(Photo Credit: by Clemens Fantur)
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German singer, songwriter and instrumentalist Konstantin Gropper's music project Get Well Soon released their last album "Amen" few months ago and i think its really the best of the bands' 6 albums.
The album “Amen”, which he wrote and recorded during his isolation period in the vineyards of the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany, came into existence as a result of a journey in which the artist describes his search for good and evil, finding happiness, realizing the purpose of hope and his passion for optimism despite everything.
Get Well Soon will be at Zorlu PSM %100 Studio as part of Garanti BBVA Concerts on the evening of November 24th. And i had a great opportunity to chat with Gropper before his upcoming Istanbul concert.
Enjoy!
Hello Konstantin.Thanks for accepting this interview. How are you? What are you dealing with these days?
I am fine, thank you. Dealing with what’s going on in the world seems quite absorbing these days, unfortunately. But besides still feeling pretty privileged over here, I’m working on several projects. Mostly soundtracks for movies and TV, which is my other job, so to speak.
When we check the spotify's top listeners ,we see that Istanbul is in the 2nd place just after Berlin. What can you say about this, why do you think you are so much loved in Turkey?
Wow, I didn’t even know you could check that kind of information - you can tell, I’m not exactly a frontrunner in digital media, to say the least. But that’s fantastic news! I can say that the admiration is mutual - Istanbul is one of the most exciting cities I’ve been to. But to elaborate, why my music is liked, is very difficult. Would be great to know, though. I can say that my main goal is to make emotional music that touches people in a way. So it’s great to hear that the listeners in Istanbul seem to feel this emotional connection.
You will be in Istanbul once again on 24th November. Do you have anything in your mind about your last gig here? About the audience or the city?
We had a fantastic time at our last stay in Istanbul. We were even provided with a lovely personal guide who showed us around the city, which, again, was very impressive. At the gig I met a lot of great people and had interesting conversations about the Turkish art and music scene. I remember it being a very emotional audience. Which maybe explains my point above.
What do you feel about this concert? What's awaiting for us?
For us it will be the last show for quite a while. It’s the closing of the „Amen-cycle“ you could say. So it’s fantastic to celebrate that in your beautiful city. The Amen-Tour has been a especially emotional endeavor since it was after the long pause that Covid forced upon all of us. Of course this is still going on and the touring-situation is still very difficult. But the audiences as well as the band are very enthusiastic. You can feel that they had missed the experience of a concert. So of course, we hope to have this energy of hope at our show in Istanbul too. We’ll do our best!
Do you know anything Turkish music scene?
Not enough, of course. I really like Jakuzi. I also like Kit Sebastian and the pianiste Büşra Kayıkçı is certainly one the most interesting ones in the so called new-classical movement (which I normally don’t like). But I hope I get some tips for great Turkish music while I’m in Istanbul.
(Photo Credit: by Clemens Fantur)
Is there any specific venue or city that you like to play most?
Of course, in over 15 years on stage there a favorites and also the opposite, which I won’t mention. On the other hand, we’re always being surprised by cities and audiences. You can never tell by the looks and size of the venue if it’s going to be a great show or not. One of the great features of Get Well Soon is, that we get to play in very varying kinds of venues from small rock clubs to big classical concert halls. What I like the least are the „Hometown-shows“ - too many people I know, too much pressure! But having such fond memories I can’t wait to get back to turkey.
And which bands/musicians are you listening on these days?
Good question. I am in a one of my classical-music phases, that I have every two or three years. So classical music, mostly 20th century. I’m also a big fan of the post-rockband Arctic Monkeys. I’m very excited that there’s a new album and that they’re going further down that road. Also I’ve been listening to Kevin Morby a lot. But mostly old stuff - maybe it’s the midlife crisis calling.
Your first album released in 2008 and the last one this year. How do you think your musical sense evolved or changed among those years?
I always tried to do something new with every album. My worst fear is to repeat myself. So I really hope my musical sense evolved. But it’s more sideways movements than forward. I never tried to be in fashion - ,ist of my inspiration isn’t current. And maybe I’ve become less anxious about it all. I think „Amen“ sounds a lot more relaxed and humorous than the debut. But to be honest I haven’t listend to the first album in years. Once they’re done I try not to listen to my albums.
Your sixth album"Amen" released at the end of March. I absolutely think that its one of a masterpiece. Very individual album with strong lyrics. How are the reactions you receive? Can you tell us the writing and recording process?
Thank you very much. The reactions are very good indeed. Although I never read reviews and people are not that critical to your face. Thank got. But I think the idea of the album, it being kind of a feel-good album and dealing with hope, seems to work in a way. Some people say, that Get Well Soon was a bit too dark or serious in the past, but they like the new one. That maybe also reflects the recording-process. I tried not to „overthink“ it this time. It’s just music, that I thought was fun to do. It’s the most spontaneous album of mine and therefore also the one that I’ve made most quickly. That was part of the concept. For the lyrics I read books about hope, everything from high literature and philosophy down to the cheapest esoteric self-help-guides. Also about self-optimizing - a concept I always found equally fascinating and stupid.
Is there anything that you are so passionate about except music?
Yes, of course. It would be sad otherwise. Movies have always been my main source of inspiration. I also love to cook and try to do it daily (on different levels of complexity). But of course I’m most passionate about my family - almost forgot about that.
What are your plans for the near future? What's on your agenda?
I’m currently working on some soundtracks for movies and TV-series. I’ve been composing film scores for almost 15 years now and it’s a lot of fun. I’m also working on a commissioned orchestral piece on flowers and gardens, which will be performed next spring.
Thank you very much, is there anything that you want to add for your Turkish listeners?
Thank you. I hope to see a lot of you at our show in Istanbul! And thanks for listening to my music, which, I now know, you actually do.
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