Jo Quail
Sometimes you come across some really intriguing music and performer. We are honorued to be able to present this recent interview with multimusician Jo Quail about her past and upcoming projects.
Photo by: Colin Straw
Could you please give us a brief background story about yourself and how you started playing music in the first place?
I’m a mum first and foremost! I’m also a cellist, composer and teacher from London. I’ve got quite an unusual musical career as I write and perform my own music largely, and travel the world to play my concerts. I play cello and electric cello, and use live looping and effects in my music. I also do session performances and recordings for a diverse artist base from opera to metal to hip hop and I love it all. I’m about to finish recording my 4th solo album which will be released in November this year and I will have a UK, EU and Australian tour to promote this work. I began playing cello and piano with the Centre for Young Musicians when I was 6, and continued until University, studying music at Leeds. I never actually wanted to play cello, in fact I said ‘no thank you’ when the first unbelievable offer of free music lessons came to my primary school! Thankfully a space became available in the class and I took it up, initially to get out of something or other at school, and here I am now, forever thankful for that opportunity to change my mind; the opportunity that changed my life.
You are a really talented musician and you have done so many different projects.
What´s your main motivations when writing new compositions?
Thank you for the compliment! Many things inspire my new compositions. For example the album I am recording at the moment began to be written as I was studying the works of Barbara Hepworth for the second time following an invitation from the Arp Museum in Bonn to perform when the Hepworth exhibition travelled there in 2016 I think it was (shows how long it takes me to write!) – it’s not a musical interpretation of a particular sculpture but more of a musical response to what I imagine was the world around her as she worked. I often find inspiration in visual arts as well as the world natural and man-made world...
My main motivation is to write music that can be performed by me as a soloist, or anyone else with my set up, and that will have integrity and grace as a composition, not looping for the sake of it. The pieces must also be able to be orchestrated and performed by varied ensembles, and also in a ‘band’ set up. When I write I often think orchestrally, and consider the range I’m playing in, the balance of high ends to low, where the mids sit, how the percussion (if any) will sit within it all etc.
Jo Quail and "Caspian" in Stockholm 2016
Photo by: Damir and Anya Bodnar
As far as we understand you do both classical concerts and also more rockier and ambient concerts. For example you played with the great instrumental rockband "Caspian" back in 2016 on their European Tour. It´s not all musicians that can appeal to both a classical audience as well as an rock audience. How do you chose the concerts you want to play and what would you say is your biggest experience when playing to different crowds?
I’ve toured twice with Caspian, and with Boris and Amenra too, and performed with Myrkur and Anna Von Hausswolff so these are pretty heavy stages to fill. As you point out, I also perform my music, these same pieces, with various ensembles around the world, orchestras and other mixed instrumentation too. I think the overriding factor that links all these audiences whether metal, post-rock, goth or classical broadly speaking, is their openmindedness and willingness to listen and ‘go with’ the performer. What appeals I suppose to the classic audiences is the actual cello playing aspect, I still practice and perform Debussy, Boccherini, Bach, I also play Tavener’s Svyati with Cappella in Poland when I perform my concerts there, so even with my own music there is a traditional element in what I do I guess. However it’s heavy as well, and has some rhythmic complexities in places which I guess appeals to the metal and rock fans too. I don’t know, but I’m very grateful! The main difference really is whether the audience is standing or seated. I am very familiar with both set ups so it doesn’t matter to me, and each has a different quality that I enjoy very much from the stage.
I chose my concerts on the basis of what they are, where they are and how practical it is as we have school and school holidays to consider! I have two fantastic concerts coming up in June for Robert Smith’s Meltdown Festival at the South Bank Centre, one supporting Low and the other supporting Mono, both at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. This is a very interesting prospect for me as I know this venue from performing within the London Schools Symphony Orchestra several million years ago, (it has since been refurbished so I’m looking forward to seeing backstage now!) and I wonder how it will feel now as a soloist. Nervewracking perhaps...!
