Celebrating his 50 years, Norwegian bassist and composer Ingebrigt Haker Flaten assembles a band of diverse background and superb musical skill to tell his story as a tribute to the people, music and places that have shaped him, a work commissioned by Vossajazz and presented as six destinations including Trondheim, Chicago, Mexico City, &c.; a profound and amazing journey in music.
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Ingebrigt Haker Flaten-acoustic bass, electric bass, compositions
Mette Rasmussen-alto saxophone
Atle Nymo-tenor saxophone, Bb clarinet, bass clarinet
Eivind Lonning-trumpet
Oddrun Lilja Jonsdottir-vocals, electric guitar
Oscar Gronberg-piano, keyboards
Veslemoy Narvesen-drums, percussion
Olaf Olsen-drums, percussion
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UPC: 7033662095797
Label: Odin
Catalog ID: ODIN 9579CD
Squidco Product Code: 31462
Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2021
Country: Norway
Packaging: Cardboard Gatefold 3 Panels
Recorded live at Studio Paradiso, in Oslo, Norway, on March 23rd to 27th, 2021, by Jorgen Smadal Larsen.
"Quest for a sound: A story of progress and resistance, love and homesickness
You can imagine the journey of Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, bass player and composer, as an odyssey in a Viking ship of classic 'knarr' construction, with its long range, high speed and strong seaworthiness in a storm. His story can also be told purely in music, as he does in the commissioned work (Exit) Knarr. The piece is divided into six destinations along the route - a tribute to the people, music and places that have shaped him.
'Miles Ave'. Ingebrigt has always chosen the path of greatest resistance. Many of his bass playing colleagues reckon playing with gut strings is like trying to run a farm with a horse and cart after you've bought a tractor. The sheer willpower and physical effort required to make his instrument sing are clearly audible in the music. Another self-imposed stumbling block is the difficulty of getting work in a foreign country - but Ingebrigt has steadily worked his way towards finally obtaining the holy grail - his very own Green Card. After living for a while in the USA, a combination of music and love led him to Austin, Texas, where he spent the longest time in one place in his whole life. He got married and divorced there. He formed his band the Young Mothers, and founded the Sonic Transmissions festival. Both the group and the event carry the unmistakable Håker Flaten signature: desire and longing, zeal and melancholy, inspiration and a sweaty passion to communicate. Listen to the moment, two minutes and ten seconds in, when he kicks everything off. The tears will start running down your cheeks two minutes later, as Eivind Nordset Lønning reaches for the heavenly high notes - damn, is this what hope sounds like?
'Brinken'. In the summer before he began studying at the influential jazz course at Trondheim's NTNU University, he encountered two of the musicians who have stayed with him his whole life: Håvard Wiik and Paal Nilssen-Love. Together they formed Element, and later Atomic. With Paal and Mats Gustafsson he started the trio The Thing. With these, as well as bands like The Source and Bugge Wesseltoft's New Conceptions of Jazz, he has circumnavigated the globe many times. Trondheim was where he came face to face with the acoustic bass for the first time. His teacher got him hooked on Looking at Bird, the 1981 album where Niels Henning Ørsted Pedersen and Archie Shepp teamed up to interpret Charlie Parker tunes. Ingebrigt learnt the whole thing by heart, and became a jazz player in 1992. When he moved to Oslo in 1995, he tried to find peace by joining the Hare Krishna movement, breaking away from his Protestant upringing. He would wake up in the middle of the night to bake bread and meditate in the temple. Eventually he moved on. The journey is the adventure, and all his discoveries while searching for the sound feed into the music. 'Brinken' contains traces of Hermeto Pascoal, Ligeti and Gil Evans. Brinken is also his new home in Trondheim - a move precipitated by a confluence of factors connected to the pandemic and his personal life.
