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An improvisation is a way for me to express myself in any way that I might choose to at

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the instrument, whether that manner is spiritual or whether I'm exploring something musical

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or mathematical.

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It's just a catalyst for my personal expression and that can be a catalyst further for my

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enjoyment or for my development.

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It can be anything that you want it to be, but I think most importantly it's for me,

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right?

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When I sit at that instrument, I'm playing for myself through an improvisation.

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Hello piano enthusiasts!

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Welcome back to the PianoPod.

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I am your host, Yuukimi Song.

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Today we're diving deeper into the second installment of this season's 14th episode

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with classical pianist, composer and improviser, Liam Pitcher, known for his exceptional improvisational

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skills which combine classical music with electroacoustic and electronic elements.

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In case you missed our captivating part 1 conversation, exploring unique aspects of

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his improvisational style, don't worry, you can catch up on all the excitement on your

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favorite podcast platform right now.

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A warm welcome to all our new listeners and viewers, this podcast is your all-access pass

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to the captivating world of piano.

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In each episode of the PianoPod, I interview a guest speaker who has been breaking exciting

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new ground in the industry.

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Please rate the show and review it on your favorite podcasting platform because every

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rating review will help people find my show.

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And as for our faithful listeners, I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude for your

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loyal listenership.

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Since 2020, we've been exploring how to make classical music resonate in fresh ways with

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today's audience, to keep bringing you these episodes, my show relies on your support.

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Every contribution is in covering essential podcast expenses, so click the PayPal link

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in the show notes or visit thepianapod.com to donate.

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I'll personally mail you the PianoPod's logo sticker as a token of gratitude.

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So my friends, here is part 2 of the PianoPod's Season 4 Episode 14 featuring South African

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pianist, improviser, Leon Pitcher.

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Please enjoy the show.

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You sound like you have such great teachers in the past and mentors.

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You even at the beginning mentioned that you've been really fortunate to have these teachers.

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So I want to know a little bit about your upbringing, maybe how you discovered the love

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for music and then also your mentors and maybe what kind of life, you know, unique life experiences

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that influenced your being an artist today.

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I've been very blessed with the teachers that I've had recently, but I suppose I had great

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parents who were, they, you know, they've always been wonderful influences in my life

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and they saw that I was musical and they bought a little keyboard that was in the house and

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that cut a long story short ended up in me studying how to play the keyboard at school.

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And I had great, wonderful female teachers.

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I had, I can't even remember their names at this point, but I had a line of female teachers

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when I was about 10 years old in Western Province Preparatory School and they just did their

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job.

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There was nothing extraordinary about it, but they allowed me to explore what I wanted

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to explore while giving it structure, which is, I suppose more than you can ask for at

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that age, or maybe it's not more than you can ask for.

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I don't know, I don't know how ambitious I need to be with this response to your question,

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but in a perfect world, we can get to that shortly, maybe what it would have been, but

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I didn't have the great teachers that I had now back then, but everything led me to this

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point.

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So, you know, if anything, I have a juxtaposed extreme comparison between what things are

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like in school and university and what they should be like based on what I'm learning

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now.

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So, in the long and short of it, yes, school, 10 years old, keyboard, study the keyboard,

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study music theory from literally 10 years old in school, learn the basics, don't really

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care about it, don't really understand it fully, do my grade five music theory in high

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school, do a bit of percussion, do a bit of flute, do a bit of piano, meet one of the

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biggest musical influences in my life, Judith Rhodes Harrison, who took me under her wing.

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They refused to let me study the piano at my high school because I didn't have a qualification.

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So, I then actually had to prove myself, which I didn't realize at the time, but I ended

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up doing it.

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I learned a very complicated piece just in my own time and performed it at an ice-ted

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fit there, and then she said, I want him as my student, and she took me under her wing,

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and she gave me the greatest gift of my life, that she taught me when no one else would,

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the piano, which is now my greatest joy in my life.

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And she was so incredible.

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She gave me no, we didn't even have time to do technique.

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We couldn't even begin to talk about it, but because I had to catch up, right, in terms

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of repertoire, learning pieces, I think the whole syllabus at schools for music is ridiculous

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as well.

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I mean, that's something we can get into as well later.

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But ultimately, she gave me a place where I felt like, wow, this person believes in me

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and what I can do on this instrument, and just that was enough to make me practice and

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to make me care about it.

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Then when I got to university, there was none of that left.

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I wouldn't mention any names, I was not inspired in university.

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It sucked me dry of my love for music for five years.

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And then I met my current teacher, Rache de Toie.

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But before that, I was studying composition.

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So by that point, by my final years in university, I had actually just given up on becoming a

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performer, which was always my lifelong dream.

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I actually ended up entering my left wrist, and I had to leave university for six months

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and just redo my first year because I couldn't even play.

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And that has been years of healing.

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I'm still healing from that.

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I mean, I still lack mobility in my left arm, but I'm starting to gain that back just due

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to understanding the body, et cetera.

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Anyways, but it was only in third year university that I met Hendrik Hofmeyer and sat in his

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class.

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And from the moment, I never cared about music theory.

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I never cared about it.

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I thought it was the dumbest thing ever.

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I couldn't understand why we had to learn it.

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It was so infinitely boring to me.

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And that first class with Hendrik Hofmeyer absolutely shattered my world.

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It was like it blew open the infinite possibilities of music in a two hour class.

