Toon Callier (Belgium, 1983) studied classical guitar and chamber music at the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp. Afterwards he studied a 'master after master' in contemporary music at the conservatory of Ghent. His teacher was Tom Pauwels who is guitarist and artistic advisor of the Brussels based ensemble Ictus.
Toon plays both classical and electric guitar. On his repertoire you find music of Hans Werner Henze, Fausto Romitelli, Steve Reich, Lois V.Vierk, George Crumb, Larry Polansky… Toon is a founding member of the electric guitarquartet ZWERM, he works and worked as freelance musician with ensembles as Weekend, Fritzi und Heidel, Nadar, Ensemble Besides Champ d'Action and Brussels Philharmonic.
Which was the first and the last record you bought with your own money?
first: I'm not completely shure; probably Nirvana (unplugged), Greenday, The Cranberries or The Doors... last: Fred Frith Solo's
Guitars: Toon Callier and Nico Couck
What do you expect from music?
That it touches me in anykind of way, that I remember having listened to it...
Which work of your own are you most surprised by?
If I make something on my own or in a group I never know where it well end. So each time I'm surprised.
Vicky Wright (clarinet / bass clarinet), Toon Callier (electric guitar), Roderick Chadwick (electric organ / piano), Mark Knoop (accordion), Marcus Barcham Stevens (violin), Alex Waterman (cello), Matthew Shlomowitz and Joanna Bailie (auxiliary instruments)
What's the relevance of technique in music, in your opinion?
Whatever you want to do, you will need some kind of (classical, non-classical, self-invented,...) technique
What are the challenges and benefits of today's music scene?
I don't know. I think that's up to every individual artist to decide.
Toon Callier (guitar, Jutta Toch (harp), Jeroen Stevens (percussion)
How would you define silence? and noise?
1. When you can't hear a thing
2. When your hear a lot
Fritzi und Heidel sind Toon Callier (guitar etc.) und Jeroen Stevens (percussion etc.)
What are your motivations for playing music?
It's fun to do, you meet new people, you visit other countries, you can feel the exciting and tension on stage and you can call all that 'work'
HIlasterion, by Luc Houtkamp (2011)
Zwerm E-Guitar Quartet:Johannes Westendorp, Bruno Nelissen,
Toon Callier and Kobe Van Cauwenberghe, electric guitars
Zwerm E-Guitar Quartet:Johannes Westendorp, Bruno Nelissen,
Toon Callier and Kobe Van Cauwenberghe, electric guitars
What’s your next project about?
I'm making the music for a music theatre production called 'Bambi, my body keeps on growing but doesn't know whereto'. Music by Weekend
What do you recall about your playing learning process?
It's not that I stopped learning at a certain moment, so maybe I've learned that it's a constantly changing process
Nadar: Jutta Troch: harp/ Katrien Gaelens: flute/ Elisa Medinilla: piano/ Toon Callier: guitar
Which living or dead artist would you like to collaborate with?
Wes Anderson, Francis Allys...
Weekend is Bertel Schollaert (saxophone,...), Toon Callier (guitar,...).
What is some valuable advice that someone has given to you in the past?
A wise composer recently told me: 'Don't plan a concert in the week your girlfriend has to give birth to your child'
What do you like the most about being a musician?
Everyday is a bit different?
What projects are you working on now and what does the future hold?
I'm currently playing a guitar playing fox in a children's music theatre.
