I’m sure you have heard of Gregor Salto as he has been in and around the electronic music world for a little while now. After starting in on the business side of things and working on his own label, we were excited to hear from him about the business world as well as how he got into music and how his taste for music around the world influences the music he puts out. You can check out the full interview below!
– What first got you into dance music, not necessarily the production side, but in general?
Hearing Royal House – ‘Can You Party’ at a high school dance party (on big speakers)
– Who would you consider one of your biggest influences?
Michael Jackson
– Do you have any methods that you go back to when you’re struggling with a project?
Not really. Sometimes I just hang in there, spend days in the studio without success until all of a sudden a song starts to work.
On other occasions I go for walks etc. to clear my mind. Sometimes it’s also very easy to get distracted by other stuff if the creativity isn’t really doing its work, you start surfing the net etc.. I hate that 🙂
– You have been known to cross genre boundaries with ease and your interest in world music is known well, how did this passion start?
Don’t really know. I’ve liked music from a young age. I guess it’s something you are born with. However: I learnt the piano as a kid so I guess that also helped me develop a bit of musical ear.
– What would you say the most exciting aspect of dance music today is?
The possibility to incorporate any kind of music from anywhere in the world, even work with people in different countries, people you might have never met… all that on a simple computer.
– Working with artists across the musical spectrum allows for a greater variety when you pull inspiration, do you think this gives you a distinct advantage in creating unique-sounding tracks?
Yes, definitely, but it can also be confusing for a part of your crowd. In my case, I’ve noticed that a lot of people like a part of what I do ( for example Latin house), but they get confused when I make a big room or deep house track. I just like to create what I think is nice, but from a career perspective perhaps it would be better if I would just stick to a narrower variety of sounds.
– You not only produce and DJ, but work with the business side of things, were you always interested in label ownership or did that develop after?
Yes I was. But perhaps the biggest reason for me to start my own label was to be able to release my own music without someone else telling me it is not good enough etc etc. + I just really liked the whole process of going to the record factory and seeing the engineer cutting the 1st 12 inch from the dat tape / CD I gave him.
– Given that you have been in and around the scene for many years, what have you noticed is the biggest change over the years?
Vinyl to digital. Social media. Teenage DJ superstars 🙂
– When you aren’t in the studio, on tour, or working the business side, do you have passions outside of music you pursue?
I spend time with my family and friends. Eat well, do sport, be active outside, make pictures.
– What is one of the most interesting things about playing the smallest venues and the largest of festivals, aside from the crowd?
Well I think travelling is very interesting. Sometimes you spend such a little amount of time in a place you can hardly see anything. But sometimes there’s a chance to explore a bit (whether it’s a city, some nature, or a nice bar): that’s the real cool part 🙂
– Do you have any advice for up and coming producers or those who want to get into the music business?
Learn how to play an instrument
Learn how to DJ
Learn how to produce
Work with as many people as you can
Get up early and work as much as possible
Do it for the music. Money and fame will come after that.
– Any last thoughts for readers?
Don’t be a prisoner of your own style: open your mind and ears to all kinds of music, also outside of the dance music world.
Put on some classical music in the morning and some jazz or Cuban stuff at dinner.
I’d like to quickly thank Gregor for the interview as we are super excited for the rest of 2015 and what it holds for him! You can check out his latest release with Wiwek below!
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