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Rene Tornero G.... On the SpotJan 14 '08 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line If only there are more musicians like RTG around in the pop/rock scene, I'd listen to it a lot more!
Getting Inside Rene Tornero G's Decidedly Electrifying Head San Diego is a little big town that draws in diverse groups of people. About a month or so ago I was blessed with the luck of running into Rene Tornero G, a fantastic fusion-rock guitarist with such boundless reserve of patience that he didn’t mind sitting down to chat with an opera-fanatic and talk about things that were on, off, and in between his mind. I attended one of his performances with Mario Olivares' Latin Spices (one of the few bands he often jams with) at Seaport Village on the San Diego waterfront earlier and was quite impressed with both his acoustic guitar playing skills, musicality, and his discipline in refraining from showing off. It's a sign of a true musician to be willing to be a supportive part of an ensemble when one has the ability to overshadow it (he shone brilliantly and creatively during his solo passages). In this era where no news from a rock artist is usually a good news (since they are rarely covered when they aren't committing some impetuous outbursts and other varieties of public displays of immaturity), the level headed, out-going, and thoughtful Rene Tornero G is a refreshing young artist to hang around and drink a Pepsi with. Below is our conversation.... minus the Pepsi, since I'm at a loss as to how to get that transmitted via the internet without frying my laptop in the process... Smorg: What is music to you? Why do you perform? RTG: For me, music is an integral part of my life. I can’t live without it. Music is so important, so necessary, so special. I perform ‘cause I’m personally totally devoted to the stage. There I feel the adrenaline. There’s magic, a world waiting to be plied open if you know how to open it. It’s almost like sex. Smorg: Are you one of those musicians who always have a song playing inside your head? who feel the impulse to burst into a song when you see something beautiful? RTG: Both yes and no... I don't always see beautiful things. Unfortunately I see bad things as well.. but I almost always hear music in my head. Smorg: When you listen to others’ music, do you listen for a specific story/mood that the singer may be trying to tell? Or do you listen to catch a pathos that you can relate to... so that the music is affirming your own story rather than the singer’s? RTG: This question is a little bit complex for me ‘cause I love music, and when I hear a good song, I try to catch the message, the mood, the energy, every nuances the song might carry. I really don’t mind who’s having the melody, the harmony, the back up, etc. A good song is always going to remain a good song. Smorg: Would you say that the really important part is ...that you relate to the music you're hearing on your own term rather than whether it is the same as the singer's original meaning or not? That music should be able to mean different things to different people? RTG: Music has to give to the listeners a real meaning, feeling, expression, impression. That is what I think is the real essence of art. So yes, anyone should be capable of hearing, imagining any kind of thoughts from the music they hear... Yes, a song can have different meanings for different people. Smorg: When you play music, do you want the listeners to try to decipher your story, or do you want them to find the story in their own life that share a common theme as your music express? RTG: It’s hard, when you play instrumental music (in my case, the guitar), to get a story across since the instrument can’t sing words like ‘I love you!’ the way a singer can. It has to be told in the way I play the guitar... the melody and how I phrase it... If I really feel it, then the listener will feel it, too. My compositions are made for all kinds of listener and I don’t mind if they feel LOVE, SADNESS, or even ANGER when they hear it. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t control their emotions, their feelings, or how they will relate to what I play. I just play my music as I feel it. Smorg: It seems to me that most of the time the composer writes music that is a sort of a snap shot of his own life experience so that each opus has a very specific meaning and one can make a musical biography of the composer’s life by arranging the music from the various periods of the composer’s career in chronological order (Dmitri Shostakovich did that with his works from the 5th Symphony on, and even signed his own monogram musically in them). Do you put in a personal ‘signature’ like that in your composition? Is there a 'coded pattern' in this seeming chaos that isn't so disorganized that your compositions sound like. RTG: Definitely, I put my own signature into what I compose ‘cause my music is a part of my soul, my life. I can’t avoid it. But I don’t try to play my life through my notes. There’s a part of me in my music. I haven’t done it before, but in the future I’ll maybe write music that describes my life... Smorg: Are you the same person when you are performing on stage as you are elsewhere? RTG: Yes and no... I mean, yes, I’m the same guy on and off the stage. But like everyone else, I like to have privacy, too. I’m not shy and I like making new friends, but I also don’t like to rush into things too fast. Smorg: You have studied many different styles of music. Is it easy to integrate them into your own style without ending up imitating them? RTG: It’s hard to be unique nowadays, so I would say that I have some famous licks on my playing. It’s hard to keep that from happening, but I do my best to develop my own style. Smorg: What are you working on right now? RTG: I’m going to start recording my new release which, maybe, will quote some famous themes from the past. I’m not saying more right now, but many people are familiar with those themes. But the most important part of it will be my own music. Smorg: Here's a pet question of mine... Do you have any 'all time favorite song' that you can't hear enough of? If you do, can you tell us what makes that song special for you? RTG: I have a lot of favorites from different genres. I wouldn’t pick just one. I like so many so it’s hard to tell, but I can mention a few: ‘Oxygen’ (Jean Michel Jarre); ‘Spanish fly’, ‘Eruption’, ‘d.o.a.’ (Van Halen); ‘Love of My Life’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘Mustafa’ (Queen); and music by Brahms, Beethoven, and Mozart. I really love many more, but now I can’t remember them all. They remind me of parts of my life through the years I’ve lived... Plus, obviously, the way they were written... Those great composers are so exceptional! Smorg: You have been handling your own career so far. Wouldn't you consider hiring a professional manager to handle the business side and allow you to spend more time at home? What would you look for in a manager/rep? RTG: Yes, totally. I would love to have a manager. It would be great for me as an artist to be able to concentrate on creating new music instead of being always distracted by the business side; making phone calls, scheduling, etc, etc. Plus, I like having a partner to work with, but the person has to be a total professional. He/She has to be proactive and must believe in my music 100%... be involved with my work and always trying to open up new horizons for me, to challenge me artistically. .......................................................................................... It really was quite an enlightening experience for me to get inside this contemplative guitarist's head for a few hours. Being more devoted to opera and classical music than to the modern popular genre (I guess you could call Tornero's music 'fusion-experimental rock'), it was fascinating to hear his chaotic but organized compositions and to discuss some music with him. His music, which you can sample at the sites listed at the bottom of the page, is an intriguing fusion of many music genres (his studied classical music, Mexican folk guitar music, jazz, rock) that is both expressive and thoughtful... Quite remarkable for its 'wordless' nature! If you hadn't heard of this dude before, check out his website below and get an early start on this refreshing artist. He is definitely going places! Find out more about Rene Tornero G and his music at: www.renetornerog.com/ www.myspace.com/renetornero www.myspace.com/comedyoflanada  |
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