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And from that point, I became essentially obsessed with Hendrik Hofmeyer.

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Like I really just wanted to know everything that he knew.

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And like, I kind of modeled myself after him a little bit at that time.

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And that's fine because he was a great role model.

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And like, if you're going to model yourself after anyone, model yourself after someone

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who's great, who had attributes that are truly good, and he was such a giving person in terms

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of his wisdom, and he was so patient with me, I'd never cared truly about music theory

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or about academia until that point.

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And he was so patient with me in how like, I wasn't organized at that point.

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You know, I wasn't necessarily accustomed to what the schooling system might expect

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from a student.

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And I don't know if he sensed or saw that, but he was so patient with me.

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So even though I couldn't meet his expectations, I couldn't work as hard as maybe I wanted

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to work because I was also DJing and producing music at the same time.

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And I was playing multiple times a week in nightclubs, etc.

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Parallel worlds.

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And he believed in me right to the end that even though I didn't even qualify for my final

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year in composition class because I was so busy and unable to perform in my examinations

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and I became so ill at that time.

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And a vacancy came and he said, you can have it if the student will give it to you.

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Even though I didn't qualify for my final year, he saw that in me and he gave me that

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opportunity to prove myself, which I did.

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And I still see him to this day.

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I'm actually seeing him on Thursday this week.

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I can't wait to see him.

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I can't wait to see him.

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And we just go deep.

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I mean, like, you don't even understand the things we talk about.

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You can't even begin to find the things we talk about music, like things that he has

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studied and knows.

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And I'm like, I bring my little piece, two cents piece to that, but he knows things that

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you just, you just can't find on the internet.

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You know, you can't find them in libraries even.

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He's understood music in ways that very few I'd say in history have understood.

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And that's why I was so captured by him because I felt, wow, what is this whole world?

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This guy really knows what he's talking about.

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This guy really understands the music.

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I want to understand music.

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I love music.

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What is this meaning behind it?

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It's because he understood the meaning and he was able to explain meaning in music legitimately.

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What's on the page?

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What does that mean?

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How do we understand and interpret that meaning?

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Etc.

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That's when I began in my second or third year of university to understand these things.

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And then I met my current piano teacher and it was while I was still studying at the University

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of Cape Town and I sat down and played for him.

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And he said, your entire technique is wrong.

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Everything that you do is away from the piano.

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Like I'm sorry, but you just know nothing about performance at all.

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And it really affected me.

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I remember leaving that meeting thinking, wow, and he played and I mean, he could play

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a PPPP if he wanted consistently.

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You know, he could play 20 different dynamic levels between Pianississimo and Pianissississimo.

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You know, and I just had no control whatsoever over my sound.

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And so I was extremely talented and I, Judith Rotarason, who took me under when gave me

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so much beauty in terms of how to think about phrasing and music and interpretation and she

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inspired me in those ways as a teacher showed as well.

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But we never had time to do technique and they certainly have no interest at my university

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to try and recover poor technique.

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They just say, well, you didn't learn the technique so there's nothing we can do for

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you.

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You've got to go learn that in your own time.

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They don't actually show you what you have to do because they're lazy and they don't

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actually care about their students' developments and they probably got their jobs from pals.

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You know, but anyway, so I met Rache and he blasted my whole world to smithereens.

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I mean, that was like, I almost felt like completely defeated because I've my whole

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career as a pianist was very talented, but I completely plateaued at that point for years

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because my talent only took me to a certain place.

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And you know, I felt what probably most pop artists feel as well that they can't express

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themselves beyond a certain point because they just don't have the understanding to

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move outside of that.

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Anyways, so he sent me away and I couldn't see him at that point because I was still

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studying at the University of Cape Town.

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When I left the University of Cape Town, then I went and performed as a DJ at his daughter's

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wedding for free.

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She was a friend of mine.

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We studied together.

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She's probably the best operatic singer in South Africa.

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One of the greatest who's ever lived probably.

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She is truly angelic in the way that she sings and that's because he has taught her the

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Belcanto style from the second century in Italy, the true Belcanto.

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And she can sing like an angel.

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You just have no idea.

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I mean, you hear this woman's voice.

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It's like you're transported to another world.

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It's truly something special and that's the effect that I'm talking about that music

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can have in an audience.

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So I've had the joy of singing with her, a company, her singing, playing.

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We played together, you know, but I played at her wedding for free and through that gesture,

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you made space for me in this class.

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It's very full.

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It doesn't have time for many people, but he saw me.

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Like I said, please can I have a conalysm with your dad?

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And I sat down with him and he said, play me anything.

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And I played him a Scream in Etude.

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He said, very musical, the M, but your fingers don't work.

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We have to start right from the beginning.

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And I literally played C major scale for six months.

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In my twenties, pay thousands a month.

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You know, C major scale for six months was the best thing that I've ever done because

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in a year or two after I started with him, I gained good control over my sound.

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And that's when the improvisations really start to sound good, like in the hall.

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Like return to the backs to theater was where it kind of started, like I started getting

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control and then in the hall, I had some control.

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The way I play now is leaps and bounds, miles, years, decades more than that.

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But I just haven't had, I haven't been bothered to record why would I, you know, I'm not,

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he's going to come of that.

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So I just wish to continue to cultivate my technique.

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And, you know, if I can have a one day, I still see that them, as I said weekly, I'm

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still learning with Rache and there's so much to learn.

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Like I know nothing compared to him.

