1982- Chromola
Hubro Music: HUBROCD 2558
Nils Okland: Hardanger fiddle, violin; Sigbjorn Apeland: pipe organ, harmonium; Oyvind Skarbo: drums.
Recoded Sandviken Church, Bergen, Norway, May 11th -12th 2016.
The seven pieces on this CD were recorded live in a church, with Apeland playing the two pipe organs. The space and acoustics of the church lends depth and echo to Okland’s violin playing, and has Skarbo’s drums and percussive effects running around the edge of the other players. This is a rich set of improvisers who, after some 10 years of playing together, have that intuitive ability to follow each other’s twists and turns in their playing.
The setting, as the press release explains, could readily have lent this music a liturgical air or the use of the organ could have produced some overwhelming bluster and thumping melody. On the contrary, the sounds that the trio produce and the ways that these weave together, create sounds and textures that have the spirit of minimalism. It is not easy to provide a neat label for the sound – so, perhaps it would be easiest to say that this is the distinctive sound of ‘1982’. In his explanation of the trio’s sound (in the liner notes), Skarbo says that “The most important thing that sets us apart from other improvised groups I have been part of is the total acceptance of melody and rhythm. We have never felt the need tro be artsy or complex just for the sake of it…” The commitment to finding and exploring a tune is core to each of the pieces here. Okland’s playing works from a sense of traditional folk music (which reminded me of Hebridian tunes , although obviously drawn from his own country’s traditions), but builds this through layers and interactions with the sounds of the organ to create something that lies between folk, minimalism and jazz. Each piece lasts from 4 to 7 minutes, and each ends at what feels like exactly the right time – there is a most satisfying feeling that the pieces have been explored as completely as they need to be; nothing is underperformed nor does anything outstays its welcome.
This is a trio of improvisers who really know their stuff. Perhaps this is what makes them so unique. Or perhaps, as Skarbo notes, “There don’t seem to be many fiddle-harmonium-drum trios around.”
Reviewed by Chris Baber
Hubro Music: HUBROCD 2558
Nils Okland: Hardanger fiddle, violin; Sigbjorn Apeland: pipe organ, harmonium; Oyvind Skarbo: drums.
Recoded Sandviken Church, Bergen, Norway, May 11th -12th 2016.
The seven pieces on this CD were recorded live in a church, with Apeland playing the two pipe organs. The space and acoustics of the church lends depth and echo to Okland’s violin playing, and has Skarbo’s drums and percussive effects running around the edge of the other players. This is a rich set of improvisers who, after some 10 years of playing together, have that intuitive ability to follow each other’s twists and turns in their playing.
The setting, as the press release explains, could readily have lent this music a liturgical air or the use of the organ could have produced some overwhelming bluster and thumping melody. On the contrary, the sounds that the trio produce and the ways that these weave together, create sounds and textures that have the spirit of minimalism. It is not easy to provide a neat label for the sound – so, perhaps it would be easiest to say that this is the distinctive sound of ‘1982’. In his explanation of the trio’s sound (in the liner notes), Skarbo says that “The most important thing that sets us apart from other improvised groups I have been part of is the total acceptance of melody and rhythm. We have never felt the need tro be artsy or complex just for the sake of it…” The commitment to finding and exploring a tune is core to each of the pieces here. Okland’s playing works from a sense of traditional folk music (which reminded me of Hebridian tunes , although obviously drawn from his own country’s traditions), but builds this through layers and interactions with the sounds of the organ to create something that lies between folk, minimalism and jazz. Each piece lasts from 4 to 7 minutes, and each ends at what feels like exactly the right time – there is a most satisfying feeling that the pieces have been explored as completely as they need to be; nothing is underperformed nor does anything outstays its welcome.
This is a trio of improvisers who really know their stuff. Perhaps this is what makes them so unique. Or perhaps, as Skarbo notes, “There don’t seem to be many fiddle-harmonium-drum trios around.”
Reviewed by Chris Baber
