Jill & David: Gary , you are truly a well rounded musician. Your background Shows an incredible display of talent from your list of Compositions (writing for Jason Smith, Ray Russell, Level 42, Allan Holdsworth and many others) to your background as a pianist and drummer. With all this talent Gary, do you plan on continuing with writing Compositions, playing drums and piano, or do you see yourself in the future taking your music to a new or different level?

Gary: Well, I am always looking to “discover” in music, to really try and reach and hopefully attain new and different and fresh ways to go, certainly. I want what I do to be intriguing to people, enriching, compelling and robust in musical value. That’s my constant, eternal quest as a musician. In terms of material, it’s true I’ve submitted some things in the past for people like Holdsworth, Ray Russell and others .. even some attempts at more pop song based ideas I offered for Level 42 way back too, but I don’t really feel there was too much of note there especially. These were tunes, little things – nothing much more. I’d point to the material I wrote and arranged for my project Force Majeure (featuring Randy Brecker, Jerry Goodman, Jim Beard, Matthew Garrison and others) - which I hope, by the way, will record a studio album at some point soon - or the material on my album ‘Aspire’ and indeed the two “Interpretations Of” (Allan Holdsworth and John McLaughlin) albums I made as being a much truer overall representation of the compositional side so far. Also, for sure yes I’ll continue to feature myself as a player inside the music I’ll write in the future too. Drums, the keyboards side, or both.

Jill & David: I understand there are several ideas that writers have when Writing a Composition. They write for the Music Industry, for the music in general, they write for themselves (personal experiences) or they write for the listener. I am sure there are others that I have not listed. All writers have an outcome plan to their Musical Compositions. What is the outcome you want out of your Compositions?

Gary: Well, it depends on what it is you’re doing. For me, I would wish for my music simply to be remembered - truly felt, and the essence of it carried away. If I can achieve work that has proven captivating and powerful to people then I’m really very happy. I kind of make the analogy with what you might carry away with you when you’ve just seen a powerful film, and it’s affected you deeply and really profoundly. I’m not interested in much else, you know, and I don’t yearn for any technical acknowledgement or anything. But again, you know, it really depends entirely of course on what you’re doing and what purpose the music has to meet etc. In what I do, all of what I produce has to satisfy myself first. That’s the bottom line. Beyond that, oh it’s very much totally and absolutely for the listener – for the listener via the film, the TV, concert performance, recording, whatever.

Jill & David: Gary , I’m sure like all musicians your writing Compositions Has matured since your first Composition. Can you elaborate on how it’s progressed over the years?

Gary: I think in my case it’s very much all born out of a pretty intense need to express myself in music in the first place. I really need it. It’s my way you know. Some have the gift of being highly articulate through language, others through maybe much more abstract art forms, others may be gifted in the realm of poetry or something. And so I play and write and express this way. And just as we grow and gain a more and more intensely elaborate experience of life we grow as individuals, and the music – our imaginative breadth and capacity for creativity in general - I think grows along with us. Of course we have to work hard with it too, on a continual basis, but this is fairly much my thinking on it. I’m reasonably sure this is the experience of most writers and creative people to one extent or another.

Jill & David: I've read that you have played drums and/or piano on Compositions written by other artists. In instances such as these, are you given the freedom to add your part as you interpret the composition, or does the writer usually have some type of groove or melody in mind that you embellish on?

Gary: Probably the most freedom I had was working with Allan Holdsworth, the guitarist/composer. We worked A LOT together, and since there was a high improvisational element and creative requirement in general within his music I had a lot of canvas to cover, so to speak. From the beginning I was given complete liberty to create sort of counter compositional approaches inside his music with my drums, and I really enjoyed that. You know, number one we really clicked together anyway, musically, and that was the case from the beginning. He, I think, also felt that way, knew it, depended on it and trusted me. Working with John McLaughlin more recently on his album ‘Industrial Zen’ was a really fantastic and enjoyable creative experience also. He has more of a formed plan in a general directional sense in his music, but balances that out by inviting a lot of personal and improvisational input at the same time from the participants. Then there’s been a lot of work with Billy Cobham down the years too … and a lot of other very different people. I love getting to work with all sorts of people like this – trying to really get to the bottom of what they really need from you in terms of incentive, input, support, improvisation and general participation … and this is very, very important I think, for any player who moves around a lot, playing a lot of different things.

Jill & David: I know that you have spoken in the past of how other Artist’s music affects your life and uniquely touches or changes you in some type of fashion. Do your own compositions have the same effect on you? Can you elaborate on how the compositions you write affect you during pre, and post recording?

Gary: Well, firstly, I live for being moved!! It was always that way for me. For me to want to have this kind of effect on other people via my own music is I guess a rather inevitable and natural endeavor for me. To address your other point, there is definitely a thing that can happen – and it could concern just a little modulation idea, a little two bar thing – where I can fall completely in love with this little thing I’ve managed to produce! I’ll play it over and over, and really celebrate it!! Those are moments that really reinstate faith back in yourself too! And for this to take place, I think you really have to actually, really be “in love” with beauty - I think you have to really crave it and lust after it. Similarly, there’s the classic “demo dilemma” as some of us call it – where there’s something inherent inside this first, initial audio sketch of something you’ve done and you just cannot capture it again in the same way. This drives me mad. Horrible. But sure, some of my work I can definitely go back, revisit it, listen through to it and have it affect me again. It’s nice when that happens. Most commonly I find there’s this euphoric “honeymoon period” with a new piece for a while, that can sometimes even last up to a couple of weeks. But you know that’s a couple of weeks of real reward! It is literally such a rewarding thing, particularly after all the agonizing and anguish you’ve gone through. I’m not easy to be around during the writing process! Not at all!