Many musicians finds inspiration hearing and watching other musicians play and explain how they create the sounds they do. You sometimes do small clips of compositions that you are working on, a.k.a new demos. Could you please give us a "Rig Rundown" of the instrument, pedals, effects that you use both in the studio as well as when playing live.
I have a bespoke Starfish Electric cello, and I use the BOSS GT100 multi-effects unit and the BOSS RC300 loop station. I also use a small Yamaha MX desk and Ultimate Ears Pro in ear monitors. I run my left and right loops, my click and my direct feed in to my desk, and the sound person in the venue just takes the left and right out of my loop station, so there’s a fair amount of stuff I hear but the audience does not. My BOSS kit is awesome, I couldn’t do what I do without it. I personally prefer multi-effects for several reasons, travelling being one of them, and ease of set up, but also the fact that I can alter my signal chains quickly which is something I do a lot of particularly when writing my percussion sounds.
I’m recording at Skyhammer with producer Chris Fielding at the moment and we are having a lot of fun in the studio with amazing amps and heads, Ampeg, Sun))), Matamp, Marshall of course, there are a lot of toys to play with!
What´s the biggest difference and challenges playing live vs. recording in the studio?
When you’re live you’re live! Mistakes and all! In the studio I can take care to present everything as clearly as possible, however when you’re live it’s down to the sound person and the rig in the venue, which makes a huge difference. The way my music is structured and the way I’ve assigned my loop function buttons means there’s no way out if something is wrong, so though thankfully it doesn’t happen often (!) when it does I have to make very quick decisions about how I’m going to continue the piece, and end it with grace...!!!
Many musicians we talk to seems to think that the "new era" with internet is mostly a good thing. Before you were much more dependable on record companies and the "mercy" of someone else. Alternative bands can expose their music by themselves and in a way that suits them the best. What is your view on the current climate of "the music industry" and what is your advice for other upcoming musicians?
I don’t know any different as an artist, so to me it’s always been about digital music being available to all. As a music lover of course I remember the days of cassette mix tapes which were the equivalent really, but the love and care that went in to making one of those was immense. Perhaps because of this I take a lot of time and care with my CD packaging and people often comment on it; I want to give people something that is representative of the time it takes to write and create a body of work like an album. If you are lucky to get on a popular Spotify playlist I think you can earn some good money from streaming, otherwise it’s really a PR tool to get your music out there, and hopefully people will feel inclined to come to a concert this way too!
Talking a bit about the future. What plans do you have for 2018?
I’ve got lots of lovely concerts coming up, including Meltdown and some great festivals in the UK and EU. Dunk! Festival in Belgium in a few weeks, and WGT shortly after, both festivals I always love to play. I’ll be releasing my new album in late November and I’ll put a tour around this, then back to Australia again in Jan 2019.
Is there any special musician, dead or alive, that you would like to work with, and if so, why?
If Trent Reznor ever did a masterclass I’d want to be there! I’d love to hear his process, his thoughts and observations in general terms compositionally, harmonically and texturally speaking. Arvo Pärt completely and absolutely. I want to learn from this man, what a musical and spiritual story he has around him. I would have dearly loved the opportunity to meet or attend a master class of János Starker, I refer often to his teachings and videos that thankfully exist online. I often wonder what people like John Dowland or (much later!) Debussy would make of the sonic capabilities we have today. It must be like the first moment of valve instruments, everyone probably went crazy in the way that they probably did with the very first distortion being accidentally discovered! I’m really lucky insofar as I get to work with a great number of hugely talented musicians, artists, conductors, arrangers and more in all sorts of genres and I learn so much from each of them, it’s a true blessing.
We always try to include a question where the band/artist can make up a question of their own choice and answer the question. What question would you like to get and could you please answer it for us?
(Sorry I’ll have to pass on this one otherwise you’ll not get this back for another two months! It’s a great idea though...)
What´s the best resources if people wants to support your music and buying your records?
Please come to a concert! I want to meet you! If you can’t then bandcamp is the best place:
https://joquail.bandcamp.com/ or of course Spotify and itunes. If videos are your thing then http://www.youtube.com/c/JoQuailCello has my videos and my demo discussions etc.
