Karl Seglem NyeSongar.no

Karl Seglem NyeSongar.no
Karl Seglem tenor saxophone, goat horn, voice
Andreas Ulvo piano
Sigurd Hole bass
Jonas Howden Sjøvaag drums
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Desembersongen 7.05
Porten 5.00
Angular momentum 4.00
Din folketone 7.20
Dordei 5.30
Drômvisa 4.35
Nordover 6.00
Inn i juni 8.02
Etter snø (Odda) 5.20
Recorded live in Formannshuset Odda Norway, October 29.- 30., 2012. No overdubs.
Sound engineer: Audun Strype.
Mixed and mastered by Audun Strype and Karl Seglem in Oslo, November 2012 and January 2013.
All music composed and arranged by Karl Seglem except track 5. by Sigurd Hole,
track 6. by Göran Fristorp and track 7. by Andreas Ulvo. Track 5. & 9. by the quartet.
Produced by Karl Seglem.
Photos by Andreas Ulvo. CD front cover photo by Laila Meyrick, Velour.
I would like to thank Eple Trio for magical concert moments since 2009, and for their contribution on this
recording. A Big ank You - Tusen Takk Audun Strype, Nina Kongtorp, Odda Kommune and all friends,
fans and family. Supported by and thanks to Fond for utøvende kunstnere
All rights reserved Tono, Gema
www.norskjazz.no
www.norcd.no
www.karlseglem. no
www.ozellamusic.com
A Grand Piano story
e story started around 1960. e Steinway factory in Germany delivered
its largest grand piano, a Model D, to the Aula, the assembly hall at the
University of Oslo. At that time the Aula was perhaps Norway’s most
important concert hall for classical music and occasional (now legendary)
jazz concerts. is grand piano was one of the last that was produced with
ivory keys, and it was delivered with a matte finish on one side so that it
would not reflect the light when concerts were taped by television cameras. A
young Norwegian pianist named Ketil Bjørnstad often came to the Aula,
where he enjoyed superb concerts with artists such as Sviatoslav Richter,
Daniel Barenboim, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Keith Jarrett, elonius Monk, Emil
Gilels, Claudio Arrau, Arthur Rubenstein and Martha Argerich.
“A surprising number of grand pianos in Norway were given the highest
praise by foreign musicians in the 1960s and 70s. Around the same time that
Chick Corea and Keith Jarrett played at Arne Bendiksen Studio, Vladimir
Ashkenazy declared that the world’s best grand piano was found at the Oslo
University Aula. I will never forget that grand piano,” wrote Ketil Bjørnstad
in a little book published in 2011 (Belonging, a book about the eponymous
LP album, released in 1974).
Ei flygelhistorie
Historien startar rundt 1960. Steinway-fabrikken i Tyskland leverer sitt
største flygel, ein D-modell, til Universitetets Aula i Oslo. I dei tider var
Aulaen kanskje Norges viktigaste konsertsal for klassisk musikk, og ein og
annan (no legendarisk) jazz-konsert. Flygelet er eit av dei siste som vert
produsert med tangentar av elfenbein og det blir levert matta ned på sidene
slik at det ikkje skal oppstå refleksar ved ernsyns-opptak. Ein ung norsk
pianist med namn Ketil Bjørnstad er ofte i Aulaen på denne tida og opplever
fantastiske konserter med nokre av desse: Svjatoslav Richter, Daniel
Barenboim, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Keith Jarret, eolonius Monk, Emil Gilels,
Claudio Arrau, Arthur Rubenstein, Martha Argerich med fleire.
"Forbausande mange flygel i Norge fekk dei beste attestar av utanlandske
musikarar på 60- og 70-talet. Omtrent samtidig med at Chick Corea og Keith
Jarrett inntok Arne Bendiksen Studio, uttalte Vladimir Ashkenasy at verdas
beste flygel antageleg sto i Universitetets Aula i Oslo. Eg kjem aldri til å
gløyma det flygelet», skriv Ketil Bjørnstad i ein lita bok han utga i 2011.
(«Belonging», ei bok om plata av samme namn fra 1974).
