These CDs are produced for promotional use internationally by The Norwegian Jazz Forum in close cooperation with The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The first compilation was made in 2002. Volume 5, JazzCD.no – 5th set, is available from December 2011.

You’ll find more information about the tracklist and artists here.

Norwegian Jazz Launch is a cooperation between Concerts Norway, The West Norway Jazz Centre and Norwegian Jazz Forum. The project receives financial support from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a sum of NOK 1 050 000 divided over the project’s period, 2010-2012. The 2011 launch programme includes vocalist Mari Kvien Brunvoll, guitarist Stian Westerhus and saxophone players Karl Seglem and Frøy Aagre.

Mari Kvien Brunvoll
Mari Kvien Brunvoll was born in Molde, on the west coast of Norway. She recently completed her jazz vocal studies at the Grieg Academy in Bergen, but is already a strong voice on the Norwegian music scene and has performed at many jazz festivals and jazz clubs across Europe. Brunvoll was awarded the Nattjazz Talent Award for 2009. The jury described her as “a performer with a very personal expression and a unique, intimate interaction with the audience – a fully-fledged artist despite her young age”.

Mari Kvien Brunvoll (photo: Åse Holte)

Brunvoll uses her voice in a free and playful manner to create unique and very personal soundscapes. She writes the music and most of the lyrics herself, and uses live sampling of her voice in variety of ways including percussion, noise, choir and bass line. She also uses the kalimba, zither and a range of percussion instruments. Her performances combine composed and improvised sound, and are often developed in response to the atmosphere in the room. This creates a unique level of communication with the audience.

In recent years, Brunvoll has participated in performing arts projects for children and adults, both as musician and as a part of the choreography. In addition to her solo performances, she also plays in a duo constellation with Stein Urheim (various string instruments, vocals, electronics, etc.). She has also performed with Terje Isungset in some of his ice concerts.

Her stylistic references are many, ranging from Norwegian and ethnic folk music to contemporary music, and from jazz to electronica. Mari Kvien Brunvoll stands out as an innovative and creative artist, who is not tied to any pre-defined genre.

Karl Seglem
Karl Seglem was born in Årdalstangen, Sogn, in Western Norway, and currently lives in Oslo. His music is powerful and original. He sweeps across a broad canvas, including the borderline between folk and jazz. Some listeners compare him to Jan Garbarek and Mari Boine, while others feel he has created an entirely new “universe”. Seglem has played an important role on the Norwegian jazz scene since the late 80s and his CD production as of 2011 counts 27 albums.

Karl Seglem (photo: Ziga Koritnik)

At an early stage in his career, he became interested in new perspectives and crossing the boundaries between genres. He has a special interest in Norwegian folk music, which he has explored deeply as a basis for improvisation and composition.

His main instrument is the tenor saxophone, but he has also become well known for his use of goat horns. This has great symbolic power of course, but is far from being a mere gimmick. For Seglem is much more than an instrumentalist, he has extensive experience as a composer, developing new contemporary sounds based on jazz, folk music and more eclectic inspirations. He has also been instrumental in the growth of cross-over projects as a producer and record label manager. His international renown has grown steadily and his tetralogy of solo releases Femstein, Urbs, NORSKjazz.no and Ossicles in particular has captivated international critics and audiences. These are fine examples of the masterly way he mixes goat horns and other traditional instruments – notably the Hardanger fiddle – with a plethora of modern and eclectic elements: electronic loops, jazz improvisation, and elements of world music and rock.

Seglem was awarded the Norwegian Jazz Forum’s Buddy price in 2010.

Frøy Aagre
Norwegian saxophonist Frøy Aagre was born in Tønsberg and currently lives in Oslo. She is an emerging star on the European scene.

Frøy Aagre (foto: Joerg G. Geldermann)

Aagre’s Nordic Jazz creates an expectant calm, sharpens perception and opens up distances that provide space to breathe. Her recent album Cycle of Silence has a dream-like quality. Her warm saxophone sound and seductive lyricism captivate the listener and fuse naturally with the contributions from the other members of her exquisitely rhythmic group. The composed and the improvised join to form a harmonious whole. Modern jazz elements are skilfully intertwined with classical references, and special guests also add their individual touch.

Aagre has studied classical and jazz saxophone alongside Indonesian gamelan music in Birmingham. She has been part of London’s vibrant jazz scene, learnt tango in Buenos Aires, and studied with David Liebman in New York. These years have given her a broad perspective. Indeed, one of her favourite composers is Johann Sebastian Bach. Aagre also studied 20th century composition techniques at the Norwegian Academy of Music, including Schonberg’s methods and Messiaen’s synaesthesia.