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And it's such a joy to feel that like, wow, this person cares about me.

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They inspire me.

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They believe in me.

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But also they know so much that I could almost maybe never even know what they know.

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Even if I was with him my whole life, like I wouldn't be able to learn everything he

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knows, but maybe I'll learn some of it, you know, and then it's my duty to maybe make

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professional observation, observations as a student outside of that and to start to

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learn things based on intuition, based on what I was taught.

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Great master, you know, maybe then that's how I surpass the master one day when I'm

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his age, when I'm 70 odd years old.

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But I mean, it's lifetimes and lifetimes worth.

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I mean, if you go into his website and you look at who he studied with, you will pass

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out.

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I'm talking students of Zoltan Kodai, students of Tovi, students of multiple students, students

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of Tobias Mate, the great fundi of piano technique, who no one talks about, by the way, who has

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got books that will teach you on how to play the piano.

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And you won't even be able to decipher what he's talking about unless one of his students

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teaches you.

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It will just sound like nonsense to you unless you actually have a student of Tovi explained

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to you.

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What is in that?

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And so he studied with these great masters and it's just such a blessing to see him on

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a weekly basis and become a better artist every single week, even if I don't have time to

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practice.

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I'm a better pianist.

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I'm a better musician every week, just from that on our class.

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And like, wow, imagine all music universities like that.

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And then imagine we could bridge the gap between the public and the music industry.

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And imagine we were all just developing like on a weekly basis.

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Can you imagine what world we live in?

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I can't even imagine.

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Like I think once again, a world worth living for.

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So I just want to get to a point now where I can maybe play and inspire people a little

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bit, maybe expand their consciousness a little bit with my performance, maybe make them think

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about things a little bit.

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I don't know what extent that goes to even like what is the extent of a musical performance?

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What can we even achieve?

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Maybe one on one, one on two, one on ten.

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What can we achieve through that performance in terms of like spiritual development in

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someone?

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If we track like if we truly align, if they truly are able to receive us where we are,

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what can we even achieve through a single performance?

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I believe that you can leave a performance or struck and feeling like you're more than

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you were before that performance.

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And that's what every single concert should be.

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I know you promote South African composers too.

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I wanted to ask but.

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What a beautiful thing South African music is.

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It's a whole world that hasn't even really been understood fully by the outside world.

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I mean like they haven't scratched the surface at all.

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There's such a rich history even in Western classical art music in South African musical

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composers.

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And like I'm certainly not an authority there, but there are authorities that are alive.

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And they have information and knowledge about music that's unusual.

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That's different to what is taught globally.

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Certain living composers like Hoffman, well he's a special case for sure.

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His knowledge is just unsupposed in my personal view.

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And I'm not biased.

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I actually think that I'm quite impartial when it comes to that and that I see BS instantly.

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And unfortunately the whole music industry almost is run by BS.

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But you know he's so good.

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But you know we have people here in South Africa who know things that aren't in history

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books, aren't in textbooks.

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You know we've got a world authority on Gregorian chant at the South African College of Music.

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World authority.

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We've got a world authority on Arnold Schoenberg who's still alive to this day.

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Professor James May and I mean no one knows who that is.

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I mean I could say that and like yeah I don't know.

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There's a lot here to be explored and I'm certainly not an authority but I've tried

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to do my part to just give back because I saw in them what the world didn't see in them.

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That they have something special.

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They know something special, right?

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So I did my little bit to give back by making score videos, by uploading.

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But South African composers we're really behind here.

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You know we're still a developing country.

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You know I like to call us a fifth world country because we're just that far behind

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in terms of technological progress and advancements.

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I mean for example data here is unbelievably expensive.

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You know even to get like six gigabytes of data is like hundreds of rats.

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So we're so behind in that sense that we don't even have access to the internet and technology

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the way that the rest of the world does, right?

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So for that reason like South African composers especially those who were born in the apartheid

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era you know that have been segregated themselves now through kind of reverse apartheid.

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Now well they were white Africans composers born in apartheid and therefore we should

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actually ignore everything they did and wrote.

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So that discrimination, Hoffmay is one of those, has cost him a career.

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You know he is such a genius.

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He's won the Queen Elizabeth composition award.

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He is internationally renowned as a top South African composer and yet I mean he lives a

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very kind of comfortable life and no one really gives him the appreciation that he

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deserves.

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He's never in his career been appreciated for what he truly is and I've that you know

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that's definitely another reason that I'm motivated to create this platform one day

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for all of these reasons.

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To create a platform that actually promotes those who deserve the promotion.

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Can you give us more names of the South African composers that you admire?

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Sure.

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Hendrik Hoffmayer one number one.

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I think that he understands what came before better than anyone and therefore his music

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actually develops the rich history of our Western classical art music history, right?

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Like he actually develops what came before into something slightly more than that and

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slightly more personal than what came before.

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And his style is more kind of late you know post-romantic impressionism you might call

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it like maybe slightly post-tonal post-romantic impressionism that kind of style.

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It's really wonderful.

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Similar to Ravel, similar to what's that wonderful Polish composer's name.

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He wrote that crazy piano work.

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Similatessimilowski.

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Similatessimilowski.

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So anyway, so this Hoffmayer, the late Peter Klatsow was definitely in his own way noteworthy,

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I suppose he's certainly the most famous South African composer.

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He didn't really understand music the same way like someone Hoffmayer did, but he had

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enough intuition and understanding about it that he could kind of develop in his own

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way what came before.

