Massimiliano Pagliara: 10 Moments That Shaped His 20 Years in Music

Photos by: Paul Mpagi Sepuya

“It’s crazy if I think about 20 years of being in music,” laughs producer and DJ Massimiliano Pagliara. “It’s a long time, but somehow it feels as if I’ve just started out.” 

Fresh from a Panorama Bar session with a live orchestra, Massi’s energy shows no signs of abating as he reflects on how he’s got to this point in his musical career. Initially drawn to choreography and dance, it was a move to Berlin during the 2000s and subsequent immersion in the city’s nightlife that changed everything.

“There are all these different chapters of life, this evolution and development, so this new release is very special in capturing where I’ve been,” he says on his new compilation. 

The celebratory 20 years of Massimiliano Pagliara: Selected Unreleased Works is full of unheard music and showcases Massi’s ability to turn his hand to any flavour of electronic music. Featuring Snax, Ben Holz, Aérea Negrot, Alinka, Kid Simius and many more, its impressive scope takes in Italo disco moments to more thumping house and techno. 

As Massi gears up for the release and a full-on year of touring and DJing, he shares ten defining moments in his musical life…

1. Hearing and seeing Aphex Twin’s ‘Come to Daddy’ 

In Milan, I wasn’t really into electronic music; instead, hip hop and indie music were more my thing. The turning point was seeing the ‘Come to Daddy’ video by Chris Cunningham for the Aphex Twin track. I didn’t know who Aphex Twin was until then, and it blew my mind. The video, the music, it was super inspiring. 

I started buying lots of music, artists like Autechre, Mira Calix, Boards of Canada, this was the introduction to this new world to me. I was studying dance and began  using these sounds for my own choreographic work.

2. Falling in love with Berlin

There were clubs in Milan but I only started to appreciate house and techno when I moved to Berlin. I first came in 2000, it was Christmas and I just fell in love with the city. It felt so different from Milan, there was so much space, so much freedom. I eventually moved in 2001 once I had completed my studies.

I’ve now lived in Berlin for 25 years, and the city and scene have gone through many different phases. When I first arrived, there was this real rawness. I remember walking through the city and seeing all these rundown and abandoned factories.

It still has something very unique and the city continues to attract so many people who are searching for freedom, alternative ways of living and creating new queer parties like Cocktail D’Amore, Homopatik, Buttons, Pet Shop Bears and the latest Power Dance Club.

Berlin is different and more gentrified but there is still this desire to reinvent, there is still plenty of excitement and things are still possible. 

3. Embracing rave culture 

I was only 23 and loved music and dancing, so I explored Berlin’s nightlife. I’d train during the day, then go out almost every night of the week. 

I met so many musicians and DJs, I was hanging out with them all the time, watching how they would be spinning records, until I asked if I could try. Of course, it was a disaster, but I was always intrigued. Then in 2006, I decided to quit dance and focus on music. 

It wasn’t easy - I had this guilt after dedicating so much work into it. But I realised there was no reason to feel like this. When you are a creative person or an artist, your journey is never a straight line. You start somewhere, then life takes you into unexpected territories. 

4. Embedding choreography in electronic music  

All the time I spent learning choreography taught me to understand rhythm, this energy that I tried to recreate when I DJ. 

When I’m sitting in the studio working on a new track, I approach the arrangement almost like I’m building a choreography. There is a deep connection there - choreography made me sensitive to atmosphere and storytelling and that has always been embedded in my music. 

5. Meeting Daniel Wang 

Until I met Daniel Wang, I had no idea about synths or drum machines. He was one of the first people I met in Berlin. We became close friends, he invited me to his place, and explained how synths like the Roland SH101 worked. 

I became obsessed and developed this crazy thing for hardware, especially old analogue machines. I started learning about them and buying machines on eBay. Daniel was the starting point, but I was lucky enough to meet other people here in Berlin who introduced me to this world, also DJs like Nd Baumecker, Boris, and musician Jules Etienne – one of my mentors that showed me a lot of things about music production.

6. Understanding dance music via the piano 

I’m self-taught on the piano. I never went to a music school or learned an instrument, but when I decided music was what I was going to do, I took piano lessons for three years. I needed to understand the basics of music and harmony. I have lots of discipline and the patience to take something on like this, you need a lot of it with music.

I didn’t want to have this random approach to making music; I needed to know what I was doing. So I can’t play Chopin, but I know my way around a keyboard. 

7. Celebrating 20 years of music

I’ve always liked finishing and releasing music, but I also knew there was a lot of unfinished material on my old hard drives. I dug into this, heard this material and found it so interesting, so naive and experimental. The collaboration with Aérea Negrot is particularly special; she passed away a few years ago, and I thought it was important to finish this as a tribute to her artistry and beautiful persona. 

The collaboration with Snax is another highlight; we did this funky jam session, and I’m obsessed with how he plays keyboards. I found it and decided we had to finish it, it’s of such a specific time when I was so curious about new instruments and machines. I loved listening back to this music and remembering all these stories. 

8. Finding your own voice 

When I started out, I was very influenced by the artists I loved. Naturally, I wanted to emulate these tracks, but over the years, I came to understand that the most important thing is to really embrace your own voice, sensitivity, and personal experience. Over time, that became more and more natural - sometimes I wish I'd understood that earlier. 

9. Don’t compare yourself to others

You try to compare yourself to artists you like, you think you have to be like them, and, as some are more successful, you should be as successful as them or move at the same speed.

But this isn’t true; your journey as a creative is very personal. You have your own time to achieve things. It might take longer, but this is how it is. 

10. Community and human connection are key

A lot of the most magical moments and most meaningful moments have come through friendships and shared experiences on the dance floor, and party talks.

I’m a firm believer that these connections have shaped me as much as the studio has.

20 years of Massimiliano Pagliara: Selected Unreleased Works is out now via Funnuvojere Records.

Get it on Beatport.