Steel Notes Magazine October "Halloween" Issue 2016 | Page 88

Steel Notes Magazine - - October 2016 When you started your career, it must not have been so easy to let the world know you wanted to become a guitarist full time. Was it hard? Did you have the support of your family and friends or did you have to fight to convince them about your choice? What was the biggest emotion you experienced during your musical career? The place that fascinated you the most? The most intense moment as a musician? - It’s a great feeling every time I play in concert in a historical place or when I release an album. I still remember when I released the first album with my old band, the Clairvoyants. I held the final product in my hand, and felt so proud. Releasing an album is always special for me. Other moments that I will always remember are the call I got from Blaze Bayley’s manager, to confirm I was gonna play in his band, or that time Doro called me to let me know I could replace the previous guitar player. There have been other events that deeply changed me. The first American tour, for instance, playing as the headliner band at the Wacken Open Air festival, and sharing the stage with some of my alltime musical idols. - Was there a turning point in your life, the one moment that really characterized your musical path? - I have always felt a strong attraction towards musical instruments, since when I was a child. Maybe the turning point was when my parents bought me my first guitar, I was 10 years old. Since then I never stopped playing and always thought being a professional musician was what I was supposed to be doing for the rest of my life. - Music for a living also implies tradeoffs, compromises. What would you do again, if you were to Even though I don’t have a family of musicians, they have always supported me over my career. At the beginning it was not easy to make them understand that playing the guitar was not something I wanted to do just for fun, but for a living. I just kept playing, with determination and commitment, and over time my family understood how important music was in my life. Eventually my parents ended up being very proud of my achievements. I also had plenty of support from fellow musicians, who believed in me and always encouraged me to progress. Photo by Al Pulford 88 - Steel Notes Magazine www.steelnotesmagazine.com