BPU:When did you get your first bass, and what age did you start playing at?

BM:I got my first bass when I was 14 years old, back in 1985. I had been interested in music since I was a very young child, and by the time I was 10, I was already spending most of my allowance on records. When adolescence kicked in, I was ready to join a band, and bass was already captivating my years. I didn’t want to be a guitarist like everybody else… I wanted to be different, and thought bass was the right instrument for me.

BPU:What influenced you most to play bass?

BM:The whole feel of the instrument. It’s sound, it’s role and the intriguing technical possibilities and approaches it allows (fingerstyle, slap, fretless/regular necks, effects/straight sound, etc…). And I perceived it as an instrument that was multi-faceted: it could play a “second melody” down low (that’s how I was hearing the “bass line”), it could play a “solo” (a melody line above the rhythm section) and it could just ”marry” the drums and be happy for the whole song, making people move along with it.

BPU:Did you take lessons or self taught?

BM:I took lessons – lots of them! I was all over my neighborhood’s music school, taking electric bass lessons, theory and ear-training classes, harmony, and latter acoustic bass as well. I also took private lessons with great players from the Rio de Janeiro area.

BPU:What do you prefer playing now for music?

BM:I became a “jazz head” very early, by influence of my early teachers. It’s musician’s music, you know… and I was hooked right away. But, since I am a Rio de Janeiro native, I’ve been exposed to MPB (which stands for “música popular brasileira” – that means “brazilian popular music”) all my life, and grew up to the sounds of such brazilian artists as Chico Buarque, Caetano Veloso, Milton Nascimento, Gilberto Gil, João Bosco and Djavan – so that’s pretty much sunk in my DNA, along with my favorite rock bands: The Beatles, Jethro Tull, Led Zeppelin and The Police. That being said, I kind of suffer from multiple-personality syndrome… I’m a jazz-fusion head who loves to play latin music and digs his rock-n-roll.

BPU:Did your parents play a role on your music, and were they musical?

BM:My parents where always supportive of my musical interest, and realized very early that I was really into it, spending hours alone in my room practicing and rehearsing every weekend, so they knew I was pursuing a passion, finding myself within music. They surely worried about my establishing a proper career, but they nurtured my passion, nevertheless. They were not musicians, but they liked music – specially my mother, who played I little bit of guitar (the first instrument I ever got was her old acoustic guitar) and loved to sing us songs. She would put on records for us every afternoon. There was always music in the house, and of a variety of styles.

BPU:What do you have for bass or bass gear now?

BM:
3/4 carved back Czech acoustic bass (late 19th century) with Guasti-Bottoni french-style bows;
NS Design CRT4 E.U.B. (electric upright bass)
74′ sunburst Fender Jazz Bass, rosewood neck

BPU:What trials did you run into and how did you over come them playing music?

BM:Since I got my “professional musician certificate” when I was just 17 years old (on my last school year), I’ve been playing music professionally for 23 years now. This means I’ve been through a lot, and have experienced both the joys and the sorrows of our trade. Lucky for me, the joys have surpassed the sorrows by far! I guess the most difficult “trial” is a constant one in our profession, and is sometimes a blessing, and other times a curse: just not knowing what’s around the corner! That makes for a very exciting lifestyle, full of freedom and surprises, but may also feel like a roller-coaster (which is lots of fun when you want to ride it, but a guaranteed stomachache when you don’t!). I found my self “gigless” more than once on account of artists with whom I played deciding all of a sudden they needed an year off, or they wanted to experience with other musicians, but I’ve also had major international gigs landing on my lap apparently out of nowhere, and have already visited most continents while touring with a vast array of artists. I always overcame these “trials” just by practicing more, dedicating myself to my craft and going out and playing. All things considered, I wouldn’t trade this life for anything!

BPU:What did you learn from other musicians and include into your own?

BM:I surely have learned a lot from my peers – and not only bass players, but from every good musician I got the chance to play with. That includes drummers, pianists, singers, saxophonists, horn players in general, arrangers, composers… just about everybody! You can even learn from “bad” musicians: you learn what you should not do! Seriously, you can always learn from other bassists you like – you can transcribe basslines, solos, copy techniques, etc… you can learn about phrasing and choice of notes with horn and reed players, you can learn harmony from pianists, and you can learn a lot about “the pocket” from drummers and percussionists. I learn from other cats on a daily basis, on rehearsals, on the bandstand, on recording sessions, and even listening to records or watching a DVD.

BPU:Tell me about the Bruno Migliari Trio?

BM:It’s my current project, and it actually was put together as a strategic device for getting my music around. My prior project was a quintet (8VB), and it got really hard to get reasonably-payed gigs for that formation. That’s when I decided to investigate if I could adapt my music to the trio setting, just to turn the make my career as an “artist” more sustainable. And I managed to do just that, though I haven’t been able to book anything for my trio in the last 3 months because of my sideman activities. Among other growth experiences, putting the trio together provided me an excellent opportunity to experiment on my sound (including effect pedals and playing with a bow through them, for instance) and with my writing and singing abilities. I ended up stumbling on a sound I call “atmospheric jazz”, that is kind of a fresh approach towards playing jazz standards and regular “jam session favorites”. It goes a long way into captivating an audience, which normally consists of “non-musicians” in their majority, while keeping things interesting for our beloved jazz-heads! Our set list consists of 50% original material, 25% jazz themes (standards, bossa-nova and contemporary jazz songs) and 25% “pop” material, played with a “trippy jazz approach” (anything from Stevie Wonder to Led Zeppelin). You can check it out on my YouTube channel.

BPU:What influences did you have growing up that effected your playing?

BM:I guess the music I heard and the people I lived with influenced me the most. I think one’s upbringing and overall education have an everlasting effect on who one becomes – and you can only play what you are! I have not only my parents to thank for being the musician I am, but also my dear aunt Tote, who was a major influence throughout my formative years, my grandma “nonna” Anna, my dear friends Henrique (for introducing me to some great rock and jazz records when we where teenagers) and Luis Henrique (with whom I experienced my first musical successes). I had the privilege of a very good education, on a school that supported the arts, in which students organized lots of musical activities, and that gave me an early propulsion into becoming a professional musician. Last but not least, I have to thank my dear wife Ana, for being both my muse and my critic and most definitely effecting my playing (keep in mind I’m still growing up… a true musician never ceases to grow!).

1 Comment

1. 

   Hey folks, just in case you wanna dig dipper, here are some additional links:

   http://www.facebook.com/migliaribasso

   http://www.youtube.com/migliaribass

   http://www.myspace.com/brunomigliari

   http://twitter.com/migliaribasso

   Bruno Migliari on 17 August 11, 4:11pm (Reply)