Record Reviews

HILDEGUNN OISETH ~ TIME IS COMING LOSEN 142 (Barcode: 7090025831423) ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2015 Released: 2015 This is the fourth album by the female Norwegian trumpeter Hildegunn OisethFind albums by this artist recorded in a quartet setting with pianist Espen BergFind albums by this artist, bassist Mats EilertsenFind albums by this artist and drummer Per Oddvar JohansenFind albums by this artist. Oiseth plays trumpet, flugelhorn and the bukkehorn (Billy goat horn, an instrument going as far back as the Vikings). The album presents eight original compositions, two each by Oiseth, Berg and Eilertsen, one by Johansen and the remaining one by yoiker (Google it up!) / musician Frode FjellheimFind albums by this artist. The album was recorded at the celebrated Rainbow Studio in Oslo and engineered by the legendary Jan Erik KongshaugFind albums by this artist. The music is a wonderful Scandinavian flavored European Jazz, heavily influenced by folkloristic touches and deeply reflective. A trumpet quartet is one of the greatest minimalistic Jazz entities, and when it is at its best, it has but little competition. Although the music was composed by five separate individuals, it is beautifully cohesive and creates an amalgamated atmosphere of unity and aesthetic beauty, elegance and consistency. Oiseth´s playing is in many respects comparable to that of the Polish trumpet Master Tomasz StankoFind albums by this artist, emphasizing the expression rather than technical perfection. The slightly "dirty" tone, seemingly unstable during the vibrato notes, unites Oiseth with Stanko, which of course is meant as a compliment here. The bukkehorn parts, which sound a bit like oboe, are simply delightful and introduce another layer in the wondrous structure of this music. But of course the three other members of the quartet also contribute invaluably; Berg is the melodic essence, Eilertsen holds all the elements together with his pulsations and Johansen ornaments the proceedings delicately and sparingly, like only best of drummers do. This album offers the listener a spiritual experience, simply by overflowing all the senses, if allowed to do so. We can of course hear it, but it also touches our hearts, we can almost smell it, see the colors it paints in our mind and taste it in our mouth, not to mention the exhilaration of our intellect. It´s been a while since I heard music of such quality. This album easily stands shoulder to shoulder with the best European Jazz achievements released by the top record labels, like ECMFind albums on this label, both as far as the music quality is concerned and of course also as far as the recording quality, which in this case comes from the same source. It´s great to have labels like LosenFind albums on this label Records producing music of such quality, which make us all both proud and happy.

Updated: 13/02/2016Posted: 13/02/2016

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