LYRIA Musicians Talk About Their First Experiences With Their Instruments

The thrist for music is soon to be discovered. Some already discover it in childhood, through imaginary instruments, others with the help of television wish to be on stage like their idols. With the musicians from Lyria, a metal band from Brazil, it was no different. Aline Happ (vocal), Thiago Zig (bass), Rod Wolf (guitar) and Thiago Mateu (drums) use their stories to lead rock fans to dedicate themselves to an instrument, making dreams come true.

Some points in the stories of those who fall in love with an instrument are common: the first contact with music happens through some mass media, and friends or family are essential for the first steps in the area. The singer, Aline Happ, found with Disney the inspiration for the first steps in music. In love with the princesses and with “Willie, the Singing Whale”, she started singing in her childhood, with toy microphones and karaoke. At first, she even thought about playing the guitar, but, instead, decided to go on as a vocalist.

“In my teens, I discovered several symphonic metal bands that really made me follow this path. I took classes in lyrical and popular singing, and today I mix the two techniques, it is something in which I identify myself the most.”, explains Aline.

In the case of Zig, the first instrument to be chosen was the drums, which drew the attention as a boy listening to the radio in the mid 80’s and 90’s. “In my teens, I listened to a lot of Rock and Heavy Metal with my friends. That’s when my first band started, formed before anyone knew how to play an instrument (laughs). I wanted to play the drums, but my bandmates convinced me to go for the bass”, recalls Zig, who found the first amplifier in the trash.

Rod Wolf’s first guitar was of one of the worst Brazilian brands and had to go through the pagode. I explain: his first instrument was a guitar, which was accompanied by a magazine of chords with the “classics” of the popular genre, similar to samba.

It was from his adolescence that, watching clips on MTV, Rod decided to play the guitar. At the time he lived in Brasília (DF), and through the culture of playing guitar with friends, he learned the first tunes. Over the years he was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), went through several teachers, and ended up improving his technique alone.

Also influenced by friends, Thiago Mateu has played imaginary drums since he was 12 years old. This was because he had never seen the instrument personally, it was just in his imagination, inspired by the image of Dave Grohl “smashing” two cymbals. At the age of 15, he won his first drum kit as a gift, and from then on he started playing it for real. Today, in addition to acting as a professional drummer, he is also a drum teacher, helping to teach the instrument for students with special needs.

Four musicians, with different stories, came together for the love of music. Whatever it is, the important thing is to follow the music if this is your true passion. Search for knowledge, explore your path and just feel the music.