectively
as the trio. All three of us had added instruments to our palettes;
in some cases, these were instruments we’d invented so they didn’t
exist on any other records. The instrumental fabric of Becoming
is quite unique, both on individual levels and as a trio.
To compare both of these new records to Returning (2010) is
difficult for me. Returning was recorded in the US in 2008
in a recording studio, so the setting, environment, and atmosphere
was quite different. Not better or worse; just very different. The
spirit between Sándor and I was very strong as ever during
those sessions, but The Book of Crossings and Becoming saw
four years of growth, development, and forward momentum in each of
us since the recording of Returning.
SÁNDOR SZABÓ: Actually the 2012 Hungarian tour
called Kontaktus was based on the music and sound ideas of the Triptych,
our first trio album, but while we played the concerts on the tour
we felt that we are different persons and different musicians since
the Triptych recording. We had different ideas in our mind
and a different feeling to make recordings in a different approach.
It is hard to describe but we all became higher level improvisers
and we could utilize our chemistry in such an efficient way that we
could never do before. The recording session was made in Hungary in
a silent small concert hall in my hometown Vác, the environment
the vibe was just perfect for the session. The mixing and mastering
was done in my own studio.
BALÁZS MAJOR: The Becoming’s release is
a great feeling, I was looking forward to it. It is a rare thing for
a Hungarian musician that he can be a part of such a high quality
release which appears in the States. Though this is not the first
one for me. It is a great pleasure to share the music with such artists
as Sándor, with whom we are partners more than 30 years ago.
He was present at all my projects I was involved. We can create in
a fantastic freedom. He introduced me to Kevin whose playing made
a big influence on me. After he left Hungary (in 2009) I just started
to miss him. Then when I heard that we can work again I prepared very
intensively to the concerts and the recording sessions. I wanted to
play and sound in a different way than on the Triptych. The
Triptych was a very spontaneous session where we just wanted
to know our limits. On the Becoming, I was much more conscious,
I created new kind of grooves and textures. I also introduced a double
udu set with some special cymbals. This new approach and setup can
be heard on the Becoming.
mwe3: How would you describe the chemistry and balance between
the multitude of guitars and added percussion sounds on the Becoming
CD? It sounds like there’s a ton of musical information changing
hands in the air. The interplay on Becoming is quite impressive.
In the CD liner notes, Kevin adds that the trio “achieved a higher
level and extended our reach”. In what ways do you feel has Becoming
broadened your musical horizons? It certainly sounds like a happy,
free spirited kind of album with lots of sonically pleasing guitar
soundscapes. What do the artists feel?
KEVIN KASTNING: I think part of what you’re hearing on
Becoming is due to the deep soul connection shared by the three
of us; plus three years of development and growth we’d experienced
since the recording of Triptych. Also, Becoming involved
an entirely different set of instruments for each of us. None of the
instruments you hear on Triptych were used on the sessions
for Becoming. Both albums were recorded on-location; in other
words, not in a recording studio. However, the locations, the environment,
and the atmosphere of each were pretty different; Triptych
was recorded in fall 2009 during the 2009 European tour, in an old
church in the tiny and ancient village of Nograd, Hungary. This village
is located at the base of a small mountain, and at the top of that
mountain is a castle dating from circa 800 AD. You can see the castle
looking down on you from the church where we recorded. When we took
breaks from recording, we would hike up to the castle. So we were
deep in music while recording; then we found ourselves time-traveling
back over 1,000 years in this castle. The imprint of those that had
lived and died 
there
was very palpable; you could sense them. It was at once haunting,
mysterious, and mystical. There was a presence there. It was a solemn,
quiet place. That kind of history and atmosphere has an effect on
you. I believe that atmosphere carried over into the tracks of Triptych.