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He's also very misunderstood.

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He and Hoffmayer had a rivalry as well that's undocumented.

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Hoffmayer was actually one of his students and they just didn't get on at all.

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So Hoffmayer had to teach himself most of what he knows by studying the scores and the history

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which is what should be done as well.

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There should be both of those, the teacher that inspires and then the going through history

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and actually looking and listening and seeing.

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So he built his understanding on what came before.

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Klatsow also had good understanding what came before.

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He had fantastic relationships abroad.

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He knew some of the great composers like Stockhausen for example.

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He met them.

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He sat in concerts.

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He understood their ethos.

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He had signed copies, numerous signed copies of their scores and books that were signed

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by people like that.

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And so he knew things that were also noteworthy although as a teacher I found that he wasn't

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able to effectively translate what he knew into a student.

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So that was his shortcoming and I think that his whole career people were frustrated with

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him and thought that he was a bad teacher for that and maybe thought that he even didn't

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know much but he certainly knew a lot.

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And when I sat with him in his home and we would talk about this and that, obviously

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never anything too deep in an afternoon tea conversation.

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But he knew things.

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He knew things about composers such as Nadia Boulanger that her sister Lily Boulanger was

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a far better composer than Nadia and that her music was unknown for example.

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And he was a student of Nadia Boulanger.

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He sat in her classes so he told me about Nadia Boulanger.

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He told me about Lily.

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He told me about their ethos behind music.

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So he knew these things as well but those things weren't necessarily seen by the public

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so we must be careful about perceptions of people right off the bat and what they might

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or might not know.

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Things that might not be spoken in a university classroom even because maybe that's privy knowledge

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for those who actually really want to know and who deserve it and who are respectful

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of the tradition and the history.

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And they had the biggest impact on me and then there are other well-known South African

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composers like Arnold Funbeck, like Dubla C, Hubert Dubla C.

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There's that living composer.

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I can't remember his name now.

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He's touring the United States but he's also an African inspired composer.

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Very inspired by African traditional music but he's classical.

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You can probably look him up.

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There's someone living today who's actually made a good career for themselves but in a

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way he kind of just, and I'm glad I haven't given a name, because he kind of just crimps

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African music and just transcribes it really directly into the Western classical instrument.

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There's no real flair or anything too interesting there.

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And then there's just like teachers of those students and then there are other lecturers

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throughout South Africa that I don't know too well that I've had a chat with here and

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there on Facebook.

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And it would be a shame for me to even talk about them because I would know very little

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about them.

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I haven't had the time to become an expert or authority on this topic but at least I've

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made an effort to listen to South African Western classical art music composers from

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especially the 1800s onwards, especially the 1900s onwards.

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That's when Funbeck and those composers Dubla C etc. were living and they were composing

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music that was African inspired.

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That's when apartheid happened as well.

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A lot of them are Africans so you'll hear that on Funbeck that's an African's name.

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I think that Mimi Kutzer, the singer was actually South African as far as I recall.

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I could be wrong though.

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I think that she was one of the greatest operatic singers ever and she was South African.

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Mimi Kutzer does sound, that's a South African name.

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In terms of performers, I don't think we produced too much of note if I'm honest.

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Because definitely because of the tradition of African music and the elements of African

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music, for example in my university course we studied African music.

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World music as well, what even is that, right?

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We studied African music.

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It's kind of like, I think it was included in the first two years as far as I recall.

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I don't know if it still is and then you can actually branch off into that.

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We've had that influence from native African music in our Western classical art music tradition

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and so it has given us kind of like a zesty take on classical music.

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I would argue that it's given us a bit of an edge actually in our understanding of

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00:24:20,640 --> 00:24:26,720
music because African music itself is so rooted in that wonderful overtone series and also

401
00:24:26,720 --> 00:24:30,280
they do things that are far more rhythmically interesting in my opinion than most Western

402
00:24:30,280 --> 00:24:31,280
music does.

403
00:24:31,280 --> 00:24:38,240
You have to get to Stravinsky and you know, what is that 12-tone serialist's name, Shonbo?

404
00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:43,800
I actually know personally the great nephew of Arnold Schoenberg.

405
00:24:43,800 --> 00:24:44,800
Oh yeah?

406
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He is a dance instructor, ballet instructor, second to none.

407
00:24:49,800 --> 00:24:55,600
He's just done aliyah to Israel and I mean he is essentially my piano teacher in dance.

408
00:24:55,600 --> 00:25:00,520
He is like the equivalent because he comes from that great cultural heritage, right?

409
00:25:00,520 --> 00:25:03,520
So I know things about Arnold Schoenberg that I probably shouldn't say on camera.

410
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I like to disconnect the personal from the music on.

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I believe that all we need to know about the music is actually on the page or in the sound.

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I encourage everyone to do that because otherwise we get this ridiculous notion that we should

413
00:25:21,240 --> 00:25:25,400
even disregard that perhaps Beethoven was a great composer because he was a white male

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00:25:25,400 --> 00:25:33,440
who believed in certain like racial implications that were just around at the time and that

415
00:25:33,440 --> 00:25:35,040
were probably forced on him, etc.

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00:25:35,040 --> 00:25:39,840
Like if we start to bring that into his music then it's tainted, we lose the essence of it.

