To bring you closer to SALEM’s music program, we sat down with a young musician to tell us about his personal musical experience in SALEM. Sitting in front of us is Sebastian.

Hi Sebas. As one of the oldest stars of SALEM, you are no stranger to the musical project. Tell us a little about yourself, how old are you, what instruments do you play and how long have you been playing?

First of all I want to say that it is a pleasure to live in Mindo, I have been living here for 5 years, I had to emigrate from Venezuela when I was 13 years old due to the economic situation and the American oppression. The fact of adapting to live in a different place and with different people helped me to generate a feeling of humility, I recommend everyone to try it. I am 18 years old, I play guitar and recorder because that’s what I have along with my voice. I enjoy all 3 at the same level. I was in an orchestra all my childhood, but I started composing when I came here.

If you had to sum up your relationship with music in one sentence, what would it be?

Nourishing… Because it fills the soul and the hunger to create. The variety of dishes ensures an exquisite feast for all tastes.

If someone asked you for your recipe for good music, what would you answer?

Sentiment, message and interpretation. Otherwise you have a bland mix.

You’ve told us that you also do music and concerts outside of SALEM. Tell us about your performances so far – is there anything from you to listen to online?

Yes, we were called Young Souls and we made a potpourri of different musical influences, distorted by a lack of vision, time and courage. There is a demo album that you should release.

Of course, there is a lot of work and hours of practice behind this success. SALEM always tries to support its young musicians, how has it helped you to achieve your goals?

SALEM is what I had for company throughout my adolescence, needless to say that they helped me to overcome a very low moment in my life, that is what really inspired me to leave my fears behind, and if we talk about materials they were always there to provide all kinds of tools and tutorials. Thank you SALEM.

If you had to tell your friends one musical memory of SALEM, what would it be?

I would tell you that I had the opportunity to try many instruments in SALEM’s music classes and choose the ones I liked the most. Sometimes you don’t like all instruments in the same way and it’s your passion that decides for itself where to go.

Do you have plans for the future? If so, would you like to tell us about them?

Music will be with me all my life, I will create music that I want to share with others, and hopefully it will help me meet people and form bonds. That’s the most exciting thing, knowing that there are people out there to make music together. The rest is marketing.

What advice would you give to any young musician?

Let him listen to a variety of music, open his ears to new harmonies and open his heart to new experiences.

Thank you Sebastian, for giving us a glimpse into your musical world on SALEM. Hopefully we will soon be able to hear something of yours online.

Do you want to know more about SALEM’s musical project? Read more about the musical project and its objectives here.

If you would like to support Sebastian and the SALEM music project with a small donation, you can do so here.