'Håkkåran'. Come home to Håkkåran, urged his family. When it was clear the borders were about to close, he was on a teaching assignment in Javeriana University in Bogotá. After a hasty stop-off in Austin to grab a few belongings from his Miles Avenue apartment, he found himself a couple of hours later sitting on a plane with a one-way ticket to Norway. He initially thought he would be able to return after a few weeks, but instead he found a whole new life beginning. He came back to his 90 year old mother, Åse, still living on the farm he left as a 17 year old prospective musician. His motivation to set out on this neverending journey was partly inspiration and partly a desire to escape. Escape from the pain of feeling excluded; inspiration to chase down his own unique sound. It started with piano lessons with a strict but friendly neighbor. He didn't take to the instrument, and quit. He also tried guitar, but quit that too. Eventually he was offered the opportunity to take over as electric bassist in Credo, a children's gospel choir. His twin brother Åsmund, born 20 minutes after Ingebrigt, also joined as the group's pianist. The current bassist taught him to play the bass line in Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean'. At the age of 12, he had found his calling. A few years later he was playing in the fusion trio NEON, who were heavily influenced by Mezzoforte and Koinonia. In 1986 they won a local teen band competition.
A few seconds can change a life - such as the few seconds when Palle Danielsson hands over his solo to Keith Jarrett, three minutes into 'Country', on Jarrett's album My Song. These are seconds which Ingebrigt has listened to over and over again, the same way I have listened repeatedly to the transition from Ingebrigt to Oscar Grönberg in 'Håkkåran' - the most romantic track he has ever written. The piece is inspired by the popular Norwegian song 'Skigardsvise' and the Afro-Colombian currulao tradition, in 6/8 time with the accent on the second and fifth beat. Norwegian pastoral romanticism meets Latin American rhythms - a hybrid that only someone with Ingebrigt's experience could pull off, I thought, before getting lost in the guitar tones of Oddrun Lilja Jonsdottir, sounding as if Marc Ribot had grown up in Ethopia. After hearing it a few times, you really notice the clapping. Olaf Olsen and Ingebrigt clap in a two-against-three pattern, just the way the bassist learnt it at the Norwegian residential high school he attended after leaving the farm with musical dreams. Everything is connected; everything has its place in the grand scheme.
'À La Lala Love You'. Chicago, 2006: Ingebrigt relocates for love, but stays for the music. The title is a love letter to Chicago, its music and the musicians who helped form him; but also, perhaps, a tribute to the Pixies track 'La La Love You', and to the ride cymbal. Olaf (left channel) and Veslemøy Narvesen (right channel) swing their own patterns on the ride, but never trip each other up. On the contrary, they complete each other's musical sentences as if they had grown up together, even though this studio date was the first time they had played in the same room. Screw your communications course - dig this instead! They raise the group to a new level, so when the wind gets under Atle Nymo's wings in one solo, I had to play it three times in a row before I could go on, and then I had to hear Oscar's synth solo the same number of times as well.
'Chaos Pad'. It's not just the uncompromising effort of plucking the gut strings that contributes to the challenges Ingebrigt faces as a musician, but also his occasional crippling stage fright. Even as a teenager, it was such a problem that he considered converting to Christianity in the hope that he could be cured. He still gets performance nerves, but what the faithful get from religion, Ingebrigt gets from music. The chance to lose yourself in a greater power - flow! He finds a use for everything he runs into. The origin of this composition is a series of sketches he had lying around since his composition classes in Trondheim in 1995. He creates something meaningful by putting together elements of his own experience and inspiration. In one of the world's largest capitals, Mexico City, Ingebrigt has discovered lasting friendships, music and poetry. The city is vibrant, colourful and chaotic, just like this musical tribute that fires on all cylinders. Mette Rasmussen's freedom-cries are powerful and contagious. I can hear it - a change is going to come!