Becoming was also recorded in Hungary, but in a concert hall
as recording studio. I loved both locations; each seemed to draw something
unique out of us. The day we recorded Triptych in 2009 was
the first time I’d ever played with Balázs. We had an
immediate connection; we were both familiar with each other’s
work prior to meeting, but once we met, there was a soul connection
there that seems to have existed prior to our meeting. I think that
comes across in the recorded performances. I had heard Balázs
on various recordings before we met, and I knew that he was not merely
a gifted percussionist, but a true artist. For Becoming, it
was a very joyous occasion, as by this time we had grown even closer,
both as friends and as artistic collaborators. We’d not seen
each other in three years, so the joy we felt from being reunited
and having such different instruments and growth was palpable in the
sessions. Sándor and I are soul mates, and we always have a
very strong, very deep connection any time we play together. Performing
and recording with Sándor and Balázs is like being in
church in that it is a very reverent ritual that comes from and speaks
to our souls. I feel very honored to have been a part of this, to
be able to perform and record with such gifted, soulful, and unique
world-class artists such as Sándor and Balázs.
SÁNDOR SZABÓ: Speaking about the chemistry between
musicians is a metaphysical topic for me. Briefly I can say, because
this is my experience, that when we improvise in trio and the music
flows we are ONE soul. Our individual souls just being unified and
the music is born in this state. For this tour and recordings, Kevin
had to cope with a big problem, he could not bring his usual instruments
and he had to use my 12 string bass/baritone guitars. He actually
prepared to a different sound but finally his inner strength was the
winner, he played brilliantly on those monsters and it did not destroy
the chemistry. We also decided that at last we try all the given possibilities.
Since the recording was in my hometown I could use many of my guitars,
we could use my huge guzheng and a concert piano. This created a very
prolific music situation at that moment. Of course we all were in
good mental shapes and due to it the recording session brought up
something of us that we could never reach before. Actually the music
was there and we just had to “touch” it to bring it up.
It was kind of magic. We started to have certain forces work.
BALÁZS
MAJOR: The chemistry is the kind of thing which is very difficult
to describe. It is an experience that the musician has to have empathy.
When I feel the chemistry I feel that the music just happens by its
own. In such a situation I do not have to think or count. It just
flows. When playing with Kevin and Sándor I feel a huge confidence,
when you are on a flight and you trust the pilot and you know that
nothing wrong can happen. The same in the music with them. This is
a gift from the life and it happens not with everybody and not any
time. I think we played in such a blessed state when recorded the
Becoming album.
mwe3: What is it like as a trio playing with each other? How
is the chemistry and how do you interact; it seems so different from
the duo works of Sándor and Kevin.
KEVIN KASTNING: For me, the chemistry is very similar in both
settings. There is a deep connection with Sándor and I, and
with Balázs and I, and between the three of us. It’s been
there since the first time we met. That strong bond and the chemistry
allows the music to flow. Even though we all come from such divergent
backgrounds and influences, we speak the same artistic language; we
may be coming from different places, but we’re headed in the
same direction. I think you can hear that on Becoming.
SÁNDOR SZABÓ: The chemistry is very strong with
Balázs and also with Kevin. When we started to record the Triptych
in 2009, Balázs and Kevin met and saw each other for the
first time and I had a little fear if they could play together at
all, but it turned out in the first minutes that no reason to fear
because they felt each other’s reaction so well. As for me and
Balázs we have been playing since 30 years and we have a really
telepathic contact on stage and studio. With Kevin we have a very
deep and sensitive chemistry which is very inspiring for me. When
we met first time (in 2006) and started to play my first impression
was that Kevin reacts in a merely different way while improvising
than any other guitar player. I was kidding with him and asked if
he 
arrived
from another solar system, because he is so different from any known
guitar players, and this is very inspiring to me. I can also thank
a lot to him because I really needed such an inspiring partner to
develop. I always felt kind of loneliness as a guitar player because
most of the available guitar players are thinking in styles and systems
which puts the music into prison. The jazz guitar players are not
polyphonic players, the classical guitar players cannot improvise
and the fingerstyle players are narrow minded, so I really needed
to find someone. It was Kevin.