“Regardless of whether you are a jazz fan or not…” Norwegian radio warmly recommended Frøy Aagre’s debut album, Katalyze, to all its listeners in 2004. The daily newspaper Dagsavisen rated her second album, Countryside, as one of the top ten jazz albums of 2007, noting the richness of its composition and melodies, and its great imaginative scope.

Her first ACT album, Cycle of Silence, has received excellent reviews from the international media, with particular praise for her “special gift of blending the beautiful and haunting with the unexpected and complex”. Her music is bright and melodic with atmospheric and original soundscapes. With sold-out performances at the London Jazz Festival, collaborations with trumpeter Kenny Wheeler, concerts at the legendary Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, and tours of Scandinavia, the US, Canada, Germany, Japan and the UK, Aagre’s international reputation is growing rapidly.. Read more here.

Stian Westerhus
Described a couple of years ago as one of Norway’s hardest working young musicians, Stian Westerhus has become one of Norway’s most in-demand musicians. No surprise then that his recent release, Pitch Black Star Spangled, has earned him such accolades as: “Melody according to Westerhus, however, is unlike any melody you’re likely to hear elsewhere. (…) [It] reveals something new with each and every listen; Pitch Black Star Spangled is a masterpiece of solo guitar.” John Kelman, All About Jazz (US/CAN).

Stian Westerhus (foto: Anja Elmine Basma)

It’s no surprise either that his creative drive and musical innovation have earned him the prestigious JazZtipend award of NOK 250 000 as a commission to write for the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra.

He has worked with Nils Petter Molvaer’s trio, Monolithic, Bladed, Eldbjørg Raknes and Puma, and is involved in an exciting new duo project with Sidsel Endresen. However, it is his solo work that has earned him concert bookings from Japan to the UK and sessions for the BBC in London. He has also won several prestigious awards: Young Norwegian Jazz Musician of the Year, Molde International Jazz Festival Talent Award and Trondheim Jazzfestival’s talent award, as well as the BBC Award for Innovation in Jazz in the UK (with the band Fraud).

Stian Westerhus’ debut solo album Galore was released in May 2009 on Rune Grammofon/TLRC, and his second album, Pitch Black Star Spangled, was released in May/June 2010 on Rune Grammofon. Read more here.

For more information, please contact:
Tonje Johansson at Norwegian Jazz Forum, ph.: +47 22 00 56 60 / mobile: + 47 90 51 97 68, tonje@jazzforum.no

Ferner/Juliusson was established spring 2008 by guitarist Per Arne Ferner from Oslo, Norway, and pianist Per Gunnar Juliusson from Linköping in Sweden. The duo’s music draws upon different musical directions, styles and ideals. They seek a broad appeal with a melodious, personal and open expression, and they like working in the tension field between structure and freedom, both improvisation wise and compositorically. Their scope of references stretches from folk music and 20th century classical music to improvised jazz. But first and foremost, their aesthetic references give associations to a series of ECM-albums, with a lyrical expression and a distinct, Nordic sound. The duo improvises over complex compositions, and mix the blues orientated with Europan art music.

The Jazzintro jury gave the duo an extra point for their intriguing and humouristic titles, such as ”Thank you, dark matter, for keeping us together”, ”This I pointed to; to a disappointed you”, and ”Travelogue for the atoms”. Members of the Jazzintro jury 2010 were renowned jazz vocalist Karin Krog, saxophone players Frøy Aagre and John Pål Inderberg, pianist Helge Lien, and head of jury, Tore Flesjø, from Norwegian Jazz Forum.

Per Arne Ferner
-    Born 1985 in Oslo, Norway
-    Has been more or less devoted to the guitar since the age of 12. Has explored different genres and areas of music through the years, and ended up after visiting the fields of blues, rock and progressive metal tuned in on classical music and jazz/improvisation. He then realised how important creativity and the expression of his human experiences were to him, and music went from being a hobby to the most important part of his life.
-    Currently studyies at the soloist programme (Advanced Post Master’s Degree) at Rhythmic Music Conservatory, Copenhagen, Denmark (2010 – 2012)
-    Completed his Master’s Degree in performing arts/jazz guitar at the Rhythmic Music Conservatory, Copenhagen (musician programme 2008-2010)
-    Participated in the ”International Realtime Music Symposium 09” , led by the Manhattan school for improvised music with Ralph Alessi, Tyshawn Sorey and Andy Milne
-    Member of jazz band Flux, who released the album Peninsulator in 2010; a recording with echoes of progressive rock, classical chamber music and post-modern jazz influences ranging from Pat Metheny to Jaga Jazzist. Ferner is responsible for all the compositions on Peninsulator.

