By: Nikta Nouraei
Friday December 21, 2018

If you’ve ever had a class with Mr.Noce, you would know that he LOVES music. If you want to know a little more background on his love for music, here’s the article you’ve all been waiting for! Scroll down below to read the Q&A

On Friday December 21, 2018, on behalf of YM Highlights we interviewed Mr.Noce on the topic of music. We all know how much he is passionate about his music so we got a little insight from him and the music he adores.

1. When did you get into music and what or who got you into it?

“Well probably my mum, who bought me my first stereo system when I was  kid. I was probably around 8 or 9 years old. I remember she bought me two records, one was a 45 (it’s like one song on one side, one song on the other side and plays a 45 RPM – rotation per minute), and it was a Stevie Wonder disc. And then he bought me an LP of Elvis Presley, called “Burning Love” (the full album. And that got me into music, I started discovering this all- and that was probably in like 1974 something like that.”

2. What is your favourite genre of music and why?

“Well I really don’t have one favourite genre, that’s the thing, it’s very collective. I love rock, punk, jazz, classical, a little bit of everything!”

3. Who is your favourite Musician/Artist, and why?

“My favourite composer is classical Anton Bruckner, German composer, really amazing. My favourite rock performer is probably David Bowie, it’s just from way back then. My favourite in terms of jazz, there’s so many, but I’ll just pick Billie Holiday, the singer. I could go on, in punk, probably The Clash.”

4. Is there an artistic icon in your family that you grew up with? If so, explain about them and how they have affected you

“When I was a kid, this is way before Internet and Computers and all the rest, my parents would go to the Toronto Public Library and take out Opera records every Sunday- and they would play the whole Opera all afternoon. To me it was torment, it was torture, I really couldn’t stand it I was like God, when I grow up I’m never going to listen to Opera, and I love it to this day. That and somebody, I would say, Frank Sinatra, they would listen to. Opera and Frank Sinatra, and those are the two things I have sworn I would NEVER listen to when I grew up and I love it to this day. So I think that stayed with me for very long.”

5. Which artists have you met and which encounter did you like the most? (as a person)

“I’ve met quite a few, but I would say probably there’s a guy in the Faces; the Faces was a band in late 60’s, late 70’s with Rod Stewart and a bunch of others. His name was Ian McLagan, and he played the keyboards in the band called the Faces, and he also plays for The Rolling Stones, and I met him after a concert, and he was the nicest guy and the greatest storyteller. I actually have a picture of myself with him in my office.”

6. Do you compose any music or do you sing?

“No- well, badly, yes. My wife, she’s a wonderful singer and she plays the guitar as well, not me.”

7. What do you enjoy most about music?

“Well music does a lot of different things, I mean I sometimes play it for relaxation, I play it because I like something in the background, sometimes I play it when I’m either frustrated or I’m happy- I just need something to go with my mood. I think it ties in with memories, like everybody listens to a piece of music, it reminds them of something in their lives, like a good moment in their lives. That’s why people get very nostalgic when they listen to a piece of music and they say ‘oh well that reminds me of when I was  kid I used to go to school dances or reminds me of when I was happy or sad in y life’. Also iPod for Memory project: it’s for people suffering from dementia. So to stimulate their memories, what they do is they get an iPod of all the music that they grew up listening to (so the family members will provide that), and hopefully the doctor’s hope is that when they play the music, it’ll stimulate memory and they’ll remember things that at this point no longer can. So that’s a wonderful tool music is: to help with memory.”

8. How has music changed your lifestyle and job?

“Well, I love playing music, I always play it in class. But also to sooth the mood, just for working in class. But also, it’s part of everything I do, I workout to music, when I’m in the car I listen to music, when I meditate I listen to music, it’s a part of everything I do, I can’t isolate it into one area. Probably as babies, when we’re still in the womb, we’re absorbing sounds all the time, we’re absorbing sound waves. Actually, doctors have said ‘this little fetus absorbs sound waves’ and we’re programmed early to respond to sound.  That’s why music is such an important part of our lives. I really don’t think I’ve ever met anybody who says that they don’t like music or they hate music. I just think it’s part of our environment. It’s always about sounds and how we react to sounds and rhythms.”

9. Do you focus more on melody or lyrics in a song?

“It depends who it is. If I listen to Bob Dylan, then definitely more on the lyrics because he’s not a great singer and the music is sometimes very simple, it’s very basic. If I’m listening to a classical piece, then of course there are no words generally, uness it’s Opera. Like I was mentioning Bruckner, the german composer, his Symphony number 9 is one of the most beautiful pieces, because when I listen to it, it’s three movements; the first move is like the magic of birth, the second movement, which is very fast, is about life and all the craziness of life that we go through And then the end, it’s almost like going back to where you started, receding into death and it’s very quiet and just sort of a nice ending.”

10. Music has evolved for quite a long while now and they have changed tremendously. What are your thoughts about this? Do you like the change or no; can there be improvements?

“I just think music is always coming back. One thing I disagree about with many of my friends when they say there’s no good music today- you know, they all say ‘oh yeah we had great music growing up, we listened to the Stones, Led Zeppelin, that was when music was music’. But I say what are you talking about, there’s great music all the time! Just in the last month, I’ve discovered three bands, two from toronto- one called the fast romantics, one called the beaches which is an all female band. And one band called the interrupters from LA who are fantastic, and it is good if not, better than what I grew up with. There is good music all the time.”