We are into the second week of Global Music Match and I have the pleasure to introduce you to Anna Andreu - a singer songwriter from Barcelona Catalonia.
I have never been to Catalonia or have heard Catalan language before, so this week is truly interesting for me. Catalan language originates from 13th century and as Anna told me, has a great deal of different rich expressions which are really original. I can relate to this with my own heritage from Võrumaa in South-Estonia, where Võru language has been spoken for centuries although the active speakers in nowadays world cannot compete with more than 10 million Catalan speakers, reaching only up to 76 000 people.
I can totally recognise the feeling you have described about becoming a solo artist: "In many moments I have felt lost and insecure." How does it feel right now after your first solo album being a success?
I really couldn’t be happier for having decided to finally go for it and dedicate myself to music full time. I felt very insecure at first because of the change in lifestyle and because I had to suddenly confront a project where I expose such an intimate part of myself. Writing in Catalan also made me feel insecure and in the end the lyrics are the focus point in each track. I’m feeling excited and ready to release new material as soon as possible.
Annas song Torrent Sanguini tells the story about what happens before you fall in love - so it is a story before love, like an introduction to the love story.
Torrent sanguini, corrent marí,
asseguda a la barana
no et veia venir.
Hi ha tantes coses que em fan patir,
que si em preguntes
…ai, no en tinc ganes!
Les hores blaves del matí
et trobaran desperta
i donaries el que fos
per dormir-les com faig jo.
Torrent sanguini, corrent marí,
asseguda a la barana
no et veia venir.
Hi ha tantes coses que em fan patir,
que si em preguntes
…ai, no en tinc ganes!
Tell us about your childhood and traditions. Is Catalan your first language and how has Catalan culture influenced you as a musician and creator?
Yes, it’s my first language, the language I have always used to communicate with my family, the language I dream in and think with, the language I use to express myself to the world and the world around me. It’s been an adventure to write in Catalan, to choose words that aren’t used so much nowadays, maybe that’s why they have some kind of nostalgia about them. They are words that have always been there, I had never written in Catalan, but I have discovered how rich and detailed it can really be. I believe each language reads reality in its own way, with its unique perception of the world.
Here you can see the areas where Catalan language is spoken. Photo courtesy https://www.britannica.com/
Lately there has been a lot of talk about equality in music business, I know that the situation in Nordic countries can be a bit different from the rest of the Europe. Tell us about your experience es as a female artist, do you literally find it hard to get your voice heard?
My own experience, strictly related to music, has not been negative yet, I have always felt respected and men have been considerate towards me, but I do know and see other women that have suffered sexism. There are clearly very sexist attitudes and a very masculine way of doing certain things, but it is not so much the musicians, but more the world that surrounds it, the part the audience can’t see. And of course there are certain areas in the industry where there is hardly any woman present at all, sound technicians for example.
Do you enjoy cooking? If so could you please share the recipe of your favourite Catalan dish?
I don’t actually! But I do really enjoy watching people cook and listening to the curiosities and the how do’s and don’ts. Croquetas made with the perfect dosis of love are the best. They are usually made of leftover meals, chicken, beef stew or vegetables, you mix them with your personal liking of béchamel and make small oblongs that are then covered in flour, egg and bread crumbs before being fried in oil on the pan, good hot or cold.
EDIT: I had to google how to make croquetas and found this website with very clear instructions. Need to test it as soon as possible as they look delicious!
Your best and worst stage experience?
The best moment was just this august in Barcelona, at the Castell de Montjuic in Barcelona, and the worst was just a few weeks before, same city, but our first ever concert, with 800 hundred people before us, the soundcheck was horrible and I went on stage not knowing what was going to happen!
While talking about your last album you have said that "I play against myself" Could you open this a bit more, how does one play against herself?
This idea came to mind when creating the cover of the album, the cover photos are shot on a fronton court. During the process of creating the album I fought through so many doubts and insecurities that would jump out of nowhere, I would set small traps before me to try and persuade myself to not complete the project, that it seemed like I was practically playing against myself!