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00:25:39,840 --> 00:25:43,200
So we should forget about what kind of a human being Beethoven and then were and actually

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00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:46,640
just look at the music they wrote and everything that we need to know is on the page.

419
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And I think that the African composers, what's on their pages is pretty noteworthy.

420
00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:51,640
It's pretty interesting.

421
00:25:51,640 --> 00:25:53,640
Definitely African inspired.

422
00:25:53,640 --> 00:25:55,400
Some of it is overly African inspired.

423
00:25:55,400 --> 00:25:56,720
Some of it has no creativity.

424
00:25:56,720 --> 00:26:02,240
It's just cribbed directly from African music as so much of Western civilization is.

425
00:26:02,240 --> 00:26:06,760
It's just taking from native societies.

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00:26:06,760 --> 00:26:11,480
And I could see why the resentment grows in that.

427
00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:15,800
But if we just remove ourselves from ethics for a moment and just see what's on the page,

428
00:26:15,800 --> 00:26:20,480
I think that South African composers have South African in particular, African composers

429
00:26:20,480 --> 00:26:25,720
in general, but I think South Africa is a hub for classical music like no other place

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00:26:25,720 --> 00:26:28,440
in Africa that I know of.

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00:26:28,440 --> 00:26:34,280
And they really have understood music in ways that just maintains the tradition and builds

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00:26:34,280 --> 00:26:39,000
on the tradition sometimes by drawing elements of African music into that.

433
00:26:39,000 --> 00:26:40,720
And that's noteworthy for that reason.

434
00:26:40,720 --> 00:26:44,480
I'd say some of the greatest composers you've ever lived are actually either living here

435
00:26:44,480 --> 00:26:46,960
now or have lived here in the past.

436
00:26:46,960 --> 00:26:52,040
So yeah, Van Vek, Dupluci, those are the big names, Klazzo, he's now passed away recently,

437
00:26:52,040 --> 00:26:54,040
Hoffmeyer is alive.

438
00:26:54,040 --> 00:26:59,480
And just be careful what other names you might see on Google, you know, because maybe they

439
00:26:59,480 --> 00:27:02,520
have a name, but maybe they haven't really done anything to deserve that name.

440
00:27:02,520 --> 00:27:07,280
And I'm not saying only names that I've mentioned are noteworthy, but I'd say those are really

441
00:27:07,280 --> 00:27:11,040
good starting points for South African classical music.

442
00:27:11,040 --> 00:27:14,200
And they're obviously worlds of music outside of classical music that are also noteworthy

443
00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:16,200
and worth studying.

444
00:27:16,200 --> 00:27:18,720
The fact that I even have to say that is ridiculous.

445
00:27:18,720 --> 00:27:22,640
But I don't want people to be dissuaded just because I'm Caucasian and I actually am not

446
00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:24,840
even technically Caucasian.

447
00:27:24,840 --> 00:27:29,520
But you know, I am what appears to be Caucasian male talking about Western classical art music,

448
00:27:29,520 --> 00:27:30,520
which gets a bad rap.

449
00:27:30,520 --> 00:27:35,920
So that's just another layer upon layers of that we have to unravel and undo before people

450
00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:39,480
can even receive what we have to say and play, right?

451
00:27:39,480 --> 00:27:45,280
So I think that, you know, it is worth being careful in how we approach these topics.

452
00:27:45,280 --> 00:27:48,840
And I'm not going to name and shame anyone who's actually contributed to the downfall

453
00:27:48,840 --> 00:27:50,640
of South African apartheid composers.

454
00:27:50,640 --> 00:27:53,720
I'm not going to do that, but they are there and they're living and they're still doing

455
00:27:53,720 --> 00:27:54,720
it.

456
00:27:54,720 --> 00:27:59,120
And they're trying to, a way to identify them is to identify people who are trying to say

457
00:27:59,120 --> 00:28:03,960
that the music theory of the past is irrelevant and that we actually need to make new systems

458
00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:06,240
now to understand music.

459
00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:11,200
That is a load of nonsense because like a thousand year old rich tradition that we haven't

460
00:28:11,200 --> 00:28:16,040
even begun to comprehend is certainly not worthless.

461
00:28:16,040 --> 00:28:22,000
They try to attach ethics as soon as people start to attach ethics and they mix the person

462
00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:25,040
behind the music with the music itself, with the page itself.

463
00:28:25,040 --> 00:28:29,480
That's when you know, please just stop listening to them because they are doing you a great

464
00:28:29,480 --> 00:28:30,480
disservice.

465
00:28:30,480 --> 00:28:36,600
They are putting up a gate in front of you that separates you from that beautiful world

466
00:28:36,600 --> 00:28:37,600
of art.

467
00:28:37,600 --> 00:28:39,040
And that's just what it is.

468
00:28:39,040 --> 00:28:40,040
It's just a gate.

469
00:28:40,040 --> 00:28:41,040
You can walk through it.

470
00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:42,280
Just ignore what they're saying.

471
00:28:42,280 --> 00:28:43,960
It's just a distraction.

472
00:28:43,960 --> 00:28:46,880
Don't be distracted by the propaganda of the world.

473
00:28:46,880 --> 00:28:48,440
Go and listen to it for yourself.

474
00:28:48,440 --> 00:28:49,440
Enjoy your own conclusions.

475
00:28:49,440 --> 00:28:53,680
And if you want to know about the people behind that music and study them and that legitimately

476
00:28:53,680 --> 00:28:56,200
interests you, then go for it.

