Future Classic Women Awards – Carla Patullo, Grammy Nominated Artist 220124

Hello and welcome to the 6th edition of Future Classic Women Awards with me, Stefania Passamonte, on Women's Radio Station, the program where we search for the most amazing female artists on the classical panorama. First of all, I would like to say a Happy New Year to everyone. This is the very first episode of 2024, so I'm very excited to present you our very special guest. She's the latest Grammy-nominated artist Carla Patullo. Hello, Carla. Hello. Thank you for having me. It's so nice to be here. Ah, super welcome. So Carla, she's not in London. Where are you now, Carla? I'm in LA. LA. Fantastic. And how is the weather there? Well, you know, it's, it's pretty good. It's for LA people. It's a little cold, but it's, but it's really not bad. We, I think we're in the 60s here right now in our winter. All right. So I think it's around, oh gosh, I don't remember. I was in Denver until 3 days ago and there was all this changing between the Fahrenheit and the centigrade. Oh, right. That's right. Yeah. So it might be like 7, 10 degrees or something like that. So yeah, nice and sunny. Is it sunny? It's sunny today. Yeah. We've, you know, we've been having a little bit of rain, but today, today's a good one. Well, so did you have a sunny Christmas? I was— I left, I went to Texas for Christmas and, you know, we— the Christmas Day was sunny, but, you know, there was a lot of rain leading up to it, but, you know, it was great. It was great to be with family and, you know, I love to travel, so it's— it was nice even though it it's a crazy time to travel. It was nice to go see family. And I know, I know very well. We had a white Christmas. So Denver never disappoint me, I have to say. So yeah, the snow came down for Christmas Eve. So that was fantastic. And then we had the proper snow holiday. So we loved it. But you know, the white Christmas, like the Christmas card I used to write, this is my favorite song. Right. But Very big question. I mean, the nomination came out in December. And so how was your Christmas with the family, you know, celebrating this incredible news for your nomination for the Grammys 2024? I mean, it was just, it was just a beautiful, you know, it's been a beautiful little addition to my life, you know, just having this, recognition and to be able to share it with my family. You know, this project came out of a very personal place for me. So there's a personal journey involved where I overcame an illness. So for my family to see me overcome an illness and then also get nominated, I think, you know, it's just— there's just so much gratitude for you know, for everything that I'm experiencing right now. So, you know, so it's just, it's a great time and I'm just trying to soak it all in. It's hard, I think. This is a dream come true for any recording artist, I think, in the world. I love the Recording Academy because you have artists from all around the world. It's not just, I mean, we're all members of the Recording Academy, but it doesn't celebrate just American artists. And I think it's the most diverse and inclusive music celebration that you can ever think of. And I love, love the Grammys. Even, you know, being a classical musician, I remember my very first time at the Grammys. I didn't know half of the people that they were there. I remember I was by chance sitting next to Zendaya. You know, the actress. Yes. And I had no clue who she was. When I came back to London and I showed my piano students, they were like, she's from, I think at the time she was an actress from Disney or something like that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And my husband is, was a DJ. So he knew all the, and he's American. So he knew some of the biggest artists there. And I was like, I just see everyone jumping up and dancing and being happy. There was no division between the superstars, if you like, and an everyday artist, maybe, like I consider myself as a concert pianist, as a classical concert pianist. Have you been to the Grammys before? Oh, no, I haven't. But I'm so excited. When I was a little girl, when I was like a teenager, I basically entered this radio contest one time to try to win tickets. And I remember that, like, how excited I was because you call the radio station and you have to be the 10th person to call or something. And I actually won, but I, but I, you know, I didn't win the tickets, but I qualified to win the tickets. There's always something. Yeah. So it was always a dream of mine to go, you know, and, and, you know, just be blown away by all the musicians around you, you know. Yeah. Well, then I'm not going to tell you, you know, you have to go. Yeah. And see with your own eyes, it's undescribable, really. I've been very few times, actually. And I've not been lucky enough to end up on the nomination list for classical. But, you know, it's already fantastic when you are allowed to be in the competition and then to be allowed to be invited, you know, to the ceremony and to meet with so many wonderful beautiful musicians from any, any genre. So that's what I love the most, you know. I love the fact that you're gonna be mixed with people from anything, and, and they all have the same passion, that is to make music, to create something that will make the audience love you and be in a better place when they listen to your music. Yeah. So I think it's kind of like what's coming out from your beautiful album. I was Very happy to support you all the way till the end. And now we just have to keep our finger crossed and see what happened on February. But why don't we start with the title song of the album that is "So