Men i 1965 "forsvann" instrumentet som hadde begeistra eit kresent og
interessert musikkpublikum i Oslo. Den etterkvart så vidgjetne biblotekaren
Dordei Raaen i industrikommunen Odda i Hardanger, hadde høyrt at Aulaen
i Oslo skulle kvitta seg med eit flygel. Gymnaset trengte eit flygel til sin aula.
"Litt mindre" aula enn den i Oslo, men like fullt, flygel. Dordei hadde bygt
But in 1965 the instrument that had delighted discriminating and attentive
music audiences in Oslo “disappeared”. Dordei Raaen, a librarian in the
industrial town of Odda in Hardanger, had heard that the Aula in Oslo was
planning to get rid of a grand piano. e local school needed a grand piano in
its auditorium. It was “somewhat smaller” than the hall in Oslo, but a grand
piano was what they wanted. Dordei had built up the Odda library to be one
of the best in the country, and had her contacts in Oslo. e library in Odda
was called “Biblis”, and was located in the former Town Hall. For reasons we
can only guess at, Dordei and Odda received the grand piano as a gift from
the Aula.
Steinway’s Model D no. 386 179 remained at the school in Odda for a long
time. e assistant headmaster at what is now Odda Upper Secondary School
believes that it was properly cared for. He also remembers that Ketil
Bjørnstad played it when he gave a concert at the school. ere were so few
people attending the concert that Bjørnstad invited the audience up on
stage. ey lit candles, and the concert began. Former pupils at the school in
Odda also remember the grand piano, and recall that it was used on many
occasions: Christmas programmes, pupils’ cabarets, sing-alongs, etc. Rumour
has it that the grand piano was treated badly, both when being played and
when being moved roughly up and down from the stage and into different
rooms. Very few people were aware of what sort of instrument they were
dealing with.
opp biblioteket i Odda til å bli eit av landets aller beste og ho hadde sine
kontaktar i Oslo. “Biblis” heitte biblioteket i Odda og det heldt til i det gamle
rådhuset. Av grunnar me berre kan gjetta oss til, fekk Dordei flygelet gratis i
gåve frå Aulaen til Odda kommune.
Steinway´s D-modell nr. 386 179 vart ståande lenge på gymnaset i Odda.
Assisterande rektor på det som i dag (2012) heiter Odda vidaregåande skule
meiner det vart teke godt vare på! Han hugsar også at Ketil Bjørnstad spelte
konsert på det. Då var det så få i salen at Bjørnstad inviterte publikum opp
på scena. Dei tente stearinlys, og konserten starta. Tidlegare gymnaselevar i
Odda hugsar også flygelet, og at det vart brukt til det meste;
juleavslutningar, russerevyar, allsong med meir. Rykta fortel at flygelet vart
dårleg handsama. Både slik det vart spelt på, og flytta uvørent opp og ned frå
scener og ulike rom. Svært få skjønte kva slags instrument dei hadde
ståande.
Når stiftinga Formannshuset vart oppretta i 1991(og renoverte salen og
huset), gav Odda kommune flygelet til stiftinga. Formannshuset vart drifta
som kulturhus fram til 2001, men klarte då ikkje det økonomiske lenger,
vart oppløyst og fekk sanert gjelda si av Odda kommune, som vedtok at
huset skulle selgast. Det blei solgt til privatmannen Torstein Jensson. Når
stiftinga opphøyrte, vart ansvaret for å disponere flygelet gjeve til
«Musikkens Venner» som har renovert flygelet. D modell 386 179 er framleis
kommunalt eigd. Der står det. Det har nokre rynker, skråmer og hakk, men
responderer varmt og blir no varsamt pleia, stemt og brukt til to-tre
konsertar årleg. Når kulturhuset i Odda ein dag blir ferdig skal det dit.
Ei innspelingshistorie
Våren 2012 er eg i planleggingsfasen av eit nytt album med kvartetten. Eg
har planar om å gjera det i Gøteborg - som med 2009-albumet norskjazz.no,
men innvilga støtte frå FFUK tilseier at innspeling må skje i Norge. Eg les ein
artikkel av Vidar Kvalshaug i Aftenposten i mars 2012 og blir nyfiken, får ein
idé. Men det går nokre månader før eg kontaktar Ketil Bjørnstad som då
fortel at han skal spela konsert på flygelet igjen den ortande oktober. Han
er veldig spent. Me avtaler å halda kontakten. Eg må ta avgjerda om eg skal
gå for Odda som opptaks-stad, og turné-legginga får kabalen til å gå opp. Me
kan dra rett til Odda og spela inn etter seks konsertar i Norge og Tyskland.