477
00:28:56,200 --> 00:28:59,600
And if you want to talk about whether they were good people or not and that genuinely

478
00:28:59,600 --> 00:29:02,760
interests you, go for it.

479
00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:07,000
But maybe don't even dissuade people from doing that exploration themselves.

480
00:29:07,000 --> 00:29:12,800
Maybe just humbly give your opinion about it and like be that as it may or not be that.

481
00:29:12,800 --> 00:29:18,320
But wow, people putting up gates between the population and like the divine just because

482
00:29:18,320 --> 00:29:20,560
of their personal opinion.

483
00:29:20,560 --> 00:29:22,240
It's borderline idolatry, honestly.

484
00:29:22,240 --> 00:29:25,080
Look at me and look at my opinion.

485
00:29:25,080 --> 00:29:26,880
I know it's so important.

486
00:29:26,880 --> 00:29:29,320
You shouldn't listen to them.

487
00:29:29,320 --> 00:29:32,680
You know, what does that have anything to do with that spirit?

488
00:29:32,680 --> 00:29:36,960
That spirit is the spirit of distraction that distracts you from divine truth of this world,

489
00:29:36,960 --> 00:29:37,960
of this existence.

490
00:29:37,960 --> 00:29:42,280
And music is one of the best ways to start to understand that truth that no one knows

491
00:29:42,280 --> 00:29:47,480
by the way, that may only begin to understand in this life, that we can comprehend as much

492
00:29:47,480 --> 00:29:52,400
as we need to to gain access to new worlds and new lives after this, but that we can

493
00:29:52,400 --> 00:29:56,000
never even begin to comprehend in this life.

494
00:29:56,000 --> 00:29:58,280
But I think music is the closest we can get.

495
00:29:58,280 --> 00:30:01,720
And many composers have said that to me.

496
00:30:01,720 --> 00:30:05,040
Many great artists have said that to me, to my face.

497
00:30:05,040 --> 00:30:06,920
Music is the closest that you can get.

498
00:30:06,920 --> 00:30:10,920
Martin Schoenberg himself said to me, do you know which music is the closest to God out

499
00:30:10,920 --> 00:30:11,920
of any music?

500
00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:14,520
And he literally said the music of JS Bach.

501
00:30:14,520 --> 00:30:17,920
That's the great nephew of Arnold Schoenberg, the inventor of 12-tone music, saying that

502
00:30:17,920 --> 00:30:19,640
to my face.

503
00:30:19,640 --> 00:30:24,160
Someone like a Schoenberg saying that to me, that JS Bach is the closest music to God

504
00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:25,160
out of any music.

505
00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:26,160
Wow.

506
00:30:26,160 --> 00:30:27,160
That's not to be taken lightly.

507
00:30:27,160 --> 00:30:49,360
And I agree with him.

508
00:30:49,360 --> 00:30:50,360
We're coming to an end.

509
00:30:50,360 --> 00:30:53,840
I know I wish we had more time and we can talk about this forever.

510
00:30:53,840 --> 00:30:57,080
But just before we go, what's your next move?

511
00:30:57,080 --> 00:31:01,160
What's your future project or vision as an artist?

512
00:31:01,160 --> 00:31:03,440
So the platform is my end goal.

513
00:31:03,440 --> 00:31:07,920
I will bring that about because that's my purpose here, one of them.

514
00:31:07,920 --> 00:31:10,480
A platform for healing through music.

515
00:31:10,480 --> 00:31:15,600
And not just through music, but music integrated with other things, other arts and cultures

516
00:31:15,600 --> 00:31:18,320
and through knowledge of health, et cetera.

517
00:31:18,320 --> 00:31:20,760
To do that, I have to work the land that I have now.

518
00:31:20,760 --> 00:31:23,960
I own a DJ company, it does very well.

519
00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:28,240
I'm expanding it, Neurisons, we just launched a DJ academy.

520
00:31:28,240 --> 00:31:31,240
And that DJ academy is actually running online as well.

521
00:31:31,240 --> 00:31:32,960
So you can come and join the online classes.

522
00:31:32,960 --> 00:31:37,640
We're actually recording in a couple of weeks a pre-recorded DJ course.

523
00:31:37,640 --> 00:31:41,920
And it will teach people how to not only mix, et cetera, those are the basics, but it will

524
00:31:41,920 --> 00:31:44,600
actually teach people what we were speaking about earlier.

525
00:31:44,600 --> 00:31:50,720
How to actually cultivate a meaningful gathering of people on the dance floor and have a platform

526
00:31:50,720 --> 00:31:55,160
with a positive impact on their very souls and spirits through music.

527
00:31:55,160 --> 00:31:57,000
And that is going to be released very soon.

528
00:31:57,000 --> 00:32:00,600
Wow, it sounds like the whole interview now kind of like is a sales pitch for that, which

529
00:32:00,600 --> 00:32:01,600
it's not.

530
00:32:01,600 --> 00:32:04,800
So please just know that there was no knowledge of that before and it's fine.

531
00:32:04,800 --> 00:32:08,920
But if you feel called to do that, I just really don't want to devalue anything we've

532
00:32:08,920 --> 00:32:13,240
said here by pitching what I have next because it's tempting to do that even.

533
00:32:13,240 --> 00:32:14,560
And it will be good for people.

534
00:32:14,560 --> 00:32:19,160
I believe that there are people who really want to be up on that stage and they want to

535
00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:20,640
be able to do that.