Shi Ao." And this was "Soshi Ao," the title song from the Grammy-nominated album by Carla Patullo. Carla, so tell us a little bit, how was the process? I mean, you said this come from the, the, the album was inspired by your wonderful recovery from illness. But when you were writing it, did you already have in mind, you know, the whole album, for example, how it would be produced and recorded, or it was just a work in progress? Yeah, it was just a work in progress because, you know, when I first began the album, I was actually writing an album about my mom and having lost her suddenly. And, but then, but then, like, you know, I went through my own near-death experience, and I started— for me, it was very much like getting out of bed, trying to get motivated. And I just began by, you know, singing into a microphone without any expectation. You know, it was, it was literally like just a journal. It wasn't an album anymore. It was just like something I could do. Um, and then it just became— step by step, it became something. And as I was healing mentally, it became something like, oh, now I want to finish this album, you know, or I want— you know, I want to finish my, my recovery, you know. Um, you know, I had gone through breast cancer, and that was my journey. And, you know, going through stuff like that, there's a lot of unknowns. So I thought maybe this would be my last work. And so there, there were very, like, big— in a way, that made me very primitive, like, you know, like thinking, okay, this is just as simple as recording your emotions. And as I got better, it became more complex. Like, oh, maybe I'll bring these musicians. Maybe this could be an album. Oh, maybe I should submit it to the Grammys. Wow. Step by step, it just got bigger, and I got more whole through the process. And you mentioned the community, like, listening. You know, you listen to so many albums and music through the Grammy process, and building that community was really important to me, like, to be able to share this album. And, and I think it was part of, part of the recovery, too, to be honest, because it's, you know, you talk about what you went through and you, you, you sing about it and you put it out there, and there's something about that that feels really good. But above all, it's an incredible inspiration for other people, you know, the history of managing to conquer, you know, back your health. It's something that we had, you know, we had other artists on the program that went through cancers, different cancers, and all of them, they were talking about the importance of mental health. In your process. And one of them in particular, she was saying that she was so depressed and so pessimistic about it all that she did the first turn of chemotherapy and nothing was happening. And when finally they said, you know, you need to believe that you can, that you can recover, that you can get better. Only when she finally went through the mental process of, you know, going through it, accepting it, and try to work with it that she then managed actually to get better and finally to win against it. Yeah. Unfortunately, yes. Not everyone has this beautiful story. I recently lost a friend to cancer. And, and so it's, it's a question of of everything together, you know, of strength, inner strength, mental strength, luck. And I don't know. And then, yeah, that can help you really. Yeah. You know, it's like there's the physical things you're going through with an illness, but then the mental part. And I knew for me it was going to be the real challenge of, you know, it's just so hard. To especially, like, you know, for me, like, there were unknowns in the beginning. Like, I think anybody going through cancer, where— what is it? Where is it? You know, I was one of the fortunate ones, you know, and, you know, and so she howls, you know, like, really, the type of cancer I had, there had been a breakthrough medicine for, and I was very, very lucky. That these women 30 years ago took an experimental drug. And because of that, they saved my life and thousands of other women's lives with this drug. And so I think about that. That's a part of me now. And I feel how lucky I am. To have had that type of cancer. You know what I mean? Absolutely. Every day is extra. I wake up thinking, I am alive today. I am not in pain. I can get up. And that right there, I just start my day with, so much gratitude and just thankful. And it really puts life in perspective. Absolutely. And with music, it's the same. So lucky to have music to help me get through this period. I think I really understood the weight of music. You know, I've mourned people before and having it, you know, as this way to cope. And that's a very beautiful thing. But I think now I experienced it on this way to help myself really just, just live, you know, so it's, it was just a nice reminder. Yeah. Yes. A strong, you know, life throw you things that at you that you would never expect. I lost a cousin cousin, and she was just one year older than me. She just woke up one morning and that's it, and she wasn't there anymore. And she was very active, very healthy. You really don't know. So we, you know, um, it's true. I believe you have to have a purpose in life. I think that's something that also shows you, you know, life is not people sometimes they take it for granted and you shouldn't, you know, it's an incredible gift and we are on this earth to do something, I believe, and you and me, we do it through music or through the radio, for example, right now, or through whatever job you're doing out there, like our listeners. There is a reason for it. I believe in that. And what we need to do is make