Fredrik Nordstrom - Urgency 2000

Fredrik Nordström was born (1974) and raised in Sandviken, Sweden. Living in Stockholm since 1995. He has eight albums released in his own name since his debut in 2000. With great creativity and productivity Fredrik has had a lot of different groups during the years; from trio with Palle Danielsson and Fredrik Rundqvist to the eleven piece band VIBB and as a co-leader for Dog Out and SURD. Fredrik was elected the Jazz in Sweden-artist of the year in 2002 and has performed with his own groups and as a sideman in concerts and festivals around the world with musicians like Bobo Stenson, Mat Maneri, Gerald Cleaver, Tim Hagans, Björn Yttling and Lindha Kallerdahl. (fredriknordstrom.com)

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The emergence of young gifted jazz musicians is always a positive sign that the world is in a healthy state. Fredrik Nordström and his fellow-musicians represent an approach to jazz which is the result of study, dedication and talent. The album title Urgency, conveys the force of conviction which lies behind the performance of this music, whether it be the solopassages, or in the collective ensemble where everyone plays with a unity of purpose. The maturity of their playing belies their youth, giving the assurance that the future of Swedish jazz is in good hands.
Fredrik was born in Sandviken in 1974, and began playing alto sax at the age of 10. Jazz attracted him right from the start, and in a town famous for its summer jazz festivals and internationally renowned big band he had plenty of stimulation in the locality. Charlie Parker and Dexter Gordon were two early influences. Between 1993 and '95 he studied at the music department of Skurup, a school where many other promising young Swedish jazz musicians also receive expert education. This was followed by four years of study at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm (where saxophonist Joakim Milder played an influential role).
During this period his interest in composing and arranging took form and he began developing his own very personal approach to the tenor saxophone and the sound of the jazz ensemble. The results which you can hear on this CD give a good indication of how Fredrik Nordström uses his resources to full effect. However his octet has not been formed with the intention of trying to reproduce a big band feeling in a smaller format. Instead it becomes a logical extension of his dynamic quartet retaining a small group concept of openness with unrestricted possibilities of spontaneous developments in the music.
The rhythm section consists of Mattias Ståhl, vibraphone -in effect taking the place of the more usual piano or guitar, Filip Augustson, bass and Fredrik Rundqvist (a colleague of many years, also from Sandviken) drums. To these three and his tenor/soprano sax Fredrik Nordström has added a brass quartet, consisting of two trumpets and two trombones played by musicians of highest rank - Magnus Broo, Patrik Skogh, Magnus Svedberg and Björn Samuelsson. Their presence adds possibilities of different combinations of colours to which the basic quartet can build different patterns into which improvisationis woven with subtle, yet forceful effectivity. Words that come to mind while listening to Fredriks tenor sax are robust, sensitive, probing, free. His playing seems to encompass many shades and styles, yet he also captures fleeting moments as they arrive and intrinsically transforms them into shapes and forms which take on compositional aspects. This kind of improvisation where the lines and directions are completely free of well-tried, predictable phrases is rare today and points in a direction where we can expect to hear Fredrik Nordström developing steadily in stature and scope.
The jazz world is filled to the brim with imitators, in many cases extremely talented ones. However to be able to outline new ideas and conceptions in presentable form is far more difficult and calls for a different kind of musicianship - the kind that Fredrik Nordström possesses.
At a concert the great pianist Herbie Hancock presented his duo partner Wayne Shorter as a man who knows how to seize the moment. This epithet would also suit Fredrik Nordström perfectly. This CD provides a programme of moments that have been captured and transformed to music of a dimension outside the shere of everyday listening. Take this chance and experience the urgency of it all.
(Dave Castle, September 2000, liner notes)

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Fredrik Nordström - Urgency 2000
(Dragon Records)

1. Sleeping beauty
2. Ming Dynasty
3. Highland
4. Falling
5. Metro
6. From Lajka's point of view
7. Last Call
8. October
9. Green wind


Fredrik Nordström - tenor & soprano sax
Magnus Broo - trumpet
Patrik Skogh - trumpet/flugelhorn
Magnus Svedberg - trombone
Björn Samuelsson - trombone
Mattias Ståhl - vibraphone
Filip Augustson - bass
Fredrik Rundqvist