536
00:32:20,640 --> 00:32:24,520
They want a little bit of glory for themselves for sure, but we'll reshape their perspectives

537
00:32:24,520 --> 00:32:29,120
to understand that actually the glory is not for you, that you need to make sure that the

538
00:32:29,120 --> 00:32:31,720
audience are the people having the best time possible.

539
00:32:31,720 --> 00:32:33,400
And we'll teach them how to do that.

540
00:32:33,400 --> 00:32:38,600
And because I have knowledge of music from my classical upbringing and other upbringings

541
00:32:38,600 --> 00:32:44,960
of music outside of classical, and also because I have been DJing for 16 years and producing

542
00:32:44,960 --> 00:32:49,760
music for almost the same amount of time, I feel like I can bring something new to the

543
00:32:49,760 --> 00:32:55,840
table there and teach people how to really be excellent DJs who can make money DJing

544
00:32:55,840 --> 00:32:57,800
and positively affecting people's lives.

545
00:32:57,800 --> 00:33:01,880
So that's kind of like the next big move for me as we're launching this DJ Academy.

546
00:33:01,880 --> 00:33:03,480
People can start registering on our website.

547
00:33:03,480 --> 00:33:08,400
It's thedjcompany.co.ca and it's open.

548
00:33:08,400 --> 00:33:10,240
The courses are beginning in March.

549
00:33:10,240 --> 00:33:13,880
They're beginning from the 10th of March every Sunday until the end of the month and then

550
00:33:13,880 --> 00:33:15,080
there'll be a monthly course.

551
00:33:15,080 --> 00:33:17,320
So you get four to our lessons a month.

552
00:33:17,320 --> 00:33:19,360
It's got the state of the art equipment.

553
00:33:19,360 --> 00:33:23,120
We've got CDJ 3000, Pioneer A9 mixer, and we're launching this course.

554
00:33:23,120 --> 00:33:26,760
And I'm going to teach people how to heal people with music on the dance floor.

555
00:33:26,760 --> 00:33:27,760
What a crazy concept.

556
00:33:27,760 --> 00:33:29,440
What an amazing concept.

557
00:33:29,440 --> 00:33:30,440
Wow.

558
00:33:30,440 --> 00:33:32,040
So that's my next big move, right?

559
00:33:32,040 --> 00:33:33,920
Because that's what I can do right now.

560
00:33:33,920 --> 00:33:37,880
What I can't do is sit in front of my piano and even begin to connect with an audience.

561
00:33:37,880 --> 00:33:39,200
I can't do that.

562
00:33:39,200 --> 00:33:40,200
Not yet.

563
00:33:40,200 --> 00:33:41,200
Yes.

564
00:33:41,200 --> 00:33:42,200
Yes.

565
00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:43,200
That's where we build the world where that's possible.

566
00:33:43,200 --> 00:33:44,200
Yeah.

567
00:33:44,200 --> 00:33:45,480
I'd certainly like to see that world come to light.

568
00:33:45,480 --> 00:33:46,480
Thank you for having me.

569
00:33:46,480 --> 00:33:50,320
I appreciated the platform to talk about these things that have been weighing very heavily

570
00:33:50,320 --> 00:33:55,920
on my heart, that I speak about with my peers in private, in closed doors, that the world

571
00:33:55,920 --> 00:33:57,920
is feeling and experiencing.

572
00:33:57,920 --> 00:33:58,920
Oh, you're welcome.

573
00:33:58,920 --> 00:33:59,920
Yeah.

574
00:33:59,920 --> 00:34:04,720
I hope and pray that we can actually affect a positive change and some of the things that

575
00:34:04,720 --> 00:34:06,080
we've spoken about today.

576
00:34:06,080 --> 00:34:08,520
If not all of them by the time that we leave this earth.

577
00:34:08,520 --> 00:34:11,160
I think that's a great conquest worth living for.

578
00:34:11,160 --> 00:34:12,160
Wow.

579
00:34:12,160 --> 00:34:14,240
What a way to end our episode.

580
00:34:14,240 --> 00:34:15,240
Thank you.

581
00:34:15,240 --> 00:34:21,280
I thoroughly enjoyed it and then I hope we can keep in touch and then I look forward to

582
00:34:21,280 --> 00:34:23,000
our maybe future conversation.

583
00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:24,000
Yeah.

584
00:34:24,000 --> 00:34:25,000
I look forward to that.

585
00:34:25,000 --> 00:34:26,000
Yeah.

586
00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:27,000
Yeah.

587
00:34:27,000 --> 00:34:28,000
Absolutely.

588
00:34:28,000 --> 00:34:30,120
But before I let you go, we have to do this little silly segment.

589
00:34:30,120 --> 00:34:31,120
I'm sorry.

590
00:34:31,120 --> 00:34:36,600
After all these profound conversations, this is really silly, but this is a little fun

591
00:34:36,600 --> 00:34:38,240
segment of rapid fire questions.

592
00:34:38,240 --> 00:34:43,600
I'll ask you some silly questions and I just want you to answer them as short as possible.

593
00:34:43,600 --> 00:34:50,160
But you'll be surprised that all these questions may trigger you to, I don't know.

594
00:34:50,160 --> 00:34:51,160
Trigger me.

595
00:34:51,160 --> 00:34:52,160
Please don't trigger me.

596
00:34:52,160 --> 00:34:53,160
Okay.