'Museumplein'. A tribute to Amsterdam, friends and music. With traces of krautrock and James Blake's 'I Never Learnt to Share', (Exit) Knarr opens with a clapping rhythm, as ecstatic as the clapping, chanting Arabian pearl fishers' songs Ingebrigt loves so much, who dive, holding their breath, in search of the grains of sand that, by a miracle of nature, have grown into exquisite pearls. This commissioned work culminates in a group blowout, gradually receding into meditative peace. It's as if the ending is there to reassure me there's more to come! More to come! The band met for the first time in Studio Paradiso on 23 March. They assembled in the same room and played live. It sounds as though they are standing right in front of us, playing a concert. I am totally sucked in, and even the first time I heard it, I realised this is one of those albums that will be played over and over again. Ingebrigt possesses the same enigmatic qualities as the gut-string-playing legends on whose shoulders he perches: Paul Chambers, Charlie Haden and Charles Mingus. He goes deep into it without disappearing into long bass solos, instead holding the band together. He sweats for the team. (Exit) Knarr represents new friendships, new music, and yet another important stop on the eternal odyssey the 17 year old Ingebrigt embarked on when he dedicated his life to a quest for sound."-Martin Eia-Revheim
Artist Biographies
• Show Bio for Ingebrigt Haker Flaten "Ingebrigt Håker Flaten (b. 1971, Oppdal) - studied Jazz at the Music Consevatory in Trondheim, Norway (1992-1995) under the tutelage of bassplayer Odd Magne Gridseth. When one listens to the great bassists in modern jazz history, a striking thing (though it may not be immediately arrived at) is that greatness is reached through open-mindedness and diversity. William Parker, Malachi Favors Maghostut, Peter Kowald, Wilbur Ware, Bertram Turetsky, Buell Neidlinger - all of these bass players have embraced a lifestyle of playing all sorts of music and the breadth of each musicians' technique is a testament to those experiences. Norwegian bassist and composer Ingebrigt Håker Flaten is also a musician whose experience is both geographical and aesthetic. While the fertile Scandinavian new jazz scene offered a vast amount of opportunities to work in different bands with musicians whose concepts are as individual as the grains in a reed, Flaten has found home and on-the-bandstand education in places as far flung as Chicago and his current residence Austin, Texas. A muscular player whose tone and attack run the gamut from Paul Chambers to Buschi Niebergall, his sense of both openness and control serves ensembles as diverse as The Thing, Free Fall, Atomic, Scorch Trio and the Kornstad/Håker Flaten Duo. In addition to his own Chicago Sextet and Austin-centric Young Mothers, Flaten has also recorded and performed with Frode Gjerstad, Dave Rempis, Bobby Bradford, the AALY Trio, Ken Vandermark, Stephen Gauci, Tony Malaby, Daniel Levin, Dennis Gonzalez and numerous others. Flaten studied at the Conservatory in Trondheim (1992-1995), turning professional shortly afterward, yet his hunger to play in new situations with new musicians - schooled or amateur, frequently recorded or just starting out - puts him in a rare class, that of a truly broad-minded artist. That mettle has served him well, living and developing the music under his own steam and drawing from influences as diverse as Derek Bailey, George Russell, Chris McGregor, filmmakers Ingmar Bergman, contemporary pop melody and gritty punk music as well as everyday sights and sounds. There is a calmness and self-assuredness that imbues all great artists, in that the diversity of their work comes with very little ego. Flaten's artistry is often in collective, leaderless ensembles and in fact, following a decade of professional musicianship it wasn't until 2004 that his leader-debut was released - Quintet (Jazzland, followed in 2008 by The Year of the Boar, and a Sextet recording is upcoming). This latter fact is partly due to the necessity of a copacetic situation - in an interview in 2010 with the Austinist he noted that "I use people where I'm located. It's inspiring to have your own band to write for, but you have to make sure that people feel free and not limited by the music; the compositions should lead the way to a