George
Bellas is one of the worlds most acclaimed virtuoso guitarists.
Constantly pushing the boundaries of what constitutes neo-classical
guitar his new band Palace Terrace with their debut album "Flying
Through Infinity" bring another element to the genre with
this exciting and musically rich offering. We tracked down George
to discuss the album in depth.
George,
many thanks for agreeing to this interview.Its great to finally
hear some new music from you, its been quite a wait!
In the 4 year gap since "Venomous Fingers"
you've formed your debut vocal band project Palace Terrace in
your own vision. When did the seeds of Palace Terrace start and
how long has the project taken from conception to completion on
your end?
Palace Terrace was formed shortly after releasing my last instrumental
album "Venomous Fingers". I had the music composed and
arranged for "Flying Through Infinity" within a year
after my previous solo release. Once I had the whole album together
I had thought about what I wanted to do and envisioned turning
it into a massive vocal oriented album. At that point it was time
to find a singer. There were several choices I considered, but
there was only one that I thought could truly fit the bill, and
that was vocalist Jonathan Marshall. It was an early Sunday morning
that I put the call into Jonathan and presented to him my ideas.
When initially speaking with Jonathan I explained to him that
I had this album and concept for Flying Through Infinity ready
to go just waiting for vocals to be added. I asked him if he would
be interested and he replied very enthusiastically "yes".
It was then that the core of Palace Terrace was born. I then sent
Jonathan the complete album and we began working on the lyric
and vocal arrangements. Over the next couple of years we recorded
and fine tuned every single vocal part. The actual vocal production
took a while longer than I had originally anticipated due to each
other's schedules and refining parts, but the end product came
out very satisfactory to me. When Jonathan and I were recording
there was great chemistry between us and we clicked seamlessly
capturing some real magic in the process.
Having
had the chance to absorb the music over the last few weeks I can
say its a truly magnificent body of work. Extremely advanced in
composition, harmonisation and structure. I will admit it took
me a number of listens to get a hold on what the album is about,
and it was then the album took on a life with a vibe that is quite
unique and I am totally hooked! How did the basic track structure
form and how did you take those from what we hear today on the
album?
The writing process for "Flying
Through Infinity" primarily used 3 methods. One method began
by composing rhythmic motives and building melodic and harmonic
structures on top of them. Method two would begin with a melodic
motive and then harmonically brought to life with choices based
on each melodic tone. The third method used harmonic progressions
as the basis for developing improvisations, melodies and rhythms
around. After the foundation of all the songs were formed I added
the vocal and guitar improvisations as well as adding carefully
composed vocal melodies, counterpoint and harmonies, all of which
were composed on staff paper. I spent a grueling amount of time
on the compositional process of the vocal lines and Jonathan's
improvisations -- carefully reviewing, redoing and making sure
that every single note worked perfectly. After all that was complete
I reworked many of the vocal and instrumental arrangements. The
entire production was indeed quite daunting, but I strive for
perfection with a precise vision and need to make sure that every
aspect of a project is the way it should be.
The
album I believe is a concept story, can you tell the readers what
this story in and how the lyrics work with the music.
I initially sent Jonathan the "Flying
Through Infinity" concept along with the seeds to each individual
song. We would then both contribute lyrics based on what we each
thought the song's overall idea should project. For example, "The
Tenth Dimension" is based on a higher dimensional plane that
scientists and mathematicians have proven to exist. But to visit
there... Is it real? What will we find? Will we find loved ones
that no longer belong to our ever familiar three dimensional world?
"No one is sure and no one really knows if it's for real..."
You
have a superb vocalist in Jonathan Marshall. How did you hook
up with Jonathan and what did he bring to the project?
I have known Jonathan for two decades and have worked with him
early on. We have always wanted to do an album together and this
was the perfect opportunity for it. He did a fantastic job and
we sure had a lot of fun making the album.
You
wrote all the music, performed all the guitars, bass, keyboards,
orchestration, did the composition and arrangements not to mention
production etc. This must of been quite exhausting, how did you
manage to stay focused during this undertaking?
It was definitely an enormous amount
of work that required an extremely disciplined focus on my part.
I had a vision and needed to make sure that every aspect of the
production came out the way I had originally conceived. I enjoyed
the huge undertaking. It gives me a break from each task at hand
and offers me a fresh look at each element. I wouldn't have done
it any other way.
