A while back I wrote about the track The third era by Yes It’s Ananias and today we go Behind the piano to get to know the person behind the project a bit better!
What’s your real name?
Nicolas Sacha Streichenberg III.
How did you come up with your artist name?
In the Bible (the coolest story book ever) there are three different Ananias’ Stories. Listen to my second record and find out which one I got attached to.
Where are you from? And where do you live?
I am originally from planet earth, which I haven’t left yet. Maybe one day who knows. Currently living in Switzerland, a so called “Free Region”.
How long have you been playing the piano, and do you play other instruments as well?
I play Piano for myself since 4 years old. If you trust analog photography, there is a picture of me and my granddad who’s holding me tightly when I fit into Pampers.
Tell us about how you started playing music.
I think I always was making bambams and dung dungs. So rhythm really was the first thing that hit me. Never left me. I play piano in a very sarcastic way. Sometimes The Piano tames a wild man, and sometimes it’s the other way around. I used to play in a Artrock Band for over 10 years and find myself at the roots of my genuine me and fingerstyled music: The Piano Keys. Now a new era is commencing and i find myself happy trying to put out 100% from the inner to the outer sphere. It’s also a risk of course.
How long have you been making piano music?
I sit on the piano and record for over 18 years, but only about now I’m really putting all my work into Solo Piano Music and experiment with Improvisation and Tour.
Tell us something about that moment you realized you could make songs yourself!
A cow fell into the pool in the 70’s house of my grandparent’s. Then I, for the first time, wrote english lyrics for it that were like poems. i was soft and charming 15 years old.
What are your favorite artists in this “piano genre”?
Currently i find myself in the great prog era with all kind of artists, like Rick Wakeman, Keith Jarrett, Joel Rehmann, Paula Präktig, Malakoff Kowalski, Chilly Gonzales and of course: Ken Hensley of Uriah Heep.
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?
Currently I’m trying to master Treizeta, as it’s just been an accident that I overcome technical issues and not to forget, the very sporty aspect of that new single. I was playing myself in trance with 43 attemps to improvise a theme, in the end I chose take 41 or so. My proudest moment is definetely Treizeta in the past couple weeks. It’s something that I’ve never done before and worked really hard to achieve such intensity and virtuosity. My bass hand almost broke.
What rules (in making music) needs to be broken?
The rules that there are rules. Music is a system that controls your body, therefore there are no rules to observe or correct your body. It’s all flow and genuine delateral prefrontal cortext activity that ruins your believes and doubts to fully follow a script.
How do you record your music? Yourself? In a big studio? etc.
There is nothing I haven’t yet tried. Maybe underwater recordings I haven’t done, allthough my producer Martin Hofstetter, who is known for his Theater/Big Stage/Opera House FOH-Work and Engineer-Techniques, has made recordings with hydrophones…
Anything else you want to share?
I feel that we live in a world that is too connected. We do know too much of everybody else and loose touch with the inner self. how would a world look like if you only care what others feel, think, look, do, work, if you have no reference and no single clue about how you feel for yourself? In the today’s world we need to learn to detach. And that there is no time. There will always be time. But that’s future. Enjoy the moment and take care of yourself, only then you a re a useful help for others. You are your own atomic powerstation and if you learn to give to yourself, you will appreciate what’s there to be given to others. Value love that is naturally amongst us all. There is never enough time, so don’t worry. But there is always enough love. Therefore, enjoy my singles, upcoming studio record and see you on the otherside of the year. 2022 will be a fabulous one. Wake up! We live in the glamorous 20’s! Love as much as you can. Come to my shows, listen to my music and support your local everythings. Bandcamp is cool too. Peace.
The last question is asked by my 7 year old son:
Where do all your songs come from?
From my 7 year old myself. And that’s why I make music, It’s an obedience to my inner child that has the reflection of the world as I saw it back then. When I play my concerts I try to touch your inner child to let it revive days where we worried less. This world is moving so fast. But aren’t we human the motor of it? You got the keys to it. I got mine. 88 of them.
Thank you Nicolas!