"A DELICATE TOUCH"

an interview with Serge Kozlovsky for radio BELARUS (Russia)
January 9, 2001

Your music is very expressive. Maybe your work on the Broadway as a professional actor, playing in the movies, and also your interest for ballet, have assisted this? Could you please tell me about this period of your creative work more in detail?

I believe that who we are today is the sum total of our experiences in life. Like many artists, my work reflects my life, and my life is very much connected to my work. I love the theater and I love dance, music, film. While I still appreciate musical theater, stage plays and dance, I no longer see myself as a performer in these disciplines; I am now a ticket buyer to these arts events!

People tell me all the time that my live performances are lots of fun and really different from other piano concerts they have seen. I do think that working in the theater for as long as I have has helped me to create more of a 'theatrical experience' out of the concert. I am comfortable in front of audiences, having had a good deal of experience from my days as an actress, and I enjoy telling stories about the origins of the songs and sharing humorous anecdotes with the audience. I suppose this is the 'actress' in me coming through!

In one of your interviews I have read that your ancestors (grandfather and grand uncle) were doing a lot of performing and recording in Russia. I would like to know more about these your creative "roots".

It's rather interesting actually. My grandfather (on my father's side), played flute and my great uncle played violin. My uncle came to America from Russia and became the concert master/first violinist in Arturo Toscaninni's orchestra. My grandfather followed in his footsteps a few years later and worked in the same orchestra. That orchestra became world-famous and was later called The NBC Symphony Orchestra. My uncle and grandfather also played in the Metropolitan Opera House orchestra---my grandfather (Rubin Spielberg) was the flute in the opera "The Magic Flute" by Mozart.

My father was discouraged from becoming a musician---my grandfather wanted him to have a more 'normal' life and to have a good American college education. My father graduated with a business degree, but always had music in his blood. My sister and I both longed to study music from an early age and it was clear to me after college that I would become a
professional performer , composer and/or actor.

As I comprehend your music, it is incredibly beautiful, and it contains a lot of harmony and aesthetics. It is natural and open. And this openness, which is clearly felt, for instance, in your album "Dreaming of Summer", can not leave a listener indifferent. How did you manage to preserve such a rare quality of sincerity and openness in your music? How do you think, why does your music possess all these features?

Well, first of all, thank you for your kind words. I appreciate them. I am glad to hear that you hear the emotion on the music. I am a very emotional person and I find that music is the most complete and satisfying way for me to express my feelings, whether they be joy, sadness, loneliness, excitement, anticipation, love. I do not know 'how' to create sincerity in music....it is something that just happens I suppose. There is no formula or plan. I sit at the piano and sometimes I remain there for only a few minutes and walk away....sometimes I am there for hours and after practicing for a concert I might come up with something new to explore. It can take minutes, days or months to create a piece from start to finish. The process varies, but it is always a very organic, natural process that comes from a need to express a specific thought, idea or feeling.

As far as I know, "Beautiful Dreamer" is a collection of lullabies,
devoted to your little daughter. Could you please tell me more about this
album.

Beautiful Dreamer is a particularly meaningful recording for me and for my family. It was inspired by the (pre-mature) birth of my daughter, Valerie and her twin sister who died at birth. The babies were born 16 weeks early and weighed only one pound each (505 grams). It was a very scary time for our family.The doctors only gave our daughter a 10% chance of survival. We named her Valerie (coming from the latin word 'valor' which means 'to be strong'. The name also has roots from the 'Valkrie' who walked through the fire of death only to live again). Valerie overcame one obstacle after another and grew stronger and stronger. She remained in the intensive care nursery at the hospital for four full months, and had to recover from heart surgery, and go through 13 blood transfusions and many health complications brought about by her prematurity. My husband and I were by her side every day and every night. We played my CDs for her by her incubator almost 'round the clock and noticed that her vital signs improved when the music was playing. There have been several scientific studies that prove the medical benefits of music, but it was powerful and beautiful to witness this first-hand. My music was my voice, and I believe it was a voice that was familiar to my daughter. She had 'heard' my music in utero and it was familiar to her and perhaps comforting. Her oxygenation levels improved, her blood pressure steadied and her breathing became easier with the sound of music. After seeing this, other parents wanted their babies in the hospital to have the music and so the record label (North Star Music) generously donated a quantity of my CDs to the hospital for this purpose. Once Valerie was completely healthy and home for a month or so, I set to work on a lullaby CD that I would dedicate to her and to the thousands of babies like her that are born a bit too early. I donate $1 from the sale of each copy I sell of the CD to a non-profit organization here in the States called The March of Dimes. This organization does research to help prevent premature births and helps those babies that are born prematurely. They are an amazing organization.