Sasha
Horn's drum work is often quite complex, what were you looking
for from Sasha and where did you find him?
Drummer Sasha Horn is an exceptional
talent and a really great person to work with. I have only recently
been introduced to Sasha from a student of mine. When I approached
Sasha about working together I explained to him that I had all
the drum parts composed for this massive album and now needed
a live person. I am known to compose very complex odd-meters and
intricate rhythms. As challenging as they may be Sasha does a
great job at bringing them to life.
What
struck me is that a number of these songs are predominantly led
by the orchestra which creates a solid foundation to start with.
Did you start with the orchestration of the tracks before moving
onto other instruments?
I had most all of the orchestration
completed before recording any vocals or guitar parts. After everything
else was recorded I went back and elaborated even more on the
orchestration. It is a lot of fun working with a large palette
of sounds rather than just a typical rock band context.
What
was your aim with how your guitar fitted into the bigger picture
with this album?
I wanted my solos to sparsely weave in and out of the vocal lines
and wanted my main solos to have enormous feeling in each and
every note. It was first and foremost about passionate guitar
playing, not just speed for speed's sake. I wanted every note
to say something, to sing, cry, laugh and be angry when it was
felt.
Your
playing is the best I have ever heard it. Did the music call for
you to extend your own abilities on the instrument and what was
the biggest challenge you faced with this material?
Thank you very much! I am always striving to improve my craft
by constantly studying, practicing and creating. The music on
this album was really no different in my approach with the guitar
other than leaving plenty of room for the vocals.
Your
guitar sound is great - clear, smooth, focused with great clarity.
What guitars/amps/fx did you use and what were you looking for
in your tone this time around?
On the "Flying Through Infinity" album I used my longtime
ever faithful Fender 1957 Stratocasters, Marshall JCM900 series
amplifiers and a Tube Screamer. I use Dean Markley .010 - .046
gauge strings and no scalloped fretboards, although I do like
scalloped boards but I have always used regular old fretboards.
From my guitars and amps I then went into a Sure SM57 microphone
--> Focusrite Red Series Mic Pre --> Apogee Rosetta 800
Converter and finally into an Apple computer via lightpipe on
an RME PCI card. I monitor using Coleman Audio equipment and Mackie
HR824 monitors.
The
promotional material on the Lion Music website states that their
is a number of highly complex time signatures such as 99/32, how
do you go about writing in these time signatures let alone playing
in them!?
That is correct. The first song
on "Flying Through Infinity" has a section that uses
a time signature of 99/32 time. The way I compose with these meters
is in the same way I do for all my other music -- with staff paper
and a pencil. After composing the parts I begin learning and counting
parts on my guitar, which indeed can be quite challenging at first,
but after much effort with counting it becomes very natural.
What
do you think established George Bellas fans will get out of "Flying
Through Infinity"?
Fans should enjoy the same style of writing they have grown to
know me for (neoclassical and progressive), but the difference
with this album is that it is vocal oriented. I have always written
vocal scores and this is my first step in presenting them to the
public.
How
do you sum up the album now (since you completed it) and can we
expect a follow up down the road at some point?
First and foremost it is a musical
work, and no matter what the language barrier may be fans should
hear and feel the deep emotions and intellectually stimulating
aspects of the music. And yes I do plan on releasing more vocal
oriented albums in the future.
I
also see you have a new instrumental solo album due early 2008
entitled "Planetary Alignment", I will save my questions
until I have heard it but what can George Bellas fans expect from
this forthcoming release and how does it compare to your 3 previous
solo albums?
My upcoming solo album entitled
"Planetary Alignment" is the most modern and futuristic
body of work I have ever released. There are so many compositional
elements not found on any of my previous releases. Fans should
really expect the unexpected. I really stretched my playing and
writing abilities with this album. It is extremely progressive.
Anything
else you would like to add to finish up?
I would like to thank all my fans around the world for listening
to my music and all their feedback throughout the years. I already
have an enormous amount of new music and look forward to many
more years of releasing new albums for all to enjoy and hopefully
connect with in some way.
George,
many thanks for your participation.
Thank you Baroque and Roll
for talking with me and also for bringing such a cool source of
guitar oriented information to the fans.
For
more information on my past, present and future projects, please
visit:
www.GeorgeBellas.com
www.MySpace.com/GeorgeBellas
www.PalaceTerrace.com
www.MySpace.com/PalaceTerrace