Thank you for chatting with me!
Thank you very much Jo!
Could you please give us a brief background story about yourself and how you started playing music in the first place?
I’m a mum first and foremost! I’m also a cellist, composer and teacher from London. I’ve got quite an unusual musical career as I write and perform my own music largely, and travel the world to play my concerts. I play cello and electric cello, and use live looping and effects in my music. I also do session performances and recordings for a diverse artist base from opera to metal to hip hop and I love it all. I’m about to finish recording my 4th solo album which will be released in November this year and I will have a UK, EU and Australian tour to promote this work. I began playing cello and piano with the Centre for Young Musicians when I was 6, and continued until University, studying music at Leeds. I never actually wanted to play cello, in fact I said ‘no thank you’ when the first unbelievable offer of free music lessons came to my primary school! Thankfully a space became available in the class and I took it up, initially to get out of something or other at school, and here I am now, forever thankful for that opportunity to change my mind; the opportunity that changed my life.
You are a really talented musician and you have done so many different projects.
What´s your main motivations when writing new compositions?
Thank you for the compliment! Many things inspire my new compositions. For example the album I am recording at the moment began to be written as I was studying the works of Barbara Hepworth for the second time following an invitation from the Arp Museum in Bonn to perform when the Hepworth exhibition travelled there in 2016 I think it was (shows how long it takes me to write!) – it’s not a musical interpretation of a particular sculpture but more of a musical response to what I imagine was the world around her as she worked. I often find inspiration in visual arts as well as the world natural and man-made world...
My main motivation is to write music that can be performed by me as a soloist, or anyone else with my set up, and that will have integrity and grace as a composition, not looping for the sake of it. The pieces must also be able to be orchestrated and performed by varied ensembles, and also in a ‘band’ set up. When I write I often think orchestrally, and consider the range I’m playing in, the balance of high ends to low, where the mids sit, how the percussion (if any) will sit within it all etc.
Photo by: Damir and Anya Bodnar
As far as we understand you do both classical concerts and also more rockier and ambient concerts. For example you played with the great instrumental rockband "Caspian" back in 2016 on their European Tour. It´s not all musicians that can appeal to both a classical audience as well as an rock audience. How do you chose the concerts you want to play and what would you say is your biggest experience when playing to different crowds?
I’ve toured twice with Caspian, and with Boris and Amenra too, and performed with Myrkur and Anna Von Hausswolff so these are pretty heavy stages to fill. As you point out, I also perform my music, these same pieces, with various ensembles around the world, orchestras and other mixed instrumentation too. I think the overriding factor that links all these audiences whether metal, post-rock, goth or classical broadly speaking, is their openmindedness and willingness to listen and ‘go with’ the performer. What appeals I suppose to the classic audiences is the actual cello playing aspect, I still practice and perform Debussy, Boccherini, Bach, I also play Tavener’s Svyati with Cappella in Poland when I perform my concerts there, so even with my own music there is a traditional element in what I do I guess. However it’s heavy as well, and has some rhythmic complexities in places which I guess appeals to the metal and rock fans too. I don’t know, but I’m very grateful! The main difference really is whether the audience is standing or seated. I am very familiar with both set ups so it doesn’t matter to me, and each has a different quality that I enjoy very much from the stage.
I chose my concerts on the basis of what they are, where they are and how practical it is as we have school and school holidays to consider! I have two fantastic concerts coming up in June for Robert Smith’s Meltdown Festival at the South Bank Centre, one supporting Low and the other supporting Mono, both at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. This is a very interesting prospect for me as I know this venue from performing within the London Schools Symphony Orchestra several million years ago, (it has since been refurbished so I’m looking forward to seeing backstage now!) and I wonder how it will feel now as a soloist. Nervewracking perhaps...!
Many musicians finds inspiration hearing and watching other musicians play and explain how they create the sounds they do. You sometimes do small clips of compositions that you are working on, a.k.a new demos. Could you please give us a "Rig Rundown" of the instrument, pedals, effects that you use both in the studio as well as when playing live.