Det blir slik. Eg tek sjangsen. Flygelet kan jo ikkje vera direkte dårleg!?
Sekstande oktober får eg denne eposten frå Bjørnstad på spørsmålet om han
tykkjer at pianoet framleis har noko å gje: "Kjære Karl - Det var helt enormt!
Flygelet har det samme fantastiske anslaget og den helt spesielle varmen og
fylden. Selvsagt kunne det vært vedlikeholdt bedre, men det holder i
massevis. Bare pass på at det er nystemt! Gled dere! Entusiastiske hilsener
Ketil"
When the foundation Formannshuset (Foreman’s House) was established in
1991, and renovated the hall and the rest of the building, the municipality of
Odda gave the grand piano to the foundation. Formannshuset operated as a
cultural centre until 2001, when it was no longer economically viable. e
municipality of Odda restructured its debt, and determined that the building
was to be sold. It was purchased by a private buyer, Torstein Jensson. When
the foundation was liquidated, responsibility for deciding how the grand
piano was to be used was transferred to the association “Musikkens Venner”
(“Friends of Music”), who renovated the instrument. e Model D 386 179 is
still owned by the municipality. ere it stands. It has a few wrinkles,
scratches and nicks, but responds with warmth and is now carefully tended
and tuned. It is used for two or three concerts a year. When the Odda
cultural centre is finished someday it will be moved there.
A recording story
In the spring of 2012 I was in the planning phase of a new album with the
quartet. I planned to record it in Gothenburg, Sweden, as I had done with
the 2009 album NORSKjazz.no. However, one of the requirements of the
Fund for Performing Artists, who had provided financial support for the
project, was that the album had to be recorded in Norway. I read an article by
Vidar Kvalshaug in the newspaper Aftenposten in March, 2012, which
Søndag åttogtjuande oktober landar me på Haugesund Lufthamn i
sprutande regn. Får alt inn i bilar og køyrer nordaust inn i landet. Det
begynnar å snø på den smale og svingete vegen ned til Odda, og når me
køyrer inn på baksida av Formannshuset har det allereie lagt seg nokre
centimeter. Fire spente musikarar. Lydsjef Audun er allereie på plass. På
telefonen har ei tydeleg bekymra mine trengt gjennom. Me går inn, og me
forstår med ein gong at støyen frå bilvegen, frå Riksveg 13 - er betydeleg.
Den går vegg i vegg med Formannshuset, som har enkle vindauge av eldre
sort.
Flygelet står tildekka. Nystemt. Me avdekkar det og pianist Ulvo slår dei
første akkordar. Me høyrer alle at her er det noko. Mumling, prat, både om å
flytta pianoet til kinoen, og å gjera det andre stader, på andre flygel i Odda er
oppe. Det er ikkje aktuelt, melder eg. Det blir her, eller retur til Oslo.
Audun lydsjef fremmar (igjen) sitt forslag, fortel oss litt meir alvorleg, som
om me ikkje hadde oppfatta at det var alvor første gong han sa: Glava. Han
seier at den einaste måten å løyse dette på, som vil fungere, er å bygga ein
vegg av isolasjon i sceneopninga. Stabla rullar av Glava eller liknande. Det vil
ta all trafikkstøy - og me kan spela inn. Kultursjef Nina Kongtorp ler, tek ein
telefon til ein ho kjenner, som visstnok har mykje Glava?
piqued my curiosity. I had an idea. But several months went by before I
contacted Ketil Bjørnstad, who then told me that he was planning to give a
concert on the grand piano again in October. He was looking forward to it
very much. We agreed to stay in contact. I had to decide whether to make the
recording in Odda, and when our tour had been arranged it all fell into place.
We could go straight to Odda to record after six concerts in Norway and
Germany. And that is exactly what we did. I took the chance. After all, the
grand piano couldn’t be really bad, could it?