Jill & David: Gary I realize that there are so many great writers who have never had the opportunity to study formally. Have you had the opportunity to study on a formal level in Musical Composition? If so, what style did you study?

Gary: I’ve actually studied very little in the formal sense, beyond basic musical theory. I would’ve benefited technically, no doubt, but I was just eager to get into the playing side and generally get to the core of being a performing musician as soon as possible! Classical piano was my study, and with composition I think really I just absorbed a lot of information, just from being intensely curious and maybe as a result also of falling love with many pieces of music I was working with through my studies. I’ve always been extremely fussy and demanding on myself trying to get form as perfect as I can. I’m fascinated by form – very conscious about it, but I resisted having a lot of more formal academic rules and regulations drilled into me regarding it. I was too busy being a bit of a rebel I guess. Harmony I’ve studied also in my own way I suppose, by just looking inside it, breaking it down and learning how it says what it says, and for what reasons etc. You know, when you love something to the degree I fell in love with a lot of Eastern European piano music, for instance, I guess you are looking intensely inside of it all the time, looking to realize what the components are and what makes what work. I experiment endlessly with harmony in my own music, and actually, both of these piano albums of mine, “The Things I See” or “A Meeting Of Spirits” I guess really do reveal the harmony obsessive I absolutely am!!

Jill & David: Are you currently studying on a formal level? If so, where are you studying and who are your mentors?

Gary: No. I mean, I’m an eternal student. That’s for sure. I’m sure I always will be … but not in the sense I’m taking formal studies.

Jill & David: Can you tell us about any particular teachers or mentors that really encouraged you or had a big influence on you? Outside of any formal training, who were some of your influences and can you go into detail on how they influenced you?

Gary: Oh my. Miles Davis – there’s a good place to start. Heard the ‘Bitches Brew’ album again just recently, and how utterly fantastic that still is. What a visionary … and in conjunction with the amazing Teo Macero too. Wonderful. Actually I think they were both extraordinary visionaries alike. Production really has always interested me and I do always get very involved on that level with all the stuff I do. There’s a lot of stuff in terms of influences though, and a lot of people. As a youngster I was a big band lover – a lot of Stan Kenton, Gil Evans, Mike Westbrook and Michael Gibbs too. I love the exhilaration and the drama. That and classical music. I love a lot of Gabrielle Faure’s work, Michael Tippett, Bartok, Stravinsky of course. I loved Bill Evans for his movement, harmony, touch and improvisational poetry. I’m a fan and have been influenced by a mix of film composers too, from Bernard Herrmann, Leonard Bernstein up to people like Thomas Newman. Vince Mendoza’s such a talented writer. There others of the older school – Claus Ogerman, Johnny Mandel, the movie score for ‘ Le Mans ’ by Michel Legrand. That’s very lovely, very evocative and warming. Beyond this I’m inspired and influenced by classical Indian music - north and south - popular song and pop music, a lot of singers - a real huge variety of things.

Jill & David: I know that we are all influenced in some way by all music we listen to. I’d like to specifically know if you listen to other writers music or analyze any compositions that would influence you today with your Musical Compositions? What type of writer or music intrigues you the most and why?

Gary: Well, all of the above, for sure. I don’t know if I really analyze too much about it. I just respond to anything MEANT really - anything soulful, music with ingenuity and integrity and real heart. I’ve never felt to really analyze too deeply other people’s work – rather I just love it, experience it ‘receive’ without especially knowing what it is specifically. You know? I mean, how beautiful and distinctive was Gil Evans’ writing and scoring on “Quiet Nights” for instance, or “Sketches Of Spain ”? It could only be him – but this work between the tuba, the woodwind and the horns and this very unconventional, really intense personal approach to stacking harmony, the instrumentation employed etc .. I don’t want to study it particularly, because it doesn’t seem important for me to know HOW he did it. That’s his anyway – his way, and for all his reasons and his aspiration. I’m content to be inspired by it, moved by it .. and that’s it. I feel it my responsibility to invest time in finding my own ways to work towards what I can achieve myself - to experiment a lot and explore my own imagination and intuition. I want to just be open and to just discover. That’s more my way I suppose. I’m not interested in trying to emulating anybody.

Jill & David: Gary , on an average I might think that most writers don’t currently have a background in percussion like you have. Does this have a big impact on how you compose your groove in your compositions? Can you elaborate on the positive aspect that has on your writing?

Gary: Well, it’s not always easy for me to tell precisely what the benefits are, however obvious they may actually be, as I have always written and I have pretty much always played drums. I think it stands to reason that if you immerse yourself in rhythm and develop ease and command in it then that, for sure, is going to all be inherent inside what you produce. I imagine it’s the same for any skill you want to cultivate and develop. It’s all added into the great melting pot. Charlie Parker apparently said that the prime object for him was to “learn everything he can and yet be able to forget it all at the drop of a hat”. That’s really some amazing wisdom I think – says a lot to me, and always made a lot of sense. Actually, now you mention it I guess particularly in relation to the kind of “compositional” input I was having into those Allan Holdsworth records back in the 80’s, yes there was for sure this almost orchestral approach there with the drums, and this probably wouldn’t be the case to that extreme if I hadn’t been previously involved with piano and composition. Thanks for making me realize that!! By the way, the records I refer to specifically are ‘Atavachron’, ‘Sand’, ‘Metal Fatigue’ and some of ‘ Warnercliff Tower ’. Those four in particular. I’m proud of a lot of that work in spite of the fact they were all recorded so quickly. Maybe that’s a lot of the reason they’re good – the time constraints. Less time to indulge so much I guess, and having to use the limited time there to just go for it. Going for the essential!