I have a bespoke Starfish Electric cello, and I use the BOSS GT100 multi-effects unit and the BOSS RC300 loop station. I also use a small Yamaha MX desk and Ultimate Ears Pro in ear monitors. I run my left and right loops, my click and my direct feed in to my desk, and the sound person in the venue just takes the left and right out of my loop station, so there’s a fair amount of stuff I hear but the audience does not. My BOSS kit is awesome, I couldn’t do what I do without it. I personally prefer multi-effects for several reasons, travelling being one of them, and ease of set up, but also the fact that I can alter my signal chains quickly which is something I do a lot of particularly when writing my percussion sounds.
I’m recording at Skyhammer with producer Chris Fielding at the moment and we are having a lot of fun in the studio with amazing amps and heads, Ampeg, Sun))), Matamp, Marshall of course, there are a lot of toys to play with!
What´s the biggest difference and challenges playing live vs. recording in the studio?
When you’re live you’re live! Mistakes and all! In the studio I can take care to present everything as clearly as possible, however when you’re live it’s down to the sound person and the rig in the venue, which makes a huge difference. The way my music is structured and the way I’ve assigned my loop function buttons means there’s no way out if something is wrong, so though thankfully it doesn’t happen often (!) when it does I have to make very quick decisions about how I’m going to continue the piece, and end it with grace...!!!
Many musicians we talk to seems to think that the "new era" with internet is mostly a good thing. Before you were much more dependable on record companies and the "mercy" of someone else. Alternative bands can expose their music by themselves and in a way that suits them the best. What is your view on the current climate of "the music industry" and what is your advice for other upcoming musicians?
I don’t know any different as an artist, so to me it’s always been about digital music being available to all. As a music lover of course I remember the days of cassette mix tapes which were the equivalent really, but the love and care that went in to making one of those was immense. Perhaps because of this I take a lot of time and care with my CD packaging and people often comment on it; I want to give people something that is representative of the time it takes to write and create a body of work like an album. If you are lucky to get on a popular Spotify playlist I think you can earn some good money from streaming, otherwise it’s really a PR tool to get your music out there, and hopefully people will feel inclined to come to a concert this way too!
Talking a bit about the future. What plans do you have for 2018?
I’ve got lots of lovely concerts coming up, including Meltdown and some great festivals in the UK and EU. Dunk! Festival in Belgium in a few weeks, and WGT shortly after, both festivals I always love to play. I’ll be releasing my new album in late November and I’ll put a tour around this, then back to Australia again in Jan 2019.
Is there any special musician, dead or alive, that you would like to work with, and if so, why?
If Trent Reznor ever did a masterclass I’d want to be there! I’d love to hear his process, his thoughts and observations in general terms compositionally, harmonically and texturally speaking. Arvo Pärt completely and absolutely. I want to learn from this man, what a musical and spiritual story he has around him. I would have dearly loved the opportunity to meet or attend a master class of János Starker, I refer often to his teachings and videos that thankfully exist online. I often wonder what people like John Dowland or (much later!) Debussy would make of the sonic capabilities we have today. It must be like the first moment of valve instruments, everyone probably went crazy in the way that they probably did with the very first distortion being accidentally discovered! I’m really lucky insofar as I get to work with a great number of hugely talented musicians, artists, conductors, arrangers and more in all sorts of genres and I learn so much from each of them, it’s a true blessing.
We always try to include a question where the band/artist can make up a question of their own choice and answer the question. What question would you like to get and could you please answer it for us?
(Sorry I’ll have to pass on this one otherwise you’ll not get this back for another two months! It’s a great idea though...)
What´s the best resources if people wants to support your music and buying your records?
Please come to a concert! I want to meet you! If you can’t then bandcamp is the best place:
https://joquail.bandcamp.com/ or of course Spotify and itunes. If videos are your thing then http://www.youtube.com/c/JoQuailCello has my videos and my demo discussions etc.
Thank you for chatting with me!
Thank you very much Jo!
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