On 16 October I received an email from Bjørnstad with his verdict as to
whether the piano was still playable: “Dear Karl – It was absolutely superb!
e grand piano has the same fantastic touch and the same unique warmth
and resonance as before. Of course it could have been kept up better, but it’s
more than good enough. Just make sure that it’s freshly tuned! You can look
forward to it. Enthusiastic greetings, Ketil.”
On Sunday 28 October we landed at the Haugesund airport in heavy rain. We
manoeuvred all our equipment into cars and drove northeast to Odda. It
started to snow along the narrow, winding road down to Odda, and by the
time we arrived at the back of Formannshuset it was already several
centimetres deep.
Sjefen for byggevarehuset svarar på ein søndagskveld, og seier han skal
sjekka kor mykje glava dei har liggande i morgon tidleg, og komma med det!
Ingen problem. Folk i Odda er JA-folk. Ingen problem. Ingen problem? Eg
kan ikkje heilt tru det. Me riggar instrument og mikrofonar, og er vel
eigentleg ikkje mindre spente enn før. Me gjer oss så ferdige me kan, og et
vårt første og heldigvis ikkje siste kinamatmåltid i Odda i ni-tida ein
søndagskveld. Legg oss. Det snør.
Det første byggevarebutikkfolka må gjera om morgonen er å legga piggdekk
på lastebilen får me melding om, men idet me kjem til Formannshuset står
bilen med hengar full av isolasjon utanfor - og to karar er igang med
innlessing. Dei stablar. Det blir vegg. Ein solid vegg av isolasjon. Og det blir
stille der på scena. Ingen trafikkstøy høg nok til å trenga gjennom. Me
smiler. Kan ikkje heilt tru det. Klokka tolv om føremiddagen mandag
niogtjuande oktober totusenogtolv er første spor teke opp. Påfølgande døgn
spelte me inn resten av dei nye songane.
Karl Seglem
Four excited musicians. e sound supervisor, Audun, was waiting there.
When I had talked to him on the telephone along the way, I could hear that
he was somewhat troubled. As soon as we entered the building we realised
why: the noise from the nearby Highway 13 was considerable. is highway
runs alongside Formannshuset, and the windows of the building are old and
single glazed. e grand piano was covered. Newly tuned. We uncovered it,
and the pianist Ulvo struck the first chords. We could all hear that this was
something special.
Someone suggested that we move the piano to the cinema or make the
recording on another grand piano elsewhere in Odda. I said that was out of
the question. Either it would be here or we would return to Oslo.
Audun, the sound supervisor, made a suggestion, repeating it with more
emphasis as it seemed that we hadn’t realised he was serious the first time:
glass wool insulation. He said that the only way to solve the problem would
be to build an insulating wall in front of the stage. Pile up rolls of glass wool
insulation, for instance. at would absorb all the traffic noise, and we could
make the recording. Nina Kongtorp, the local head of cultural affairs,
laughed, and made a telephone call to an acquaintance. Didn’t he have a lot
of glass wool insulation?
e manager of the building supplies shop answered his telephone on a
Sunday evening, and said he would check how much insulation he had early
in the morning and bring it over. No problem! People in Odda don’t know
the meaning of the word “no”. No problem? I could scarcely believe it. But we
set up the instruments and microphones, and were hardly less nervous than
before. We set up as much as we could, and went out to eat our first, but
luckily not our last, Chinese meal in Odda at around 9 pm. Went to bed. It
was snowing.
e first thing the building suppliers had to do in the morning, they
informed us, was to equip their car with studded tyres. But when we arrived
at Formannshuset the car was waiting outside, its trailer full of glass wool
insulation, and two men were already starting to unload it.
ey piled it up. It became a wall. A solid wall of insulation. And it was quiet
on stage.
No traffic noise loud enough to penetrate the insulation. We smiled. Couldn’t
entirely believe it. At twelve noon on Monday the twenty-ninth of October,
two thousand and twelve, the first track was recorded. e following day we
recorded the remainder of the album. And, as they say, the rest is history.
Karl Seglem
Tida modnar oss.
