Behind the piano: Jennie Löfgren

Behind the piano: Jennie Löfgren

A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by Jennies record company regarding her (then) upcoming release Dreamology. Except getting sent songs pretty much daily through Sumbithub, this was the first time I was contacted by phone regarding the blog. It felt kind of big!

A fun little anecdote is that I the day before got a call from a similar mobile number, but then it was those guys from india claiming they were from microsoft and wants to rescue your computer from some kind of virus… So I guess I didn’t sound so happy answering the phone when Jennies representatives called. Sorry for that!

Back to Jennie then!

Hi Jennie! Where are you from? And where do you live?
I was in born in Östersund, in the northern part of Sweden. When I was 18, I moved to Stockholm, where I still live today.

How long have you been playing the piano, and do you play other instruments as well?
My father was a musician so growing up,  we had a music room. I can’t even remember when I started playing the piano. I’ve always played the piano, haha!

I also play the flute, I sing and play a little bit of guitar and drums. I wish I knew how to play the violin or cello! It’s not too late to learn, is it?

(It’s not)

Tell us about how you started playing music. 
Playing the piano was something I did everyday, like breathing or eating. It was always there. I started playing the accordion at age 8 then I moved on to learning how to play the flute and then I started singing in a rock band at the age 12-13.

Foto: Stefan Lundaahl

Tell us something about that moment you realized you could make songs yourself!
I was very young and I had heard my father play a piano piece by Chopin. I started playing the beginning by ear but I couldn’t remember the rest, so I just made up my own ending. My own version of the song. 

That’s my first memory of realizing that I could actually write something myself.  A happy memory!

What are your favorite artists in this “piano genre”?
There are so many it’s impossible to answer,  but growing up there was a lot of Satie, Michael Nyman and Chopin and I think that sometimes comes through in my own music.

Is there one song which you play over and over again as soon as you sit down by a piano? Your own or someone else’s? 
Michel Nymans “The Heart Asks Please First” – I ALWAYS play that when I come to a piano.

What rules (in making music) needs to be broken?
I love to strive for simplicity (it is MUCH more difficult then making something weird and complicated) and then just when you think you know what’s gonna come, I do a little unexpected twist so it doesn’t become boring.

How do you record your music? Yourself? In a big studio? etc.
I record it myself in my studio. When it comes to the piano: I work with a mix of 2 sampled pianos and 2 real pianos. It’s the secret recipe for “my sound”.

Whats your take on sampled instruments?
I love them! But I always mix them with real instruments and musicians. I love the luxury of recording a real string orchestra and then adding a fat synth bass to maximize the sound. 

Anything else you want to share? 
Take a warm bath and listen to my personal favourite piano-pieces in my playlist Dream On Dreamer on Spotify.  

Thank you for sharing this with us Jennie!

For more information about Jennie and her music, please check out these following links:
Facebook / Instagram / Spotify