Music: Winter Roses: Music inspired by the Holidays
Adam writes:
Yep, it can get confusing–God knows what I went through figuring out how to label the artist for your older albums on my Zen!–so that’s a good idea. Jon and the rest of the band don’t mind not being credited?
Well, there has never been a band. Not in the sense that a group of people make artistic decisions or write music together. In 1990 I was searching for a name to hide behind. I wanted to be outside the picture and went so far as to wear clothes on stage that I would not wear day-to-day. I wanted to make a clear distinction between Ottmar the performer and Ottmar the person.
I obviously failed. I didn’t decide on the name Luna Negra, after a poem by Federico Garcia Lorca – also see this funny post from 2001 – until after Nouveau Flamenco was already released. So by the time Borrasca came out, after the success of Nouveau Flamenco, my name had to be included and the album was credited to Ottmar Liebert + Luna Negra. Anyway that period lasted until about 1992, when I realized that I wasn’t a circus performer who wears costumes.
Anyway, when it comes to my music I am a benevolent dictator. I may ask for opinions, especially Jon whose work I admire and who has been with me since the beginning in 1989, but I make the decisions. So, listing everything under my name seems like the logical step in order to simplify searches.
You grew with it. And became more self-confident. That’s nice.
It will most likely make things clearer for the person purchasing your music in any venue. A good friend of mine loves your music, has gone to see your performances and mentioned that he didn’t know who Luna Negra was. I can see us having another conversation over who is “Luna Negra and Ottmar Liebert”. My friend will have to read your posts. It may be better to simplify, this way you do not have to press the pause and rewind buttons for explanations.