Gabriele Poso is an artist with a strong musical and spiritual vision. He has amassed an impressive catalogue of releases since his album debut in 2008 on Osunlade’s Yoruba Records. Poso also has many releases on labels like INFRACom!, Agogo, BBE and Soundway Records. His recent album "Tamburo Infinito" released in 2021 with Wonderwheel includes his killer dancefloor cut, "La Bola".
Catch Gabriele Poso (Live) at The Night Cat on Friday 16th February, 9-3am. With support from Quarter Street (Live), Jam Hot & OWOS DJs. Tickets and info here.
Read the interview in full below...
GABRIELE POSO, INTERVIEW By Elle Young
"I had the privilege to study in Rome at Timba Institute with Roberto Mamey Evangelisti one of the most respected percussionist and master of the Afro-cuban culture in Italy.”
You're a multi-instrumentalist however you have an affinity with percussion. Can you explain to us why that is?
The drums makes us feel human. It is the most ancient way to communicate and persists to this day, they have a deep connection with our spirituality and inner soul. The Afro-Cuban percussion is the highest expression of it.
You were born in Italy and studied percussion there under Afro Cuban percussion master Roberto “Mamey” Evangelista. What did you learn most when you emerged yourself further into Afro Cuban music by moving to Puerto Rico?
I had the privilege to study in Rome at Timba Institute with Roberto Mamey Evangelisti one of the most represented percussionist and master of the Afro-cuban culture in Italy.
It was an extraordinary musical and life experience, which formed the foundations for my music education and vision.
The biggest lesson I learned in all the years studying around the globe with different schools and masters is that technique is an exercise that any human being can do with dedication and sacrifice. Being able to transform that into your own personal expressive form of art and voice is an endless research… it is what brings you close to God.
When did you start comprehending a sound incorporating more electronic components for dance floors?
“Being able to add a Dj’s vision and sensibility to a classic musician approach gave me a strong personality to my music.”
I was always into dance floor and electronic music since a young age,
but without doubts my collaboration with the producer Osunlade had a strong influence.
Being able to add a DJ’s vision and sensibility to a classic musician approach gave me
a strong personality to my music.
Can you tell us a little bit about the music making process for your most recent album 'Tamburo Infinito'?
I dont follow a standard process in the music making process. During the creative process of “Tamburo Infinito” i tried to focus just on the music and nothing else.
Naturally the rhythmic aspect has a fundamental role in most of my compositions.
The main theme could be extrapolated from the album’s title itself “Tamburo Infinito”
The undisputed king of this project is the drum, tamburo, the rhythms endless percussion & drums patterns that are woven during for the whole albums duration.
I spent a lot of time in the equatorial zone of the continent studying and exploring the roots of afro-caribbean percussion, the tropical rhythms and the unspoken languages of drums and I wanted to translate this long journey through the knowledge in music.
The main difference with the previous records is that I decided to record almost everything myself without using the full band. A different approach more my past album more loneliest with bigger research and huge attention to the sound exploring new ways to record through analogic tape and analogic tools as analogic delays very much present in the whole album, this gives a new direction to my sound with a psychedelic touch and dance floor attitude stronger from my previous album.
Who are some of your favourite artists at the moment who are making similar kinds of music?
I found very intersting the work of Joaquin Cornejo, Quantic and Folamour just to mention a few.
