Summer with 'Alchemy': An Interview with Scott Higham
1. How did your adventure with 'Alchemy' start?
Scott: Clive told me he was working on a new musical directly after we did 'She' together. He made it clear he wanted me to play drums on 'Alchemy' at the beginning and I was very excited when I first heard the demos. I knew this would be more of a musical than 'She' and the way it was written was different too. Also, this was completely Clive's idea/story from his own imagination, which made it very interesting.
2. How did your work routine look like while recording the album and preparing for the Katowice concert?
Scott: Recording in the studio was fantastic. Clive and I have a great working relationship, which comes to life when we start recording any music together. Practice/rehearsals before the show were great fun. We did two days with just musicians, then two days with the vocalists... (I understand the vocalists also did various singers rehearsals too). We were all concentrating hard and everyone got their parts together so professionally.
3. Do you expect the theatre version of 'Alchemy' in Cheltenham to be more difficult than the Katowice show?
Scott: No, it will not be anymore difficult (just the same difficulty), as the drums will be exactly the same parts as I played in Katowice. There will be two big differences in the full version in Cheltenham: firstly, I will be playing a Roland TD15KV electronic drum kit & not my big acoustic kit, and secondly, all the musicians will be playing in the orchestra pit at the front of the stage (like a traditional musical). So I guess there will be other issues to sort! Like being so close to the audience!
4. Do you think 'Alchemy' will affect your future career and did your past musical experience help in the 'Alchemy' project?
Scott: Ok. I can never say what will happen in the future, or how 'Alchemy' will effect my musical career, but of course I do hope that my career continues to grow. I guess doing shows like 'She' and 'Alchemy' helps to show yet another side of my playing, so that is a great thing. This is my full time career, so I am always open to suggestions for playing on various projects, some of which I have already done after doing 'She'. (Alan Reed's album for example). There are already other projects lined up, so for that I am very thankful to these shows and Clive for giving me the opportunity.
The second part of your question is interesting. I think most musicians would say their previous musical activities have helped and facilitated in their current projects. The more you are involved in this business, the more comfortable you become in those recording and live performance situations and hopefully the better you are at doing it!
Even after all these years I always learn something new in the studio or live. It's also very beneficial to use your experience in these situations too.
5. I know this was not your first visit to Poland... How will you remember this one?
Scott: Yes, I have been lucky enough to visit Poland various times and I have many different memories from each trip. This visit will be remembered for the following: the snow and freezing cold temperature; the long trip (2 flights and a coach trip both ways); the amazing audience reaction to the show... awesome!; and the fantastic team spirit in the cast & crew.