player's open mind, and that is a challenge." Certainly not every bandleader/composer thinks this way. In 2011, he formed another ensemble, The Young Mothers, which includes drummers Stefan Gonzalez (Dallas) and Frank Rosaly (Chicago), trumpeter/poet/rapper Jawaad Taylor (New York), saxophonist Jason Jackson (Houston), and Jonathan Horne (Austin) on guitar. It's a group of varying levels and influences and as it grows organically, will be another excellent lens through which to view Flaten's aesthetic, philosophy, and musicianship. The next few years see him in a position where established ensembles can steep and spread their influence, while experimenting with and nurturing a wide range of new relationships." ^ Hide Bio for Ingebrigt Haker Flaten • Show Bio for Mette Rasmussen "Mette Rasmussen is a Danish saxophone player based in Trondheim, Norway. She works in the field of improvised music, drawing from a wide range of influences, spanning free jazz to textural soundwork. Rasmussen works on exploring the natural rawness of her instrument - experimenting on what the saxophone is capable of in sound and expression, with and without preparations. Much in demand, she has performed with the likes of Alan Silva, Chris Corsano, Ståle Liavik Solberg, and with her Trio Riot group with Sam Andreae and David Meier." ^ Hide Bio for Mette Rasmussen • Show Bio for Atle Nymo "Atle Nymo (born 9 June 1977 in Valnesfjord near Fauske, Norway) is a Norwegian jazz musician (tenor saxophone and bass clarinet), and the younger brother of Jazz saxophonist Frode Nymo. He is known for his contributions with the orchestras Motif, one of his main projects, and Trondheim Jazz Orchestra in which he has worked with Jazz greats like Pat Metheny and Chick Corea. Nymo participated in "Bodø Big Band" under his teacher Henning Gravrok, and was later educated at the Jazz program at Trondheim Musikkonservatorium, and has also played in Håvard Stubø's Quintet North. The later years He has played with Ole Morten Vågan's band Motif where he was to be named "Young Jazz Comets" 2001 at Copenhagen Jazz Festival. In "next MGN Trio" he cooperates with Mats Monstad and Ketil Gutvik, and in the latter band "Gutvik5". Otherwise, and also played with Kaizers Orchestra. Nymo also has his own album release with "Atle Nymo & Frode Nymo Quartet" (Håkon Mjåset Johansen drums and Ole Morten Vågan bass). In his own band "Atle Nymo Quartet" he cooperates with Vigleik Storaas (piano), Magnus Forsberg (drums) and Ole Morten Vågan (bass). The first mentioned played in Quintet with guest Roger Kellaway (piano), and they released an album Inner Urge in 2001 with concert recordings from "Oslo Jazz Festival". Together with Ingebrigt Håker Flaten and Håkon Mjåset Johansen he made the album Complete communion in 2006, and with the Swedish trumpet player Magnus Broo as the fourth member, the group was called IPA and they have released the albums Lorena (2009), It's A Delicate Thing (2011) and Bubble (2013). He is also involved in tow other band projects "Saxwaffe" (Frode Nymo, Klaus Holm, Eirik Hegdal, Espen Reinertsen) and "Juxtaposed" (Petter Vågan, Erik Nylander, Ole Morten Vågan) Nymo is a frequently used big band musician and is attending such as the drummer Børre Dalhaugs "Big Band Blast" (2004) and trombonist & composer Helge Sundes "Denada" (2005), and was from 2002 to 2003 a member of Geir Lysne Listening Ensemble. He also played in Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, and attended the orchestra's cooperation projects with Chick Corea in 2000/2001 (Moldejazz) and Pat Metheny in 2003." ^ Hide Bio for Atle Nymo • Show Bio for Eivind Lonning "Eivind Lønning, born 1983, living in Oslo, is one of the most prominent and active young musicians on the Norwegian creative music scene, playing in bands like Streifenjunko, Christian Wallumrød Ensemble, Motif, Koboku Senju, and Trondheim Jazz Orchestra. Eivind grew up playing classical trumpet, his education contains a jazz bachelor from the Trondheim Conservatory and a master degree in improvised music from the Academy of Music in Oslo. He is experienced in both jazz and classical music, and has developed a very personal sound with unusual melodic qualities. In the duo Streifenjunko with sax player Espen Reinertsen, Eivind Lønning has worked with modern improvisation and extended playing techniques