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PCM: With all of the pieces you’ve written how come there is nothing for classical guitar?
Frank: Simple reason. That’s a tough instrument to write for I don’t think I understand it enough. I remember in university I had friends who were fellow composition students and classical guitars players. They would talk me through techniques and I would study scores and man that was very hard. That’s not to say I will never write for guitar. It would be some hardcore studying and I’d have to consult with friends. I have so much respect for that instrument.
PCM: What are your plans after this tour?
Frank: What I want to do is take a year to compose. What I’d like to focus on is songs. I really haven’t composed a whole nice body of songs. They would be songs not for me to sing but I’d write them for the female voice. I have a good friend in Toronto who I’d like to work with. So lately I’m just listening to songs, German art songs, British folk, a lot of Tori Amos.
PCM: How about Joni Mitchell and Joan Armatrading?
Frank: I listen to Joni Mitchell I’m not familiar with the other name.
PCM: Do yourself a huge favor and explore the music of Joan Armatrading.
Where did the idea for A Little Dark Music come from?
Frank: I knew that for a long time I composed piano pieces and music in general that was inspired by social themes and causes. A couple years ago I decided that I wanted to put together a collection of these pieces in one collection-one recording.
Some of the pieces were written years before I thought of this concept. Pieces like Earth Hour the hour-long continuous piece of music and Working with the Sun were written with the CD in mind. The ability to use music, something more abstract like instrumental music to convey stories or emotion related to important causes I find captivating and a challenge artistically because I only have a piano to do it. That’s how the concept started.
The big piece on the whole CD Earth Hour is a continuous hour-long piano music. That started because I played at an Earth Hour party and of course the lights were out. With the lights out I had the opportunity for the first time to play in the dark. It was a weird feeling and stimulating musically because I never thought of how music can be conveyed in the darkness. So I decided after improvising at this laid back party where there was so much going on around me that I realized music could really convey a lot of different emotion that can be related to darkness.
When I tour and play it all the lights are turned off. I really get into the darkness and soak up the darkness that is contained in the hall I am playing.
PCM: Did you have to practice in the dark?
Frank: At first I didn’t practice in the dark because for me it was lets get use to the basics of playing the piece. After a while I did and when I did it was a little bit freaky. The thing that prepared me for the piece mentally was that I composed it in the dark. When I composed the piece I did it in the middle of the night. So that way it was realistic of how it made me feel. When I perform it I do have a little clip on light.
When I did first start playing it was a little disconcerting but when I got use to it, because the artistic intent was there it felt natural. Everywhere I play it it’s really a neat feeling especially when I play it in very large venues where you can feel the giant expanse of where you are.
PCM: You were six years olds when you started playing piano?
Frank: Yes, I was six when I started lessons.
PCM: Your parents were hard working Hungarian immigrants how did they react when you decided to be a musician?
Frank: My parents came from the former Yugoslavia. They came to Canada in the early 70’s and got married shortly after. When you hear immigrant stories they lived it!
You would think they were against it. My parents were the complete opposite. They were not musicians but loved music with a passion. They started me with lesson and saw that I excelled in it so they were very supportive. There were never any real concerns about making a living or whether it was a valid career. I think that’s why to this day I take a lot of pride in the way I conduct my professional life because I never had the position of music not being worthy of something you can make a career or excel at or have a passion for. The reason is that my parents are 100% behind me.
PCM: By you doing this tour and not getting paid is huge step to bring classical music to those who might not go to a classical music concert. This is very important work you do to help keep alive what we do.
Frank: This is a fundamental important aspect to the Green Keys Tour endeavor with three goals in mind: share the music I compose; use the occasion to bring to light and awareness through the music the importance of environmental sustainability. That’s done by the concert itself and the stories behind the music that I share with the audience. Also through the concerts I raise funds for the World Wildlife Foundation.
One of the pieces I perform is called poverty. It would be hypocritical for me to charge a price and then have people who can’t afford the ticket not be able to attend. The goal is to make it an accessible community minded event based off of these principles. That's why it was organized this way. I get feed back from people who would normally never attend a classical or new music concert and it makes me feel really good inside when they tell me how this abstract music makes them feel. It confirms that music can really add something to our world.
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