Per Gunnar Juliusson
-    Born 1984 in Stockholm, Sweden
-    Started violin- and piano lessons at six, and performed solo on national Swedish television and at the Royal Castle
-    Won national Swedish competition for young musicians in 2002
-    Part of orchestra that accompanied 90 shows of musical My Fair Lady, while also being a temp in big band and jazz orchestra
-    Educated in some of the best schools for jazz- and improvised music in Scandinavia, latest BA from the Rhythmic Music Conservatory, Copenhagen, Denmark

Media
“These guys are just fantastic!”
– John Kellman, editor of allaboutjazz.com

“The Jazzintro winning duo Ferner/Juliusson, with Per Arne Ferner on guitar and Per Gunnar Juliusson on the piano, proved to us that they are the best of this format since Bill Evans and Jim Hall recorded the album Undercurrent.”
Journalist Roald Helgheim in the national Norwegian paper Dagsavisen

Ian Patterson, Allaboutjazz.com on the album Peninsula by Flux:
”These days it is increasingly difficult to sound unlike anybody else. Flux, whose members attend Copenhagen’s Rhythmic Music Conservatory, has produced a recording with echoes of progressive rock, classical chamber music and post-modern jazz influences. To a large extent it succeeds in sounding original. Flux delivers a seductive recording where compositional strength and impressive musicianship combine to leave a lasting impression.”

Jakob Bækgaard, Allaboutjazz.com, on the album Peninsula by Flux:
”Flux plays its very own brand of postmodern jazz, referencing a wealth of styles from post-bop to classical, rock, and world music, while still being able to forge its own sprawling identity. Peninsulator is a joyful rollercoaster of youthful, exuberant energy. Filled with confidence and zest, Flux translates their eclectic approach into melodic explosions where the swirling dance of the flute meets the edginess of strings and modern grooves. Be prepared to be sucked in by the turbulence of the group’s sound in the future.”

Arild R. Andersen, Norwegian national newspaper Aftenposten, on Flux:
”Impressive techical standard, and a youthful energy that does not impair the quality.” 5/ 6

Facts about Jazzintro – Young Jazz Musicians of the Year
Norwegian Jazz Forum, Concerts Norway and five of Norway’s greatest jazz festivals collaborate in realizing the project Jazzintro; a launch programme for young, professional performers of jazz. A jury of professionals select eight participating bands among the applicants, who have submitted applications and demo material. Each band has given one concert at one of four festivals that take part in the project (Vossa Jazz, Maijazz, Nattjazz, Kongsberg Jazz Festival). At each of these four festivals, the jury select one band to access the next step – the finals at Molde International Jazz Festival. After the final, one of the bands wins the title Young Jazz Musicians of the Year.

In addition to an extensive launch programme over two years, the winner receives a grant of NOK 100 000 from Gramo, the Norwegian joint collecting society for performing
artists and producers.

Previous winners of Jazzintro are Urban Connection (1998), ra (2000), Solid! (2002), in the country (2004), Puma (2006) and Albatrosh (2008).

Homepages:
www.myspace.com/perferner
www.concertsnorway.no | www.rikskonsertene.no

The Norwegian Jazz Forum is the main organisation for musicians, festivals and clubs working with jazz in Norway. The aim of the organisation is to present information about Norwegian jazz in Norway and abroad. In close cooperation with the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs we have produced the compilation CDs JazzCD.no for promotional use internationally. The first compilation was made in 2002. JazzCD.no – 4th set is part four.

This triple CD gives a good picture of the Norwegian jazz scene today, ranging from traditional jazz, swing and mainstream to more modern forms, including what has come to be known as the Nordic sound.

“A diversity of musical approaches so broad that each one provides a different definition of what ‘Norwegian Jazz’ can be. Yes, there are qualities we associate with Norwegian jazz, but not all these performances share them, instead they collectively reveal how the spirit of jazz has been successfully harnessed as a means of human expression that at times can be moving, heart warming, profound, exciting, fanciful or sad. In short, these performances collectively reflect the whole range of human emotion, and you can’t ask more of music than that.” (Liner notes JazzCD.no – 4th set by Stuart Nicholson)

There are also links to the various artists’ websites at Jazzcd.no

Ferner/Juliusson won Jazzintro in 2010

Jazzintro is arranged once every two years, and a jury of professional jazz musicians pick eight bands to take part based on applications and demo material. Each band will play a concert at one of the participating festivals; Vossa Jazz, Maijazz, Nattjazz, and Kongsberg Jazz Festival. Based on the performances four of the eight bands are selected to participate in the final during MoldeJazz. On this evening, Young Jazz Musicians of the Year will be picked. This band will then be given financial support from Rikskonsertene worth several hundred thousand NKR. This includes several festival gigs, a Norwegian tour, an offer to play a tour of school concerts as well as free access to the digital production and editing studio owned by Rikskonsertene.

Former Young Jazz Musicians of the Year:
1998     Urban Connection
2000     ra
2002     Solid!
2004     in the country
2006     Puma
2008     Albatrosh
2010     Ferner/Juliusson