The CD contains songs I grew up loving and learning as a child; these are songs I wished to pass down to my daughter. She listens to it nightly at bedtime still! Some are songs my own mother sang to me as a child.

And also, I would like to know about your life. Who is near you now,
whom do you love?

I have a very close family. My father died this past November after a long illness. My parents had been married for almost 45 years and so this is an especially difficult time for my mother, and of course I am also very sad as I
miss him greatly. My mother and I are very close and we talk daily--sometimes several times a day! My sister lives about 4 hours away and we travel to see one another several times a year. My grandfather on my father's side died before I was born, but my grandmother is still here and healthy at age 97. My husband and I have a very close relationship as we also work together in our music business--he is my manager and works on my concert tour dates. We travel together as a family. Valerie is now two and a lot of fun. She loves flying on the airplanes and jumping on the beds in the
hotel room!

Your last album "Dreaming of Summer" is very light, optimistic and sunny by its mood. Please, tell me about this album. Why did you decide to record namely this album, how the idea to create it appeared? What happened in your life when you worked on this album? What similar features and what differences have this album being compared with your
previous works?

Great questions! Well,first of all, I do agree with you that Dreaming of Summer has a mostly optimistic sunny mood. The CD reflects my love for my favorite time of year, Summer. I live on the east coast of the US and we experience four very different seasons of weather here. Right now we have two feet of snow on the ground and below freezing temperatures. The summers can be quite hot, but I love them. My favorite hobby is my garden. I dream of summer most of winter and so that is where the album title came from.....whenever it is NOT summer, I am thinking about summer...what will I plant? What new garden design will I try? I read lots of magazines and books on gardening and that is where the inspiration for several of the songs came from. The title track, and "Saving the Irises", "The 2am Gardener" and "Forgiving Winter" are all based on my feelings of love and longing for summer and the growing season. Some of the other songs are based on favorite summer memories... a wedding I attended in Aspen , Colorado (the song is called "Wedding on the Mountain") or the summer I got married ("Because of You").

All of my recordings have a theme to them. My last solo recording, the 1996 "Songs of the Spirit" contain songs that were inspired by the SPIRIT in living things, experiences, the human heart, the spiritual world. The songs ranged from the spirit of my grandmother's journey to America from Russia, to a ghost story, to the playful spirit of my kittens. I can look back on my recordings and be reminded of people, experiences, dreams and ideas I had. These are all reflected in the music.

I look at my music as the soundtrack of my life.

You have sold more than 300 000 copies of your albums not being
connected with the major labels. How did you manage to do it?

I recorded my first album, Heal of the Hand, on my own (without a label). People who had heard me perform in New York City piano bars and hotel lobbies would often ask to hear my original music and soon they began to ask if I had a CD. I borrowed money so that I could make a recording, thinking that I would market it to the people who were listening to my live performances at my steady engagements. I sold about 2000 copies this way and eventually sent a CD to an independent record label , North Star. They loved the CD and began to market it. They also signed me to a record deal. What was unique about the situation was that this label also distributed their own recordings, but in a rather untraditional way. Instead of selling to record stores and clubs, they sold the music in gift stores, book shops, etc. These were the perfect places for my unique music and between my new concert career and their marketing efforts, we managed to reach a new audience.

How do you think, why your listeners have such an interest in your music?

Han Christian Anderson had said that "where words fail there is music" and I believe this is true. For me, music smooths the rough spots, and when we get into our cars or houses, we put on the radio and search for music that will somehow fit our mood, lift our spirits, or express our feelings. I am thrilled to hear that so many people choose my music for this purpose. It is deeply satisfying. I am drawn to good melodies...I love songs from Broadway--songs you can leave the theater singing. I enjoy writing melodies and sometimes people refer to me as a singer even though I play solo piano.( I think this might be because people are singing in their minds after a concert...they connect my music to the voice.). There is a lot of music being written that have cool rhythms, interesting and sometimes excellent production, but the art of a good melody is often missing. I think people are compelled to strong melodies; at least I know that I am.

Many of the things I am expressing are universal in theme. For example, "Circle of Life" on the CD, 'Mother' is based on a family I am close to and the how a tragic death and a beautiful birth happened in that family within a year. I think people relate to that song---not because they know my friends, but because perhaps they too have had the experience of feeling great sorrow from a loss and also elation and joy because of a birth. These are intense feelings and sometimes they happen at once.