Det gjekk fire år og to månader mellom innspelinga av NORSKjazz.no og
dette albumet. I løpet av desse åra har denne kvartetten spelt omlag tredve
konsertar med materialet frå den første innspelinga. Det å kjenna at dei
songane me spelte inn, skapt for lang tid tilbake, blir levande kvar gong dei
blir spelt, er oppløftande.
Denne innspelinga inneheld songar som er skapt for ikkje så lang tid tilbake.
Her er også songar som dei andre i kvartetten har komponert, og som me i
samarbeid har forma. Eg ville som sist, ha med ein song eg har hatt eit
forhold til. På NORSKjazz.no var det Amalie Rodriguez "Meu Amigo esta
longe". Denne gongen har eg valgt "Drömvisa" av Gøran Fristorp. Eg fann
igjen "Återsken" i vinylsamlinga mi og blei minna på alle dei gongene eg lytta
på det albumet. Sommarane i Bergen og på Årdalstangen for mange år sidan.
Stemningar, menneske, minne. Det å spela ei enkel vise "rett gjennom" som
me gjer her, er ei stor utfordring.
Enkelt, reinskore, vakkert var "slagordet" for det første akustiske kvartettalbumet. Eg prøver å vidareføre det her - med melodien i fokus. Og
samstundes opplever eg denne innspelinga både opnare og tryggare, og meir
spørjande og søkande. Det er ei inspirerande spelferd. Eg visste ikkje at det
skulle utvikle seg slik. Hit har musikken ført oss. Her er nye songar for
klassisk jazzkvartett - på vår måte. Tida modnar oss.
Time matures us.
Four years and two months went by between the recording of NORSKjazz.no
and this album. In the course of these years this quartet has presented
around 30 concerts with material from the earlier recording. It has been an
inspiring and powerful experience to see that the tunes we recorded, which
were written a long time ago, come alive every time they are played.
is new recording presents tunes that I have written during the past years.
It also includes tunes that the other members of the quartet have composed,
which we have shaped together as an ensemble. I also wanted to include a
song by someone else that appealed to me, as I did with “Portugalsong” on
the first record. And in my collection of vinyl I found “Återsken” by Göran
Fristorp, a recording that I had forgotten about. All the times I had listened
to that one! Summers in Bergen and at Årdalstangen many years ago. e
atmosphere, the people, the memories. I think "Drömvisa" (Dream song) is a
beautiful song (with very nice lyrics too). I regard it as a real challenge to play
a song straight through as I do here.
Simple, clean and lovely were our key words for the first quartet album. I am
trying to continue that pattern here, with a focus on melody. At the same
time I feel that this recording is more open and confident, while it is also
inquisitive and searching.
It has been an unexpectedly inspiring experience to be able to complete and
present this collection of new tunes for a classic jazz quartet. e music has
led us here. And onwards. Time matures us.
Karl Seglem
Karl Seglem
LIVE CONCERTS with this Quartet
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Bremen, Alter Sendesaal 27.10.2012
Oslo, Bikuben 26.10.2012
Hamar, Jazzclub 25.10.2012
Bergen, Jazzforum 24.10.2012
Nesodden, Jazzclub 23.10.2012
Asker, Kulturhus 21.10.2012
Elverum, Festspillene 02.08.2012
Kongsberg, Jazz Festival 05.07.2012
Tønsberg, Urijazz 13.10.2011
Oslo, Litteraturhuset 04.10.2011
Hemnes, Jazzclub 08.10.2011
Sortland, Jazzclub 07.10.2011
Bodø, Sinus 06.10.2011
Tromsø, Jazzclub 05.10.2011
Arendal Jazzclub 07.05.2011
Oslo, Jazzaid 24.11.2010
Jølster, Jazzfestival 17.10.2010
Oslo, Nasjonal Jazzscene 30.10.2010
Oslo, Kampenjazz 11.04. 2010
Stavanger, Jazzforum 10.04.2010
Horten, Jazzclub 09.04.2010
Oslo, event 26.01.2010å
Rendalen 12.12.2009
Bergen, Nattjazz festival, 28.05.2009
Oslo, Bare Jazz, 04.06.2009
Balestrand, Balejazz festival 09.05.2009
Oslo, Cafeteatret 27.04.2009