As I began proofing my interview with the amazingly talented Sara Mautone, artistic director of Antena Magazine, photographer, and music selector, I have to say, her answers struck a chord with me. It’s something I could feel coursing through her contribution for Digging Deep.
You see, outside our world, many things are tearing up whatever sense of the past we lived in. It’s something we’re all coping with. But here, in between a pair of headphones (or a pair of speakers) we can escape that heavy, listless world for one that’s a bit more intriguing, beautiful and, dare I say it: “hopeful”. It’s something that hit me a good while ago when she shared that first brilliant mix of hers with me.
Listening to it, it reminded me of what I think a great mix should do. A great mix, I think, requires more than just stringing a setlist together. I think it requires moving your audience somewhere with music. Now the where and the how you “move” that audience is where we make that grand connection to the universal song. However, whatever that is was, that mix had it. So, I had to ask Sara for an hour of her time.
Nothing pressing just be yourself, be freeform — that’s all I asked for. That she understood exactly what I meant, is exactly all I could ask for. As for me, I think others will enjoy what she has to offer. In this upcoming new year, here’s hoping for more wonderful, new discoveries exactly like Sara’s.
F/S: Can you share some thoughts behind this mix?
Sara Mautone: When I listened to your FOND/SOUND radio show for the first time I was fascinated by your research around these sophisticated and elegant pop tracks, as well by its ambient and ethereal atmosphere. I did my own selecting by choosing songs which could lead me to this imaginary feeling. So the mix came out in a very natural way.
I very much liked a term that you used to define this kind of vibe which was “deep easy listening”. This is exactly what I wanted to reach for here, and in general, as this is the main criteria I use to select and propose music for an audience. Tracks that everybody could listen to with pleasure, but at the same time have also some peculiar, interesting and twisted, elements that you can appreciate on a deeper level. Ah, and I put a lot of saxophone, but that is a different kind of love I cannot escape from!
F/S: What made you turn from music listener to DJ/selector?
Sara Mautone: It happened gradually. A few years ago I started a bi-monthly show on a new radio station in Milano, which (unfortunately) was a short experience because the radio closed after a while. During this time I started to put a lot of effort into research and the experience made me understand what I wanted to reach for with my own sound, and at that point I began to buy records. When I was in Hong Kong two years ago, I bought my first LP which was a beautiful one by Junko Ohashi, that I still play a lot! Then I increasingly gained confidence and knowledge, found people who share my vision, and started to play out with them.
I define myself more a selector than a DJ since my main focus is on “listening music”, but I also enjoy playing to a dance floor, in small and intimate situations, where people are capable of feeling and understanding my vibe. I’d like to say that this is just one of many ways I came to be a DJ.
F/S: Forgive the geeky question, but: How do you shop for music? Any favorite stores or sites or anything in particular you look for?
Sara Mautone: I buy 99% of my stuff on Discogs, since I’m focused on world music (mostly from Brazil and Japan as you can also hear from my mix), and in Italy is almost impossible to find these kind of records in a shop — or at least the interesting releases. I really miss that “physical” digging part, but when I go to Paris, I always visit Dizonord’s shop, that’s a special one! I also have to mention Gustavo Keno, he is a DJ and collector from Brazil with impeccable taste, who is helping me a lot with the records from there.
F/S: How do your other creative outlets – photography, design, etc. — feed this, other, musical side?
Sara Mautone: Actually, I feel it’s quite the opposite. I think it’s the music leading me to the visual part, in most cases. I never want to take much direct inspiration from other photographers in order to create something that is more personal: that’s why I prefer to surround myself with other kinds of art. And music is what really feeds my imagination. Most of my personal works are related to movement, dance, and dreamy atmospheres, all of which are strictly connected to the world of sound.
F/S: As a selector, what do you enjoy most about this form?
Sara Mautone: As a selector, I enjoy deeply the researching part, even if it can be long and challenging at times. But in the past year, as I began to play abroad, what I really enjoyed is travelling and meeting new people who share my same passion for music. Somehow, it always turns out we also share many other things in common!
Some of the DJs who invited me for gigs became friends, and I feel really lucky for that. Here I have to mention Holdtight from Paris and Chesney Tropicale from Köln, people of rare, vast culture. Quite simply, I had the best time with them.
F/S: Are there any artists, musicians, or creators you’d like to share from your own country, or elsewhere, that you absolutely love but haven’t seen spoken about?
Sara Mautone: Speaking about Italy, there is one, one of my favorite labels is called Dualismo Sound run by Andrea Dallera who brings to light obscure sounds from our country, mostly from the 80’s. I don’t buy reissues so much but this is special stuff. I recommend a listen to “Gruppo Sound-Dance Power” and “Meo- Fiesta”.
F/S: Where are you now and what are you up to (creatively/professionally), in this weird, new normal?
Sara Mautone: Last year I decided to create a platform to share my passions, so I started a project called Antena, where we get to showcase talents from the fashion and music industry. We’ve had amazing collaborations from the beginning and even now, even if we’re a bit slowed down by the pandemic, there is an exhibition programmed in the future where we’ll bring all of this into a “physical” dimension, hopefully in 2021.
At the same time I’m still working as photographer in the fashion industry and selecting a lot of records for upcoming mixes. I just can’t wait for my next musical trips!
Guest Mix by Sara Mautone
Tracklist:
Finis Africae – El Abrazo De La Selva
Masataro Naoe (直枝政太郎) – トロッコ
Lisa – De Janeiro
Hiroya Watanabe (ファントム無頼) – ウィング·マーク
Flora Purim – Maria Tres Filhos
Louis Chedid – Vive nous
Masaki Ueda (上田正樹) – 渚でジャパ
Mango – Sera Latina
Fernando Girao – Amor De Ministerio
Altay Veloso – Pèrola
Rie Miyazawa (宮沢りえ) – 心から好き
Fafa de Belem – Doce Misterio
Yumi Morio (森尾由美) – 森尾由美 だんだんジェラシー
Louisa Miller – Share The Love Around (Sax Version)