As an artist in concert, the work is not just about making the music, but in making a connection.

You are one of the first authors, who began actively distribute the music through the Internet. Could you tell me about this side of your activity more in detail?

When the internet became available to the general public , I was single and living in an apartment with a roommate. We were both incredibly interested in the internet and enjoyed reading about its possibilities. I opened an e-mail account and started a web site....this was in '93 or 1994. I soon learned that there were 'newsgroups' and 'bulletin boards' that pertained to music and I was active in these forums. It is here that I 'met' radio programmers and music lovers from all over the world. One thing led to the next, and soon I was doing research over the internet----finding out which stations would be
most likely to play my debut release, "Heal of the Hand". The largest music trade magazine in the US, BILLBOARD MAGAZINE did a story on this after I contacted them and told them that the internet was the 'wave of the
future' in regard to artists/producers/radio programmers all communicating. They interviewed me and several radio station programmers about this new idea. Now of course, communication over the internet is just every day business....and here we are! I am in the US and you in Russia and we are conducting an interview over the internet. It really is amazing technology!

Because my music has always been on an independent label (my newest CD , "Dreaming of Summer" is on my own label), it is sometimes hard to find. People have learned to use the internet to find recordings like mine, using some of the larger on-line retail stores or by visiting my own web site www.robinspielberg.com The web site gets a lot of traffic and I enjoy corresponding with music lovers all over the world.

When and how did you create your own web site and the web site of your company? Who helped you in this activity and what are your impressions and plans concerning this?

The web site began in 1994 and continues to grow. It contains my current touring itinerary and ticket information, fun facts, photographs from tours and from my personal life, sound samples from recordings, album cover art and liner notes, sheet music info....lots of stuff!

Could you please tell me a little about your life, your friends, personal interests and hobbies? Do you have friends among artists and maybe you are planning any joint projects? In general, who are your favorite artists?

My favorite hobby is gardening...I also enjoy hiking and visiting beautiful places. Sometimes we take an extra day on tour to enjoy our surroundings...so often I go to a new city only to see the inside of a concert hall and the hotel room! So we are taking a little more time on this year's tour to enjoy our surroundings. In 1999 I did a joint project with singers Cathie Ryan and Susan McKeown. Both artists are known in the 'celtic music' circles and are immensely talented. The recording process was very exciting and rewarding. We later toured the album with a full band, which was a nice change for me. Most of my live shows are solo performances, but I do occasionally perform on a double bill. I played three concerts last year with Tingstad & Rumbel, an acoustic duo from the northwest. We did separate sets and also some songs all together which was a lot of fun. We played in a club, a church and at Carnegie Hall!

I have many artists that I admire, but when I am driving in the car or at home in the office I usually listen to the music of singer/songwriters like Dar Williams, Lucy Kaplansky. Aimee Mann..there are too many to mention here!
I enjoy contemporary folk music, cabaret music and listening to 'standards' the most.

Do you like travelling? What countries and places do you like to visit most of all? What could you tell us about your touring activity? What are your plans in this concern?

Travelling has become a big part of my world. So far I have toured only in the US and we are considering a Canadian tour in the future. I would love to perform in Europe as well. I begin a 20-city tour in celebration of the release of "Dreaming of Summer" that will take me to many cities in the U.S. that I have not visited before. I can't wait!

What are your creative and personal plans? What long-term goals do you have in your life?

It is my greatest pleasure to be able to create music and share it with appreciative listeners around the world, so I certainly hope I will be doing that for a long while! I love composing, and I love playing piano and performing. I enjoy many aspects of the music business that perhaps other artists do not enjoy, such as marketing, graphic design. My husband and I created the last CD together from start to finish. I wrote the music, produced and recorded it, wrote the liner notes...he did all the photography and packaging, including the bar code and company logo. We are completely involved in all aspects of the music business and love it.

I have many goals and ideas for future projects....one of them is to compose more music for the theater. I was recently awarded a grant for a childrens' musical that I had written a few years ago. The goal is to have all the music
properly transcribed so that the show can travel to other cities. It's a really fun musical about a little girl who visits another world. I hope to create more projects for the theater and to expand my horizons to film as well.

What would you like to wish the music lovers here in Belarus and in
Russia?

I wish all of you a very happy, healthy, prosperous and productive 2001! And I hope to visit you all one day in concert! I visited Moscow, Kiev and Minsk in the mid 1980's and it is time to come back--this time in concert!
All the best to you,

P. S. Web address of Robin Spielberg's site is
http://www.robinspielberg.com