Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past decade, you’ve probably heard of one of Malta’s leading bands, Red Electrick. Rocking the keyboards is Aleandro Spiteri Monsigneur, who has a surprise in store! The talented 19-year-old is set to release his own music this Saturday, 15^th December.

Aleandro takes me back to where it all began. “I initially played sports, but then I started piano lessons at around the age of 10 or 11 and committed fully. Eventually I realised I had to choose either one or the other. It all became more serious when I had my first gig with Red Electrick when I was 16, and ever since, I’ve been much more active and immersed in what I do.”

Aleandro says that this is a solo project which he’s working on aside from being the keyboardist for Red Electrick. “The piece I’ll be releasing is called ‘A song about loss,’ a piece written in minimal style, piano-based and ornamented by strings and other atmospherics.” He says he’s not sure where it all came from and says “it’s hard to find the appropriate language to cope with anything or anyone we’ve lost. So, the cliché ‘music speaks when words cannot’ really applies here.”

When asked about his influence, Aleandro immediately gushes about his first piano teacher, Mr Genovese. “He exposed me to a side of art – not just music – in which it becomes less about the destination and more about the process. He also always stressed on not lining up behind what’s cool and current but sharing what you’re truly passionate about, even if people aren’t into it at the moment.”

Along with the new release, a music video was shot with a very interesting concept. “Shot by Matthew Muscat Drago, the idea is taking a lot of ‘ordinary’ and day-to-day shots and slowly zooming in. The video was shot in New York, Washington, Philadelphia, Moscow, St Petersburg and Malta.” Aleandro explains that he won’t be featuring in the music video, putting a spotlight on the visuals and acoustics. I know what you’re thinking. Did Matthew go to all those countries just for Aleandro?! “No, no! He didn’t go purposely for my music video. He’s on a filming trip and offered to shoot in the meantime.” What a legend!

Going for a classic question, I asked Aleandro which famous person (dead or alive) he’d opt to dine with if he had the chance. “I’ll probably go to dinner (and while we’re at it, I’d definitely ask for a jam session) with Bill Evans, one of my favourite jazz pianists. His harmonic inventions manage to leave me in awe every time!”

So, what’s next for the talented youngster? “Apart from the single, a number of other tracks are ready, so the next step is to continue writing to eventually have a good number to choose from for an album launch! Another track will probably be out early next year, so stay tuned!”

You can pre-save the song on Spotify here and watch Aleandro’s teaser here:

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A post shared by Aleandro Spiteri Monsigneur (@monsigneur_) on Dec 11, 2018 at 1:00am PST