for the trumpet. They have worked closely together for many years to present a truly unique repertoire, a mix between composed structures and improvisations, and have collaborated with Keith Rowe, Tetuzi Akiyama, Toshimaru Nakamura, Jim Denley, Christian Wallumrød, Sidsel Endresen and video artist Kjell Bjørgeengen. During the last few years, Streifenjunko have played more than 100 concerts all over the world, including Japan, USA, South-Africa, Australia and most of Europe. Festival performances includes Fri Resonans and Kongsberg Jazzfestival in Norway, On the Edge of Wrong Festival in South Africa, Moers Festival in Germany, Sonic Acts in Amsterdam, Cable Festival in Nantes, and the NOWnow Festival in Sydney. Streifenjunko released their debut cd "No Longer Burning" in 2009 on the record label Sofa. In 2010 the duo recieved the prestigious Young Lindeman Award. In 2012 they released their second album, "Sval Torv", on Sofa. In 2011 Eivind also started playing solo performances, he has done tours in Scandinavia and performed at the opening concert of the Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival in 2011. In 2008 Eivind replaced Arve Henriksen in the Christian Wallumrød Ensemble, and in 2009 he featured on the ECM release "Fabula Suite Lugano" which received remarkable critical acclaims, and was nominated for "The Nordic Council Music Prize 2010". As part of Trondheim Jazz Orchestra he has performed with Joshua Redman, Dave Holland and Chick Corea, and performed comissions by Eirik Hegdal, Per Zanussi, Kim Myhr, Ståle Storløkken, Motorpsycho and Erlend Skomsvoll." ^ Hide Bio for Eivind Lonning • Show Bio for Oddrun Lilja Jonsdottir "ILJA (Oddrun Lilja Jonsdottir) is a guitarist, singer and composer from Oslo, Norway. She has performed at various venues in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, New York and throughout Europe, and has collaborated with major names in the world of jazz and traditional music from around the world. She currently plays with her group Moksha who released their debut album "The Beauty of an Arbitrary Moment" at Jazzland records in 2016. and also with New Conception of Jazz by Bugge Wesseltoft. In addition, she collaborates on several projects, one with the Pakistani sitar virtuoso Ustad Ashraf Sharif Khan and one in trio, with the Norwegian saxophonist Marthe Lea and the Moroccan gnawa master Zakaria Houaouara. In her solo project LILJA she collected her favourite musicians and made one piece of music to 10 of the cities she has visited the past years." ^ Hide Bio for Oddrun Lilja Jonsdottir • Show Bio for Oscar Gronberg "Grönberg is a graduate of the Jazz program at Trondheim Musikkonsevatorium in 2011,[1] where he joined the Hanna Paulsberg Concept.[2] O. G. Trio, including Trygve Waldemar Fiske (double bass) and Tomas Järmyr (drums), is a new, young, creative, exciting and fearless trio that played its debut concert in 2009. Together they create a world of groove, improvisation, humor and playful interaction, all based on Grönberg's subtle and original compositions. The trio is at the same time deeply respectful of the compositions, but also irreverent and free in their interactions over the well-established and endangered species line. The music is inspired by the likes of Thelonious Monk, Ahmad Jamal and Andrew Hill." ^ Hide Bio for Oscar Gronberg • Show Bio for Veslemoy Narvesen "Veslemøy Narvesen (Hannah Veslem¿y Narvesen) (born 1997) is a Norwegian jazz musician and composer." ^ Hide Bio for Veslemoy Narvesen • Show Bio for Olaf Olsen "Olaf Olsen (born 8 August 1976) is a Norwegian musician, known as the drummer of BigBang (1999-May 2000, May 2001-current) with whom he has remained the longest after frontman Øystein Greni. He is renowned for his tall posture rising high above his drum kit, emphasized by his long blonde hair and beard. Olsen currently resides in Los Angeles, California, along with the other members of the band to try their luck in the United States." ^ Hide Bio for Olaf Olsen
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Track Listing:
1. Miles Ave (For Austin) 05:43 video
2. Brinken (For Trondheim) 07:11
3. Hakkaran (For Oppdal) 10:19
4. A la lala love you (For Chicago) 05:33
5. Chaos Pad (For Mexico City) 05:04
6. Museumplein (For Amsterdam) 10:22
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