597
00:34:53,160 --> 00:34:54,160
I'm already in my question.

598
00:34:54,160 --> 00:34:55,160
It's very, very silly.

599
00:34:55,160 --> 00:34:56,160
Okay.

600
00:34:56,160 --> 00:34:57,160
Question number one.

601
00:34:57,160 --> 00:34:58,160
What's your comfort food?

602
00:34:58,160 --> 00:34:59,160
Pizza.

603
00:34:59,160 --> 00:35:00,160
Oh.

604
00:35:00,160 --> 00:35:01,160
Kettle dogs.

605
00:35:01,160 --> 00:35:02,160
Dogs.

606
00:35:02,160 --> 00:35:03,160
Sunrise or sunset?

607
00:35:03,160 --> 00:35:04,160
Sunrise.

608
00:35:04,160 --> 00:35:08,880
What skill have you always wanted to learn but haven't had a chance to yet?

609
00:35:08,880 --> 00:35:09,880
Playing the violin.

610
00:35:09,880 --> 00:35:10,880
Okay.

611
00:35:10,880 --> 00:35:14,280
What is your word or words to live by?

612
00:35:14,280 --> 00:35:20,040
If you seek the truth of this world, you will find it.

613
00:35:20,040 --> 00:35:23,400
What is the most important quality you look for in other people?

614
00:35:23,400 --> 00:35:26,120
I just want someone who's authentic.

615
00:35:26,120 --> 00:35:30,080
Name three people who inspire you living or dead.

616
00:35:30,080 --> 00:35:34,400
Andrew Gaffmeier, Rachele D'Toy, Judith Rhodes-Harrison, all three from this.

617
00:35:34,400 --> 00:35:36,800
Name one piece in your current playlist.

618
00:35:36,800 --> 00:35:43,960
I would say zero point Rob Clout is the greatest in my opinion piece of electronic ever written

619
00:35:43,960 --> 00:35:44,960
to the state.

620
00:35:44,960 --> 00:35:46,720
Zero point, the full album.

621
00:35:46,720 --> 00:35:51,200
You can actually hear it on my account just because I did that for him.

622
00:35:51,200 --> 00:35:52,200
He didn't ask me to do it.

623
00:35:52,200 --> 00:35:55,520
I just posted it because I wanted people to hear it because I believe it's noteworthy

624
00:35:55,520 --> 00:35:56,520
and I get nothing from it.

625
00:35:56,520 --> 00:36:02,080
By the way, I don't have a large YouTube following but really zero point Rob Clout,

626
00:36:02,080 --> 00:36:04,200
that album, the full album.

627
00:36:04,200 --> 00:36:10,120
Sit and listen to that with your eyes closed with a good pair of earphones and just experience

628
00:36:10,120 --> 00:36:13,040
like everything that music could be.

629
00:36:13,040 --> 00:36:17,120
Just experience everything that music could be if everyone was in alignment.

630
00:36:17,120 --> 00:36:18,600
Go and experience it for what it is.

631
00:36:18,600 --> 00:36:23,600
That will get you as close as you can get in my experience, in my personal humble view.

632
00:36:23,600 --> 00:36:25,520
Okay, we'll do that.

633
00:36:25,520 --> 00:36:28,240
I'll post it on the show notes as well.

634
00:36:28,240 --> 00:36:29,240
Last question.

635
00:36:29,240 --> 00:36:30,920
Fill in the blank.

636
00:36:30,920 --> 00:36:32,560
Music is blank.

637
00:36:32,560 --> 00:36:34,440
Music is live.

638
00:36:34,440 --> 00:36:35,440
Beautiful.

639
00:36:35,440 --> 00:36:37,480
There we go.

640
00:36:37,480 --> 00:36:41,560
This concludes this episode of the PianoPod Thank You, Liam, for joining my show today

641
00:36:41,560 --> 00:36:44,120
and sharing your stories and insights and expertise.

642
00:36:44,120 --> 00:36:50,000
So the PianoPod listeners and viewers, please visit Liam's website at leampitcher.com to

643
00:36:50,000 --> 00:36:55,400
learn more about his career, connect with him via Instagram at LiamPitcher.

644
00:36:55,400 --> 00:37:00,080
You can also check out his work on his YouTube channel at LiamPitcher as well.

645
00:37:00,080 --> 00:37:04,720
You can listen to his albums and including 10 CD albums of improvisations on the piano

646
00:37:04,720 --> 00:37:07,040
he released simultaneously.

647
00:37:07,040 --> 00:37:10,880
All the links are in the description.

648
00:37:10,880 --> 00:37:13,360
Thank you to my wonderful audience and fans for tuning in today.

649
00:37:13,360 --> 00:37:17,600
If you enjoyed today's episode, please rate and review it on whatever podcast platform

650
00:37:17,600 --> 00:37:18,600
you use.

651
00:37:18,600 --> 00:37:21,640
Remember to hit the thumbs up button and subscribe to my YouTube channel.

652
00:37:21,640 --> 00:37:26,920
If you are watching this episode on YouTube, follow TPP on social media to get the latest

653
00:37:26,920 --> 00:37:27,920
piano news.

654
00:37:27,920 --> 00:37:30,960
I will see you for the next episode of the PianoPod.

655
00:37:30,960 --> 00:37:32,480
Thank you, Liam.

656
00:37:32,480 --> 00:37:49,520
Bye everyone.