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Karl Seglem
KARL SEGLEM
T.sax, goat horns, electronics
Composer and arranger
In a number of CD releases, tours, festival and concerts, tenor saxophonist,
goat horn player, and composer Karl Seglem has made use of Norwegian
folk-music, and especially the music of the Hardanger fiddle (National
instrument of Norway), as a starting point for generating new musical spaces – his own mode of expression.
Music critics have described Karl Seglem as a distinctive, innovative musician
and composer. He has been called one of Norway's foremost tenor
saxophonists, with an original and distinctive voice and a unique ability to
renew himself. He never takes the easy way out, and this is why he is so
highly respected. His extraordinary work and playing on goat horns of
different kinds also put him up front as one of Norways innovative
musicians, braking new soundlandscapes, exploring old instruments in a new
way.
Together with some of the foremost musicians on the Norwegian music
scene, Karl Seglem on stage, creates exciting soundscapes that eliminate
boundaries between musical genres. Seglem and his band plays their own“ethno-jazz” with roots in traditional Norwegian music, related to both free
improvisation and world music. The live performances gives the audience
new experiences from up north: A modern sound with hints of future
electronic trimmings. Yet music with an acoustic heart.
Karl Seglems albums has received outstanding reviews from all over Europe.
More: http://www.norcd.no/seglem
Musicians on stage playing with Quintett
Karl Seglem, t.sax, goat horns, electronics
Håkon Høgemo, hardanger fiddle
Gjermund Silset, el.bass, bass, el.guitar
Olav Torget, ac.-,el.-, chinese moon guitar, ngoni, baglava,
Helge Norbakken, drums, percussion
A small selection of reviews
“This album is in no way "difficult". It´s full of structured songs, melodiousness and interesting grainy, hefty and
spacious textures." fRoots (UK)
“For many years, Seglem has been searching for his own point of departure within the combination of jazz and folk
music. Now it looks as though he is in the process of finding it.” Jazznytt Magazine (N)
“Nye Nord is frontloaded with the most beautiful and mature material, and places more of the eccentric earbending
stuff further down the setlist”.
RootsWorld (USA)
“When you trace his development, you get a remarkable sensation of both familiarity and originality.( ). Whereas
Jan Garbarek has become a bit predictable through the years, Seglem manages to keep a grip on the tension, rough
edges and surprises.”
Dagens Næringsliv (N) national daily newspaper
«The result is mysterious, intriguing and catchy». Folk on tap (UK)
"Mystical and masterful." Bergens Tidende, national daily newspaper
"...Seglem, depending on who he´s playing with, at times works on the wilder edges of musical exploration, but this album is in no way "difficult". It´s full of structured songs, melodiousness and interesting grainy, hefty and spacious textures."
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Karl Seglem - "urbs" 2006
Listen to music samples from this and more discs from Karl Seglem at
www.norcd.no
Listen to FEMSTEIN
Listen to URBS
Artist Web Site
karlseglem.no
Artist Video
Video of Karl in Nantes, France
Press Photo & Tech Rider - Karl Seglem
Check out updated tour dates on
karlseglem.no
07.02.-15.02.08 Norway, Bodø, schools
21.02.08 Norway, Oslo, Belleville
22.02.08 Norway, Oslo, dogA
03.03-05.03 Norway, Bergen, schools
10.03-14.03 Norway, Bodø, schools
15.03.08 Norway, Vossajazz, Isglem
07.04-18.04.08 Norway, Bergen, Schools
27.04.08 Norway, Parkteateret w. Isglem
05.05-09.05 Norway, østfold, schools
15.05.08 Portugal, Porto w. Ráo Kyao
17.07.08 Bulgaria, JulyJazz, Smolyan
14.10-26.10.08 TOUR PERIODE QUINTET
SELECTED REVIEW of NYE NORD
KARL SEGLEM
Nye Nord NORCD0246
"Karl Seglem´s music is one of the best examples of a specifically Norwegian phenomenon: an open airy music that has grown up in the past 20 or so years, in which the melodies and unsquare rhytms of traditional song and fiddling have come together with new Nordic jazz, which while it involves sax players has virtually no connection with American jazz. It also shows the sort of unfettered exploration of sounds and textures that is usually associated with avant-garde music. Saxophonist Jan Garbarek is of course well known for this kind of thing, but while he has many and varied projects, only some of which are part of new Norwegian music, Seglem is more continuously involved in it, in his work with a variety of musicians and with his NORCD record label.
Nye Nord is both a progression and a summary of his opus. On it, Seglem has written all the music apart from one traditional song tune, but the open, natural-scale shapes of tradition seem to wave through it, sometime surfacing, sometimes as an underlying form. He plays tenor sax and tungehorn (an animal horn with a reed), and there are appearances by the other members of Utla. Isungset´s jew´s-harp playing is particulary notable, for example as an almost synth-like continuo over his organic persussion between Seglem´s tenor and Bjørn Kjellemyr´s double bass in Grøn Eld. With them are a team including Christian Wallumrød on electric piano, electric and acoustic guitarist Morten Sæle, synthist and programmer Reidar Skår and drummer Stein Inge Brækhus. Male singer Odd Nordstoga delivers six songs, and there are also vocals from Berit Opheim and Unni Løvlid.
Seglem, depending on who he´s playing with, at times works on the wilder edges of musical exploration (a recent collaboration in London involved a player of bowed bicycle-wheel), but this album is in no way "difficult". It´s full of structured songs, melodiousness and interesting grainy, hefty and spacious textures."
KARL SEGLEM
Nye Nord NORCD0246
Reviewed by Andrew Cronshaw, fRoots nr. 242/243 Aug/sept 2003. |
