MIKKEL PLOUG - Take Five No: 82

Can you tell us about your new album?
My latest album Balcony Lullabies was crowdfunded during the first corona lockdown. My tours were cancelled and instead I went out on my balcony and played lullabies for my neighbours every night for a month. This nightly event created a following online which really blew my mind and all of a sudden I was deep into arranging old danish children lullabies and other gems from the past. I have been loving the process and I am humbled by peoples respons to “a little music” every night and how this has changed me.
What other projects are you currently involved in?
Right now none as I haven’t played a concert in 5 months! So I focus on my solo work and I have three albums planned for the future.
I have a duo with Mark Turner, a trio with Sean Carpio and Jeppe Skovbakke and another trio with Sissel Vera Pettersen and Joachim Badenhorst.
What are your currently listening to and what was the last CD or download you bought?
I bought Jason Moran’s "The Sound Will Tell You” from his bandcamp, it’s wonderful.
I’m currently listening to composer Bent Sørensens St.Matthews Passion from on a radio broadcast from Norway.
My latest album Balcony Lullabies was crowdfunded during the first corona lockdown. My tours were cancelled and instead I went out on my balcony and played lullabies for my neighbours every night for a month. This nightly event created a following online which really blew my mind and all of a sudden I was deep into arranging old danish children lullabies and other gems from the past. I have been loving the process and I am humbled by peoples respons to “a little music” every night and how this has changed me.
What other projects are you currently involved in?
Right now none as I haven’t played a concert in 5 months! So I focus on my solo work and I have three albums planned for the future.
I have a duo with Mark Turner, a trio with Sean Carpio and Jeppe Skovbakke and another trio with Sissel Vera Pettersen and Joachim Badenhorst.
What are your currently listening to and what was the last CD or download you bought?
I bought Jason Moran’s "The Sound Will Tell You” from his bandcamp, it’s wonderful.
I’m currently listening to composer Bent Sørensens St.Matthews Passion from on a radio broadcast from Norway.

What is your all-time favourite album and why?
For me music is an ongoing relationship that is always moving somewhere else.
So I can only tell you about this moment right now, so today the best music in the world is a song by Danish troubadour Sebastian called “Ingenmandsland” (no mans land) that I worked on today. A section of Bent Sørensen’s St. Matthew’s Passions that is just incredible that I am arranging for guitar. I’m so engaged with this music that I forget all other music for a second.
Who has caught your attention recently that we should be listening out for?
I think one should listen for what pianists Craig Taborn, Jason Moran and Kit Downes will do next. That will be exciting!
Also composer Bent Sørensen, his music is defining this age if you ask me and every new work from his hand is just mind blowing to me.
For me music is an ongoing relationship that is always moving somewhere else.
So I can only tell you about this moment right now, so today the best music in the world is a song by Danish troubadour Sebastian called “Ingenmandsland” (no mans land) that I worked on today. A section of Bent Sørensen’s St. Matthew’s Passions that is just incredible that I am arranging for guitar. I’m so engaged with this music that I forget all other music for a second.
Who has caught your attention recently that we should be listening out for?
I think one should listen for what pianists Craig Taborn, Jason Moran and Kit Downes will do next. That will be exciting!
Also composer Bent Sørensen, his music is defining this age if you ask me and every new work from his hand is just mind blowing to me.