the most of it every day. And don't forget to say, you know, that you love your friends and family because you never know. You never know. Yeah, you never know. So Calling You is the next song we're going to listen to from the Grammy-nominated album EntusiAul. Let's listen to it and then you tell us a bit about this song. Sure. That's great. All right. So Calling You by Carla Patullo. And this was Calling You by Carla Patullo from her Grammy-nominated album En Sushi o a Owl. So tell us a little bit. This album is actually a mix of different songs. So we're going to listen to forest scenes, Without Noise, Heart. So how did you— apart that you said it was a work in progress, but Would you like to tell us a little bit more about how these songs came together? Yeah, you know, it's funny. If you take all the titles of the album, they actually complete a sentence or a phrase. Oh, really? Yeah, yeah. If you listen, So She Howls, Calling You to Forest Scenes and Machine Dreams, Without Noise. We Remember Earth and Love. And— aha, very interesting. I did not know that. It's a little secret. Beautiful. But, you know, like, I began thinking, like, you know, you know, when you hit something traumatic, you start to hear things and notice things more. I feel like you listen, your attention is a little bit more open, you know, you're kind of— at least for me, I was even more open spiritually. Like, you know, I began to have a little bit more faith in things, but not like, you know, in a religious way, but more like in a way. Yeah. And so I just ended up connecting more with nature even. So I remember you know, going outside one morning, and all of a sudden I could hear things differently. Like, I could hear, and like, almost like in a meditative— when you get to that meditative state where you're really just listening to your surroundings and you're just so focused on the present time. And that's kind of where I started going. Like, if you listen, you know, and you can, you know, you can hear. You can hear things and they can guide you. And so calling you was just like this piece that was about my inside, my inner fighter to follow this path to recovery. And so that's— yeah, I mean, it's just awareness of things and being open. Yeah. Beautiful. Well, you know, here in the UK, we launched, um, something is called National Album Day. So it was launched by BPI, the British Phonographic Industry, is the equivalent of the Recording Academy for the Grammys. So here in the UK, we have the Brit Awards. So I'm one of the elected independent members from the independent labels. Yeah, it's really nice. And so the National Album Day, we launched it because when we started with the streaming services, people were forgetting about the importance of the album as it is. You know, when an artist releases an album, he releases it because it is a journey. Isn't it? From track 1 to the last track. The artist chooses the order of the tracks, like you said, in this case, with this little secret that is telling you a sentence, is bringing you towards the journey of your recovery, if you like. And, or, you know, even for classical music is the same. I have albums where I'm talking about the turning point in the life of the composers that they're connected by each other. And that's why I put them together in that specific album. And yeah, so with the streaming service, people are forgetting, you know, you get the shuffle, you get Spotify or whatever, you know, feeding you different artists as well. So you don't get to understand the completeness of that song inside that specific album. Do you feel that or you prefer the, you know, surprise of the shuffling and of the propositions from Spotify. Yeah, I definitely prefer having an order of my music. You know, like when I put out an album, to me it's— I think because I do film scores too, where it's a story from start to finish. I just love that. I think it's— You know, to me, it's like an album's like a book, you know. And, um, and, you know, of course everyone's going to have their preferred way of listening, but I do think, especially for this album, for me, that listening to it in order is really the best way for someone to experience it, you know. Um, because like, you know, with like cycles of grief and, and trauma, when you're, you're going through these emotions, you go through them in like this cycle. And I think, you know, listening to this album from start to finish, and it can become a cycle, hopefully, of healing or of, you know, helping you work out your emotions. So when I listen to albums myself, I love to listen from start to finish. I'm just, I guess, old school. But, but that's— I just I don't know. I just, I, I, you know, it's a shame sometimes that, you know, things get broken up like that and out of context. But I don't know. I guess you also have to kind of go with what's happening a little bit too in the world and try to find a good balance. You know, there is another thing that, you know, talking about a film for music, you know, and Oh gosh, I forgot the term, but you know, when you are synchronized, the synchronization, you know, with music, it's so hard to choose, you know, like in our classical, in my classical label, Master Chord Records, we have hundreds of tracks and when they ask for just something, it's like, ah, I have to listen to 100. I know that's your job, but gosh. Very, very difficult. Yeah, I imagine. So many, and then how much do you need? Yeah. So how difficult it is to compose? I mean, do you prefer— have you ever used your music for synchronization, or you prefer to compose the music specifically for whatever film, for example? You know, it became the bread