HILDEGUNN ØISETH - Time is Coming
Losen LOS142-2
Hildegunn Øiseth: trumpet, flugelhorn, goat horn; Espen Berg: piano; Mats Eilertsen: bass; Per Oddvar Johansen: drums.
The title track of this collection begins with Berg repeatedly striking a single note on the piano. Jan Erik Kongshaug’s production gives this single note a shimmer so that the piano sounds not unlike a Fender Rhodes. Over this gently ticking note, Øiseth plays her goat horn, sounding like a classically trained clarinettist playing Breton pipes or an Indian pungi. Again, the production lends a slight echo to the tones produced from this instrument. Finally, Eilertsen’s loping bass figure kicks the piece to its denouement. The mixture of musical textures from the instruments and the way in which the piece builds through subtle shifts in rhythm call to mind not only sounds of Norway (or what critics have labelled Scandinavian jazz) but also the middle East. This sense of a journey through musical styles is also hinted at on the opening track, Hildegunn vuelie, where toms provide a rolling accompaniment to Øiseth’s trumpet. The echo in the production is present in this track and, like the rest of the recording, it is understated. Indeed, the whole recording has a modesty in its use of effects, in its use of musical influences and in the ways in which the players cooperate; nothing is overly intrusive but everything seems to blend perfectly. There is a musical democracy here too, not only in the ways in which the players work together but also in the sharing of song-writing duties: Øiseth, Berg and Eilertsen each contribute two tracks to the set, with Johansen providing the closing number.
The opening is composed by Frode Fjellheim who, in addition to assisting Kongshaug in the mastering of the final recording, is also a respected composer of joik – which are songs in the traditional Sami style. In the track on this set, a simple refrain, played by Øiseth on trumpet, is presented and repeated as the piece builds through Berg’s delicate piano work.
On all the tracks, whether she is playing goat horn, trumpet or flugelhorn, Øiseth plays with subtlety and grace on the tracks, the echo giving a poignancy to the phrases that she plays. Berg’s piano playing is likewise delicate, for the most part, gently developing themes but also, in places cutting sharper solos and driving the pace of pieces like Savolainen. The recording closes with Families and this track, composed by the drummer, is the gentlest of the pieces. Øiseth plays the goat horn, over soft piano chords, in a way that suggests that she is singing the lyrics of a lullaby through her instrument.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
Losen LOS142-2
Hildegunn Øiseth: trumpet, flugelhorn, goat horn; Espen Berg: piano; Mats Eilertsen: bass; Per Oddvar Johansen: drums.
The title track of this collection begins with Berg repeatedly striking a single note on the piano. Jan Erik Kongshaug’s production gives this single note a shimmer so that the piano sounds not unlike a Fender Rhodes. Over this gently ticking note, Øiseth plays her goat horn, sounding like a classically trained clarinettist playing Breton pipes or an Indian pungi. Again, the production lends a slight echo to the tones produced from this instrument. Finally, Eilertsen’s loping bass figure kicks the piece to its denouement. The mixture of musical textures from the instruments and the way in which the piece builds through subtle shifts in rhythm call to mind not only sounds of Norway (or what critics have labelled Scandinavian jazz) but also the middle East. This sense of a journey through musical styles is also hinted at on the opening track, Hildegunn vuelie, where toms provide a rolling accompaniment to Øiseth’s trumpet. The echo in the production is present in this track and, like the rest of the recording, it is understated. Indeed, the whole recording has a modesty in its use of effects, in its use of musical influences and in the ways in which the players cooperate; nothing is overly intrusive but everything seems to blend perfectly. There is a musical democracy here too, not only in the ways in which the players work together but also in the sharing of song-writing duties: Øiseth, Berg and Eilertsen each contribute two tracks to the set, with Johansen providing the closing number.
The opening is composed by Frode Fjellheim who, in addition to assisting Kongshaug in the mastering of the final recording, is also a respected composer of joik – which are songs in the traditional Sami style. In the track on this set, a simple refrain, played by Øiseth on trumpet, is presented and repeated as the piece builds through Berg’s delicate piano work.
On all the tracks, whether she is playing goat horn, trumpet or flugelhorn, Øiseth plays with subtlety and grace on the tracks, the echo giving a poignancy to the phrases that she plays. Berg’s piano playing is likewise delicate, for the most part, gently developing themes but also, in places cutting sharper solos and driving the pace of pieces like Savolainen. The recording closes with Families and this track, composed by the drummer, is the gentlest of the pieces. Øiseth plays the goat horn, over soft piano chords, in a way that suggests that she is singing the lyrics of a lullaby through her instrument.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