The interaction is different in duo and trio situations. In a duo,
the music can flow to any direction with a big freedom but demands
a very serious control and responsibility for the end result. We always
sit down to improvise with the inner need that the piece should sound
as if it were composed, after all the improvisation for us is actually
real-time composing. In trio we have less work and we have bigger
discipline to build the music with the best notes and there is no
competition in such a creative process. In duo and trio situations
we have to get to a creative mental state where our souls unify. From
this point the improvisation is a much deeper and complex process
and it cannot be described with learning and using all scales and
all chords.
mwe3: Can you say something about the various guitars and the
various percussion instruments featured on Becoming and what
other instruments did you use to further color the sound? How about
the microphones used to capture, color and enhance the recorded sound?
KEVIN KASTNING: I was at a bit of a disadvantage on the 2012
tour and for the recording sessions, as I had none of my own instruments
there. The Lacey Act in the US is having a very negative and restrictive
effect on American artists that tour abroad, so I was unable to take
my usual instruments with me for the tour. Sándor was kind
enough to make his instruments available to me for the tour and recordings.
His 12-string bass-baritone is based on and modeled after my own 12-string
bass-baritone, so there was some familiarity there. In fact, he has
a pair of them, so I was able to keep one in octave tunings, and one
in my own altered tunings. However, this is no longer my main instrument;
nor an instrument I’ve used at all since 2010 when I moved to
the 16- and 17-string Contraguitars. Had it not been for the fear
and uncertainties of the Lacey Act, I would have been on tour with
one of the Contraguitars, but sadly this was not to be. The lack of
my Contras made me feel a bit restricted and limited; not really at
home, but I don’t think the recordings suffered; in fact I think
both records turned out pretty well. I also used an instrument of
Sándor’s which is a baritone (long-scale) classical guitar,
tuned a fourth lower than concert classical guitar. The sound of it
is deep and sonorous, but before that day in the concert hall recording
sessions, I had never played it. Sándor asked if I’d like
to use it, and as soon as I heard it, I knew I wanted it to be part
of these recording sessions. It has a rather unique texture, and I
knew it would meld into the trio fabric. So it was a bit of a strange
circumstance for me, being in a recording studio without any of my
instruments, and performing on three instruments which I’d never
played. Fortunately, I 
acclimated
pretty quickly and we were able to make everything work. I had the
instruments with me at the hotel, and I had been up most of the night
preceding the recording date practicing and learning the instruments.
So not only was I recording on three unknown instruments, I was running
on very little sleep! There was a Steinway grand in the concert hall,
and once we arrived and I played it a bit, I asked Sándor and
Balázs if they’d mind if we had some piano on this record,
and they both agreed. I’d never played this Steinway either,
so that’s four unknown instruments for me on this session and
also for Book of Crossings. For the piano parts on Becoming,
I had the lid open on the Steinway, and not only played the piano
using the keyboard, but also used some wooden spoons and my hands
on the actual piano strings inside the piano; using it more as a percussion
instrument really. The following day for the Book of Crossings
sessions, I was playing the piano in a more traditional way, but still
using my hands on the strings inside the piano a little. Part of the
sound of these two albums was the concert hall itself. The room sounded
good and was a very good location for recording. It was an unusual
space in that one long wall was all floor-to-ceiling glass windows
that overlooked a courtyard. The sessions took place on bright spring
days, and the trees in the courtyard were full of Hungarian birds
holding their own performance. If you listen closely, you can hear
them in some places on both albums. During soft or quiet passages
in the music, when we were recording, I could hear the birds coming
back through the headphones and it made me smile. Mics on Sandor and
I were the German-made Gefell M-930, which is one of my favorite microphones
ever. Both records were beautifully mixed and mastered by Sandor at
Tandem Records Experimental in Hungary. The cover art on both records
is by a British photographic artist named Chris Friel. I have a deep
admiration of his work, and his pieces on the covers really fit and
expressed the atmosphere of each album very very well.
SÁNDOR SZABÓ: This is a very special album for
me because I can hear only my guitars on this CD. I used a newly developed
tuning on my old 16 string guitar and also on a small Brazilian 10
string guitar called viola caipira. These guitars really stretched
the harmony possibilities which was very inspiring to Kevin and Balázs.