and butter, as they say, of trying to survive this industry to get sync deals, you know. But I love the art of composing to picture and, you know, and really writing specifically to a movie or to a scene. And, you know, there's no right or wrong, right? But this is what I prefer. I prefer to really write to something more specific and make something more unique than, I don't know, like with films, it's like there's a director's vision for the scene and you can score something so many different ways. And to really get what the director wants, I feel like it has to be something that is original for it, you know, but, but that's what I prefer. And, you know, there's no right or wrong. Absolutely. Well, let's listen then to Forest Scenes by Carla Patullo from her Grammy-nominated album En Sushi Ao. And this was two forest scenes from the Grammy-nominated album En Sushi Owl by Carla Patullo. Um, so Carla, we were talking about the, uh, music for film, composition for movies, and, uh, uh, independent albums, for example, like this one specifically. How did you decide when, I mean, did you know you would become a musician, a professional musician, a professional composer? And have you ever dreamt that one day you would even be nominated for the Grammys? Yeah, you know, I remember when I started when I was really young. And my mom especially always encouraged me because she immigrated to the US and she had all these big dreams. My mom came from a very small town in Italy and didn't really get to explore some things, unfortunately. But when she came to America, she found for her it was a great place to bring us up. And so I was encouraged early, but I would write better, and it's still true to today. I write better than I play. I'm much more better at composing than playing the piano, for example, like you. But it was just always a place I would go to. And I remember you know, just my mom always played her music for me that she loved in Italy. And I actually came to Italy to meet one of her favorite singers, Milva, before she passed away. But anyways, my mom had this passion for it, and she really pushed me to do it. And I think that helps when you have that, you know. And yeah, and then, you know, my path to the Grammys has really been really all over the place. I mean, I was in a band, a rock band for many years, and then I went on tour with Sandra Bernhard, who is, you know, a legendary comedian musician here. And And then I got to perform with some really great people, like Liza Minnelli, when I was on tour with her. Yeah. And Rufus Wainwright. Just really amazing musicians. And that's when I started actually getting into film, because that journey, being on stage with Sandra was like a live show. And we were kind of backing her story. And so we were underscoring her and— Oh, wow. And then film. And, you know, and then getting to film scoring, I began developing a more cinematic sound, you know? And I think all this, like, all over the place of a journey, helped me create my own sound. I feel like, you know, like, yeah. So it's just like a mixed, a hybrid of, like, you know, just life and, and You know, I can't really say that I regret any of it. I think it was a long journey here, but I'm grateful that I got to experience different styles of music a bit. And gosh, like, there's so much more I want to learn about music. You know, there's just so, so much about music, and that's inspiring. I think that's why I love it. Well, you know what, my next question was actually what was the most exciting moment in your career, the most exciting place you performed or people you performed with. You already mentioned some stunning artists, but— and I wouldn't want to put you on the spot to choose one, but if you had to choose a special moment among the many that you might have lived on stage, which one would that be? That— I think that would be with Liza and Sandra Bernhard on stage. That— was a very surreal experience. You know, both of them I grew up, like, loving, you know. And so it was just when it came time to be on stage with them, and I had been working with Sandra Moore. Liza was a guest on her performance. But I learned so much just about being true and doing the thing, doing music in a way that you're being true to yourself. And I think luckily for me, I've had these two women artists who have paved the way. If people know Sandra, she's very like she is who she is and she has that strength to her where she's not going to be someone else for something, for any reason. And I think that's very powerful to experience that. And a lot of that performance was improvised. There was a lot of improvisation going on there between You know, Liza and Sandra, and just to be in this very, in the moment time where you just didn't know it was going to happen on stage. And that's, that's, you know, really beautiful, as I'm sure many musicians, you know, can say, you know, like it's so that was a very special time for me. I think as a woman as well, you know, this is a women's radio station. Women's and men's registration, but in particular this program is focused on women. And when I started this program, you know, they were saying there won't be enough women to be interviewed, and we're already at the 6th edition. It's the 6th year we're doing it, so not too bad. But what I mean is, it's a wonderful opportunity to be inspired by other great women that managed to make a brilliant career in such a challenging world, if you like. I believe music is even more than acting or dancing. You need a woman and you need a man specifically. But as a composer, you don't need a woman or a man. You just need a good composer. And until yesterday, if