It’s been three years since we first chatted with Ethan Gontar about his music. I’m happy to state that in this interview spotlight, I catch up with Ethan discussing the latest release, surviving a pandemic and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Where are you from and how do You describe your style of music?
I’m from Israel, and Most of the songs I create is acoustic folk style, Electro pop, , Cover songs, and I’m composing original classical trailer music which includes a full orchestra, and a piano leading the track.
I really want to find a way to combine all this.
How did you get here? As in, what inspired or motivated you to take on this journey through music and the music biz?
Since I‘ve known myself, I always had the feeling that music can solve everything in life. I even did a first tattoo that shows how important and precious music is to my heart.
When I was a kid, my mom enrolled me in a piano class, I played for a few years, and then I decided I was going to switch to guitar. From sixth grade, I have not left my guitar to this day. Today I am 25 years old, playing the guitar, and I even went back to playing the piano a few years ago, and now I combine the two. Oh, and I even incorporated drums. With all these instruments I also incorporated choir lessons, but left it after a few years. As you can see, music has been rolling with me all my life.
How does your latest project compare/contrast with your previous release(s)? Were you setting out to accomplish anything specific, follow a specific theme, or explore different styles of creation?
I actually released an album full of classical music that I composed, where you can hear a piano with an orchestra in the background. Some with orchestra some without. These compositions are a big part of me. There is something beautiful about creating a melody without singing. But what’s for sure, my last single is very different from this album and also incorporates my vocals. My new single is called Say Goodbye, and it was written about something very sad that happened to me, but with a very happy and rhythmic beat. I’m happy to explore as many genres as possible, and I guess over time I will have a more uniform direction, although sometimes getting a little out of your comfort zone can do a lot of good.
LINK TO LAST SINGLE SAY GOODBYE: https://youtu.be/dsIEltviPWo
Name the biggest challenge you faced as a creative during these unprecedented? How did you adapt? How have you kept the creative fires burning during all this?
I guess the covid 19 period, everyone thought with themselves ahead. As a musician, you are very hurt by this. But not me. I sat with myself, and I thought and thought where I want to go with all this, where I want to invest more, what audience I want to appeal to. I gained a lot of insights, and this time further reinforced to me the fact that music is my whole life. The music made me go through this period, and it will make me go through more periods.
What was the last song you listened to?
The last song I listened to was Awake by Tycho. One of the artists, to me, that can combine dream and reality.
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? 8-tracks? Cassettes? CDs? MP3s? Streaming platforms?
Ha. I’ll give you the same answer I gave you in our last interview here, and the same answer my dad gives me. CD‘s. You have to see my dad’s closet, full of CD‘s from a lot of bands and a lot of genres, some are still alive today and some are no longer, and of course, I grew up on them. I would even say that the music hit me because of it. Therefore, I will always prefer the way it all started.
Where is the best place to connect with you and follow your journey?
The best way to keep up with everything I do today, is through my Facebook and Instagram page.
https://www.facebook.com/EthanGontarOfficial
https://www.instagram.com/ethangontar/
I really appreciate Your time. Anything else before we sign off?
Wow. First of all it’s great to talk to you again almost after 3 years.
I’ll tell you and your readers that I’m always researching and trying to create things I did not create, and there is really no knowing where I will end up with my music. So right now I might be in the electro-pop mood, and in about half a year I’ll be back to composing more original classical tunes, and then maybe I’ll be back to creating acoustic folk music. Another genre that really interesting for me to try is downtempo and ambient. A little secret between us and the readers? I have the greatest inspiration to create in the winter. Oh, its now! I’m going back to the studio.