He got his new udu drum which has a very deep sub-bass range and that
made the sound almost hypnotic. Balázs was deeply inspired
of his new sound and new possibilities because he worked years to
combine the Indian, African clay drum techniques with the cymbals.
By now he created a very distinct sound which is a mark of the sound
of the Becoming.
We used close microphone settings. For the percussion we used a pair
of DPA 4011 and for the guitars we used Gefell 930s through an RME
mic preamp. As for the recordings and the mixing, I have a special
simple conception and I keep it every time. This conception goes completely
against the current recording habits and fashions. I never use EQ,
limiter, or compressor. Many sound guys state that it is not possible
to make a decent mix without them. My opinion is opposite: it is possible
and highly recommended if we want to capture something of the fine
details of the music. I used to mix 36 tracks without limiting and
compression. It is possible but the world is going to the loudness…
BALÁZS
MAJOR: In the last three decades we spent together with Sándor
somehow pushed me to a certain direction in the percussion setup and
playing. As I always played near very special and fine acoustic guitars
I had to think to find a percussion instrument setup which would never
disturb the range of the guitars and would fill out the gaps in the
frequency range. For this the udus and the cymbals proved to be proper.
Since I studied and played jazz drums I just imported the cymbals
from the drum set. I also used to studied and played the North Indian
tabla. In the last decades I synthesized the western jazz rhythm with
the Indian tabla rhythm system. This is what you can hear from me.
Of course I was influenced by some great percussion players but I
wanted to create my own sound and rhythm. My plan is to develop my
cymbal sets to get an even more and distinct sound around the guitars.
mwe3: Can you let the readers in on news concerning any new
guitars, percussion instruments or other gear that you’re using
now or planning to feature or would like to feature on upcoming recordings?
KEVIN KASTNING: A couple of months ago, I received an instrument
on which I’d been working for a long time and of which I’d
been dreaming for years: the double neck 30-string Contra-Soprano
guitar. You can see it here.
This instrument was a collaboration between myself and Emerald
Guitars in Ireland. I’ve already used this instrument on two
album projects; you’ll hear it on the forthcoming albums of myself
and Carl Clements, and the next one of Mark Wingfield and myself.
Both of those albums will be released on Greydisc in 2013; the recording
sessions for both are completed. Of course I’m using the 16-
and 17-string Contraguitars, 12-string Alto guitar, classical guitar,
fretless, and a few others on both of those recordings, too. The 30-string
Contra-Soprano guitar has already had and is having a massive impact
on my music and my is altering my thought processes. It is really
three instruments for me: an 18-string Contraguitar, a 12-string Soprano/Alto
guitar, and a single 30-string Contra-Soprano guitar when I utilize
both sets of strings on both necks simultaneously; in other words,
instead of approaching it as two single instruments, I approach it
as a single instrument with 30 strings. This obviously requires an
entirely new technique for 30 strings, especially for the right hand,
along with new tunings and new compositional approaches, forms, directions,
and thoughts. One of the differences in the approach with the 30-string
is that I play the instrument positioned vertically, like a cello.
The 30 has two sound holes, and as such is a natural stereo instrument.
It requires a different microphoning approach in the studio, but sounds
glorious on tape. I will be using the 30-string on a very special
album project with Sándor later this year 
that
we’re calling the 46-string project. This will be duo compositions
wherein Sándor will be using his only his 16-string instruments,
and I will be using only my 16-string, 17-string, and 30-string instruments.
That album should be released in 2014, and I am excited about this
record. I have a few other projects for this year in the works with
other artists as well; some familiar names with whom I’ve never
worked. I’ll be announcing those on my web site later this year.
Michael Manring and I have discussed our next album project. I’ve
also started work on my first solo album, though I’m not sure
when that will be released. It will involve the 30-string and the
16- and 17-string Contraguitars and a few other instruments, too.