you like, that was fairly male, male dominated., the, the panorama of, of the music industry. How do you, how did you feel about, you know, meeting these incredible artists, incredible women as well? I mean, it's empowering, you know. I, I, you know, Sandra is like a friend and mentor, and, you know, I have another great mentor out here named Laura Cartman. I don't know if you've come across her music. But she just got shortlisted for an Oscar and a BAFTA. Oh, wow. And for film scoring. And I think it's really incredible. She's been trying to— and she's also the founder of the Alliance for Women Film Composers. And she has been pushing and pushing to raise the voices of women. We feel it here in the LA community, but I think seeing people like this who their advice is like, no, you need to be confident. You need to do these things because I definitely grew up in a time period where women were more soft-spoken, per se, just kind of this traditional space. And I realize it more because sometimes I'll have like, young men reach out to me for maybe they want to do orchestration for me or something. And I was like, what? I want more women reaching out to me. And these men are very confident, and I'm just like, no, I want women to keep bugging me. And then I'm like, well, I got to keep bugging people, too. I feel like there's this strength that we have as a community. And I feel like we need to just, if people want to overlook us, I think we just need to get a little louder, you know? Yeah, absolutely. Well, fantastic. Well, you know, you told me about your mom and she was definitely a strong woman and courageous to decide to go in a new country and make a new life. And I'm sure she would be very, very, very proud of you. So let's listen to the next song we listen to. Heart from the Grammy-nominated album Ensocíao by Carla Patullo. And this was Earth by Carla Patullo from her Grammy-nominated album, and so she all. Now this is the last part of the interview. It was super quick. So I'll just ask you if you have any any, um, passion outside music to relax or, you know, to distract your mind? Yeah, I mean, my— I have— I hike a lot, and that's, you know, I hike a lot in LA, and I love hiking now. I used to be— this has been a turn from, you know, everything I've gone through, but I used to be scared of snakes. I mean, I still kind of am, but But I love walking in nature now. So hiking has been a very big hobby of mine. And actually, so has soccer. I guess that came, you know, very Italian when it comes to soccer too. Yeah. Super. Yeah. And so I'm very passionate about soccer and playing. I still play. And so both of those things are just things that I love to follow and, um, and, you know, try to get better, you know, like I just, I, I just love to learn and it's, um, so, you know, traveling is also another thing, you know, just being able to go places and discover something new. Beautiful. All right. And do you have any funny episodes that you can share with us being on stage? I guess you might have had many with being, you know, on stage. Stage with the comedian, but any, any mess up that you might want to share with us? You know, I think, um, I think I'll just— I'll say one funny thing because it's like I'm going through my mind and I'm thinking about something that happened on this album, actually. Um, there's a song called, uh, Forest Scenes, To Forest Scenes, and, uh, I— the, the whole thing, the, the— there's a violinist on it named Lorenza Ponce who's phenomenal. And I said to Lorenza going into the studio, this song has many, many time changes. And I was, you know, I was kind of like thinking to myself, like, why did I do all these time changes to drive people crazy? And anyway, so she went into the studio. I said, Lorenza, you know, just go get lost in the form. And we were all sitting in there in the room while she was doing her solo, and we were like, there's no way that she's going to be able— this is ridiculous. There's too much. And I don't know, we just— she played the whole thing so beautifully in a take, and we were all in the studio just dying. Yeah, because it just seemed like— and she did it. It's really pretty, her mouth, what she's playing. And we were Just shocked by that, I guess, you know, like to be able to do that over. Yeah. I mean, that's just one, but the first story that I, sorry, that I thought about, but, uh, but it's, it's a wonderful story. I like it very much, you know. Fantastic. Well, the last, uh, the last song we're gonna listen to, I'm very sorry, this time is flying. It's crazy. So it's gonna be Without Noise from the album En Social by Carla Patullo. And with this beautiful song, Without Noise, Without Noise, pardon, by Carla Patullo, the Grammy-nominated artist with the album and so she all, uh, we're going to close, we're going to finish our, um, episode of Future Classic Women Awards. The Women's Radio Station, the first very episode of 2024. Carla, you've been an amazing guest. Thank you for the beautiful chat and the music played today. Oh, thank you so much for having me. It's been an honor to be here. You're very welcome. If you have any questions that you would like to ask to our guests or nominations for our future Classic Women Awards, please email presenters@womensradiostation.com. Or tweet us at Women's Radio STN. And again, you've been listening to Future Classical Women Awards on Women's Radio Station, live every day at 10 AM and 10 PM London time. And if you would like to listen to it again or catch up on our previous program, you can head to my presenter's page, Stefania Passamonte, Future Classical Women Awards on womensradiostation.com. Thank you for listening.