Studio-Phoenix Blogspot: Milica Paranosic: Q&A

This months cover featuring
a photo(K.K.W)from the opening
of "loft in the red-zone"

Milica Paranosic(Juilliard)@ "MC Mondays"
at GalleryMC

Musician, Teacher, Traveler, Composer, Performance artist, "Bird of Paradise". Milica Paranosic, All these things and so much more.

SP: Hello Milica, thanks again for taking the time for Q&A.

MP: Your welcome Kerwin, I'm very glad you liked my performance.

SP: It was wonderful, congrats on "MC Mondays".

MP: Thank you!

SP: When did you first decide to go forward with music?

MP: I started my music training (or rather, performance arts) by accident. When my older brother got enrolled into elementary school, I was so jealous and sad that my father enrolled me into a 'little school' in the neighborhood, just to get me to shut up. The 'little school' turned out to be a singing, acting and dancing school for little girls. Within a year, I was on stage, singing.

SP: Who or what are some of your early influences in music?

MP: My older brother not only (indirectly) paved my way towards music, but also had a huge influence on my music taste. When he bought The Beatles Red Album, I ran out and bought The Blue Album, the very next day. (it was the first record I've ever bought). My father bought us our first record player in the 70s and three 'singles' (the small old type records that spun on 45 speed). They were Strauss’ Waltzes and we played them at every lunch. You can imagine. 5 min tracks. Two per record. Two records. Countless one-hour lunches. That's a lot of repeats. Once I started composing, having been influenced presented a danger of copying that person’s style. Being a beginner is tough. You kind of know what you like and what you want to say with your music, but you have no vocabulary. So I tried really hard NOT to be influenced in my early composition stages. While secretly drowning in Satie and Ravel and Stravinsky and Bartok when no one was watching. Then I was covering it up in my own piece by timpani+trombones cluster openings that made everyone jump up in their seats. It cracked me up!

SP: You seem to be versatile when it comes to music, but what is the main area for you?

MP: I don’t believe in “main areas”.

SP: I'll be sure always to remember that:)

MP: I'll remember you said that:)

SP: When did you have your first performance, and how did it go?

MP: I was about 5; it was a closing concert of the year in the little school I was mentioning in the first answer. It went well, everyone though, but I personally wasn’t happy. In fact I was really mad at myself. I messed up the lyrics and sang the second verse twice! DISASTER. Everyone was telling me it made no difference and no one even noticed. But I didn’t believe them. I was sure they were just trying to make me feel better.

SP: Early signs of a perfectionist growing in an artist,

you gotta be hard on yourself.

MP: Not sure about the perfectionist part, but I like the rest:)

SP: I'll remember you you said that:)

SP: The string instrument you were using @ open mic launch, what is it?

MP: It’s called Gusle. It’s an old Serbian instrument used mainly to accompany storytelling. It is traditionally only used by men.

SP: It has a great sound and really adds vibrance to the set.

MP: Thank you!

SP: At what point did you start using the setup you did at open mic launch(the laptop, video imagery, etc)?

MP: The set-up evolved gradually over the last few years. My very first solo performance was called Confessions and was premiered in 2007 within the “soloNOVA” festival.

SP: How did the "Goddess Chronicle" start?

MP: It was a commission for the FERUS festival that took place two years ago at the Galapagos Art space. I changed it a lot since then, and it’s still a work in progress. The final version will have 7 pieces (currently 5) and will include costumes, masks, set-design and dance

SP: Milica, Thanks again fro your time.

MP: Your welcome Kerwin:)

SP: Milica Paranosic is a Graduate of Juilliard(Class of 1996-Masters in music composition & music technology). She teaches at the school and pursues various creative projects.

If you would like to know more, go to: www.facebook.com/milica.paranosic, www.milicaparanosic.com Article & Photos by K.K.W.
"Art is the reason, art is the way"