I’m also working with Dan Roberts at Daniel Roberts Stringworks
on a highly unusual classical guitar. I love the voice of the classical
guitar, but I feel restricted on 6 strings. This guitar won’t
have that restriction. Dan is the brilliant luthier that made both
my Contraguitars. I wouldn’t be able to do what I do without
Dan; he’s like my unseen partner; a collaborator. He and I have
been working on instruments together since 1999. And with the advent
of the 30-string, Alistair Hay at Emerald in Ireland has become a
contributor to what I do as well. I am deeply grateful to them both;
they are true artists and adventurers.
SÁNDOR SZABÓ: Actually I ordered a 16 string
lute and playing it will be a big challenge to me to match it to my
music and sonic world. I have to work out a special recording method
because the lute is very silent and radiates the sound waves differently
than the guitar. On the top of all I use the same finger nail picking
on the lute as on my guitars, so due to this my lute will be somewhat
different than a traditional lute.
BALÁZS MAJOR: As for future musical plans, I am working
on very special new grooves and textures preparing to a new trio recording
when Sándor wants to play his 16 string lute and Kevin his
double neck 30 string monster... These instruments demand a very special
approach from me.
mwe3: What was it like recording the Becoming album
in Hungary and how did the recording of Becoming that day color
and influence your concert performance that same night in March 2012?
Also can you say something about Hungary for those of us who have
never been there? What’s the music scene there like and how does
the country itself impact the music, as well as your music and can
you say something about other musical artists from there? Hungary
seems like a very musical kind of place with lots of history and intrigue.
KEVIN KASTNING: The day we recorded Becoming was a bright
and warm spring day in Hungary with perfect blue skies and flowers
blooming everywhere. Coming from my home in New England where it was
still very much winter and snow was on the ground; then to be suddenly
immersed in spring was a pleasant turn. The setting for these sessions
was in a small concert hall in the large performance complex where
we were to be performing in the main hall later that night in Vac,
Hungary. This small concert hall became our recording studio for the
day. It was very informal and relaxed, and in a way, it felt as if
the warmth and the spirit of spring was there with us inside the hall,
not just outside. We tracked for most of the day, taking tea breaks
and stepping outdoors into the welcoming Hungarian spring. Time evaporated,
and before I knew it, it was time to pack up and head over the large
hall for the show. The performance that night almost seemed to be
a continuation of the recording sessions, even though we were performing
pieces from and based on the Triptych album.
To
answer your question about Hungary, it is a magical place. The country
is rich in history and deep ritual. It’s a beautiful country.
When I’m there, I can feel the spirit and essence of this history;
it permeates the air and creates something like an immersive atmosphere;
this is deep and palpable. The Hungarian people are incredibly warm
and friendly; I am always treated exceedingly well when I am there.
Budapest is a fantastic city; Sándor and I have taken some
very long walks there, and around every corner is something new to
me. Hungary has a different feeling than any other country I’ve
visited; I’m never quite ready to leave when I’m there,
and I’m always ready to return. I can feel this energy when I
perform or record there; I feel the recording sessions are influenced
by the atmosphere. Hungary seems to be filled with historical shadows
of mystery and secrets; it’s all around you. You can’t always
see it, but you can feel it.
SÁNDOR SZABÓ: As I mentioned those days we were
very inspired by a lot of things, each other, new instruments and
the nice weather and vibes. This of course influenced also the concerts
where we played with two contact dancer women. Everything was just
perfect. Well Hungary is a very special place. There are very strong
magic forces here and sensitive people feel it. The music life is
very vivid and intense here in spite of that almost nobody plays guitar
music in such ways as we do, but all other kind of music is played.
The guitar music has not much respect in this country, that is why
I started to focus my entire career to abroad from the beginning.
Unfortunately everything is going to a commercial direction and the
real music values are hidden. The Hungarian culture is over globalized
and that is why the rap for example is much more popular than our
folk music, not to mention the guitar music.
