We recently connected with Art Santora and have shared our conversation below.

Art, appreciate you joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I started playing the guitar after being bewitched by the sound of Stevie Ray Vaughan at the age of nine. I knew I would always play the guitar, and sought instruction with some of the finest teachers that I could find. Anyone interested in learning a craft should be so lucky as I was, to learn from eminent professionals from a wide range of backgrounds. it was a very well-rounded approach to learning music, and the instrument itself. The lessons that I took as a child, all the way up through my time at Berklee College of Music, continue to prove their relevance almost every day.

Knowing what I know now, I would’ve been much more proactive in my youth about seeking opportunities to perform and collaborate with other musicians. I have not always been sure what I wanted to
do, and have not been good about promoting myself. While I don’t have any regrets about this, I can’t help but think that my career would be much further advanced by now had I embraced more opportunities to learn from and collaborate with more musicians in the many vibrant communities in which I have lived. Some essential skills would be improvisation, adaptability, a knack for making connections and an ability to utilize the open space in a room full of sound. These are attributes I would consider paramount to any musician who wants to
succeed in collaboration with others.

Art, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I fell in love with the guitar and music in general at a very young age. In truth, I never had designs on a career as a musician until fairly late in the game. Playing the guitar is just one of many things I enjoy very much. I think it’s something of a shame that our society tends to pressure a person into making an early choice from among many hobbies or talents as to which might be the best foundation for a lifelong career, often to the exclusion of other equally worthwhile pursuits. I have been very lucky to make some friends and business connections along the way, who seemed to recognize something in me that I did not see in myself, and helped to foster those gifts.
These days I see myself not so much as an artist, but a professional gigging musician. I have a special fondness for studio work, as I feel it both nurtures my penchant for improvisation and creativity, and requires the degree of proficiency I’ve worked for decades to attain. My musical education, and ability to play a multitude of instruments at a professional level, along with my stylistically adaptable skillset and knack for coming up with good ideas on the fly have made me an invaluable asset to many recording projects. I am very proud of many of the fine recordings in which I have been blessed to take part, playing not only the guitar but also the bass, pedal steel guitar, lap steel guitar, banjo, dobro and mandolin. I am a singer as well! I am known as a player with the ability to provide that extra intangible essence to a song or a recording that makes the whole thing fit together, so to speak. I can make your recordings sound a lot more expensive than they might be in reality!

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

The answer to this question is, in my view, very easy to understand, but difficult to attain. In order to support creative’s in a thriving, creative ecosystem, the very value system of our country would need to change. We will spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on concert tickets to see our favorite artist, but most people can’t be bothered to go out and see a show in their own hometown to support a local musician or an artist, even one they may know personally! I’m not sure how to explain it, but it is a facet of our culture that has long befuddled and frustrated me. If you want to foster a thriving creative ecosystem, you need to support that ecosystem, not only with your attention and your time, but with your hard-earned money. Creatives have bills to pay just like everyone else, but for some reason, many of us seem to think that the most famous musicians and artists in the world were just born rich, famous and talented, while looking with derision or even pity at the up and coming artists who are struggling to make a name for themselves. This double standard is incredibly discouraging for the vast majority of creatives who may not even WANT to be rich and famous, if only they could find a way to support themselves and their families with their art. Unfortunately, we live in a time where an artistic life is becoming more and more untenable, unless you are a commercial powerhouse with the ability to make millions of dollars for non-creative industry gatekeepers. This is a direct result of the double standard I mentioned earlier, where people are happy to give thousands of their dollars to people who already have more money than they could ever spend, but pinch their pennies when it comes time to support the local unknown.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

This may end up sounding like a postscript to the answer I gave to the last question, but it bears reinforcement. Non-creative types would do well to understand that in the world we live in, which values profit and commerce over all other aspects of human life, the creative is very much in danger of being swallowed up and forgotten. As a people, we have traded creativity for commercialism, artistry for convenience. Books, movies, music, and visual artworks are understood by most creatives as the very essence of human life itself, while many non-creatives seem to understand these works only as products to be bought and consumed, no different than sneakers or sandwiches. Even the “art” that has proven to be successful has only attained that status by virtue of its commercial value, its ability to entertain masses of consumers whose attention spans seem to get shorter and shorter by the day. I would implore any non-creative person to take an inventory of all the types of art they consume, come to an understanding of the benefits they bring to their daily life, and imagine a world without art. If the executives controlling the platforms through which we consume media have their way, there’ll be no need to pay actors or artists ever again. AI-controlled computers will do all
the work, at which point, you will no longer have to imagine a world without art. You’ll be living in one. My question is,
will the consumers of art even know
the difference, or even care?

Contact Info:

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/artsantora

Image Credits
All images by Michelle Shiers