1- Where did you grow up? I grew up in Ronciglione, Italy, a little city not far from Rome. Living in a province wasn’t a big deal back in the 90s, but we were lucky enough to have a good music school and a musical band, so I had the chance to learn music theory and play an instrument (the Euphonium). 2- What is one of the first songs you remember liking as a kid? Thanks to my parents who were great music listeners I discovered many artists and many songs, but in 1987 I listened for the first time to an emerging Italian songwriter with an awesome voice and musicianship: Mango. His hit song of that year was “Bella D’Estate”, and I think that’s the very first one I consciously fell in love with. 3- What influenced you to get into music? I think it was written in my blood: my grandfather was very good at the mandolin, my father was a guitarist and my uncle played the accordion. My mom never learned to play musical instruments, but she still can sing sweetly and perfectly in tune. 4- At what age did you start playing/singing? My parents bought me a Disney themed toy piano at the age of 3 or 4: later I found myself (can’t remember the exact year or moment) playing a Bontempi electronic keyboard with just two sounds: square wave and saw wave! Enough to start with… oh, and the left half of the keyboard had a pad-like sound to play chords. I started playing along with my parent’s records. Singing happened later in my life, when I joined a Queen tribute band as the lead singer and pianist at the age of 23. 5- If you could go back in time, what advice would you give to yourself after finishing school? I’d tell him “Leave your comfort zone, go abroad and hang out in larger, more stimulating environments”. 6- What are some of your favorite songs at the moment? As a “retro" music producer I often look back, but I enjoy a lot the productions of Tame Impala, CHVRCHES, Coldplay, Greta Van Fleet, Foo Fighters, The 1975 and many others. There’s actually a song I’m listening to on repeat at the moment, and it’s “STAY" by Kid LAROY & Justin Bieber; it’s not exactly my genre, but I love the awesome production and overall sound quality. I’m also listening a lot to the newest Foo Fighters album, and “Chasing Birds” is one of my favorite songs. 7- Do you listen to your own music? I listen to my own music a lot. As I said once on Twitter, if I can separate Matteo, the listener, from MicroMatscenes, the producer, that means the music is good enough for my standards, and I consider it to be a great achievement. 8- Which musician would you like to collaborate with next? I have some ongoing projects with the talented singer (and friend) Mayah Camara, so she’s definitely the one I’m gonna collaborate with in the near future. 9- What is one of your favorite memories so far in your music career? I think it’s the day I won the contest to join the Italian Air Force Band, when I finally got a lifetime job as a musician, after many years of study and sacrifice. 10- What advice would you give to someone that is just starting to get into music? I’d say there’s no easy path; many can be tempted by the “drag and drop” or “YouTube tutorial” philosophies… but nothing is like attending music schools, conservatories of Music, and taking lessons from experienced teachers and musicians/music producers. My ultimate advice is to surround yourself with people who are better than you, and never be too satisfied when somebody says “bravo!”: being “good” is just the beginning and then… "it’s a long way to the top if you wanna rock n’ roll"!
MicroMatscenes has music on Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Bandcamp and many other sites. Check out more pictures, music and videos on his profile page by clicking below.
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