BALÁZS MAJOR: After we recorded the Becoming
we had a completely new approach on the concerts. It was interesting
that we actually toured with the Triptych material but the
Becoming was already there. It was a magical tour. As for Hungary
this country is really beautiful but it is not so easy to be a musician
in this country. The real artists are in the periphery and only some
lucky working musicians can get along fighting with each other and
the circumstances. That is why I do not want to take part in this
constant fight, so I try to earn money by doing other things, I do
not want to compromise my art after all I spent almost a lifetime
to get to this artistic level. So very similarly to Sándor
I just do what I have to do and I do not take part in the Hungarian
music scene. Of course this is not a complaint it is just a way of
life; a possible approach to live here as an artist. Apart from this
I feel happy especially when I can play and record with such guys.
mwe3: What about other musical plans, current (regarding Becoming)
as well as other future plans, from the three musicians on the Becoming
album? And what are your hoping that guitar lovers, musicians
as well as music lovers and CD fans in general, will come away with
after listening to Becoming?
KEVIN KASTNING: With the three of us living in different
countries, it is difficult to make concrete trio plans, but I know
we’re all committed to continuing the trio. That said, I am certainly
looking forward to the next trio recording project. If that doesn’t
happen as a “live” in-studio performance like Triptych
and Becoming, we can still do it by tracking in separate studios
at different times. There is a European tour in the works for 2013
or 2014, and part of the tour schedule will include recording sessions
for one or more new album projects in trio, and in duo with Sándor
and I. On our next tour, I will be touring and recording with the
30-string.
As
for what people take away from Becoming, I hope that each listener
will find their own meanings and images in it. It is a pretty diverse
set of pieces; each with different meanings and emotions and atmospheres
and passageways. I don’t mean this in an arrogant way, but I
don’t wonder if other musicians will like it; this music exists
because it has to; it’s not created with the hopes that someone
will like it. It doesn’t come from me; it originates somewhere
else, and when it is manifesting itself either in concert or in a
recording studio, I’m not wondering or hoping that others will
like it. That’s not why it exists. Though I do hear from people
who share with me their impressions of the records and share with
me what our music means to them; for this I am deeply grateful and
humbled. I don’t wonder what other guitarists will think of my
records; I suspect that’s because I’m not sure I see myself
as a guitarist. Well, not a 6-string guitarist, anyway. I guess I
think of myself more as a performing composer. Now that I’m evolving
into the world of the 30-string instrument, I don’t even think
of the 16- and 17-string Contraguitars or the 30-string as “guitars,”
really. I have more of a pianistic and orchestral concept and approach
to them; they are so vast and deep that I can’t approach them
as or think of them merely as guitars. I think that word is too limiting
for these instruments. The two Contras and the 30-string are each
like discovering a new planet. When I sit down with the 30-string,
I feel like a conductor stepping up on the podium before an orchestra.
Each demands a different technique; each one is literally learning
a new instrument. This process is very arduous and challenging, but
to have these kinds of deep and vast orchestral textures of instruments
available to me makes overcoming these difficulties more than worthwhile.
SÁNDOR SZABÓ: We did not make long term plans
for the trio project like the Becoming album. It just happened
and I hope something similar will happen in the future. We have to
face the problem that the 
real
art got to a very difficult state and also the traveling became very
expensive, so making recordings between the US and Hungary is possible
only by compromises. In spite of this we plan to make a very special
duo project where we both use our multi-string guitars 16-17-18 and
30 string guitars. This will be a very special milestone in searching
the limits of the guitars and the players in the guitar music. There
is also a plan in my mind where I play my 16 string lute, Kevin plays
his 30 string double neck guitar and Balázs plays his extended
percussion set with a lot of new sounding cymbals. I hope after the
listeners taste the sound and soul of Becoming album they will
be hungry for the continuing.
BALÁZS MAJOR: I believe that the Becoming sounds
very special like no other records in the world. I really want to
add even more from my ideas to a next recording which hopefully can
happen in 2013. I am able to listen to Sándor’s and Kevin’s
duo albums like an outsider. These guys created a new sound and a
new style in spite of the music world does not want to notice this
fact. This new genre is very inspiring for me because it demands a
consciousness from me as the third member in a trio which really creates
a new genre in these days.
Photos above from the recording sessions for
Becoming; March 22 2012; Vac, Hungary.
Thanks to KEVIN
KASTNING, SÁNDOR
SZABÓ and BALÁZS
MAJOR
