Recorded, mixed and mastered by Gustav Davidsson at Studio Glasfageln Cover photos by Fabian Rosenberg

Almost two years after the group's first album, What The Moment Brings, the follow-up is here. A few minutes into the first song, it becomes obvious why I fell in love with this music in the first place: the beautiful compositions and this outstanding group of musicians. The two strong and lyrical leaders are complemented by the superb rhythm section of Niklas Fernqvist, with his elegant tone, and Paul Svanberg, with his undeniable swing.

Folk music has always been an obvious inspiration for symphonic repertoire. The Nordan Suite explores these possibilities according to current trends. Singer-instrumentalist Lena Willemark and multi-instrumentalist Ale Möller, two unique Swedish musicians, have continuously formed ties to other musical worlds that allow new music to arise. This new CD marks a cooperative effort with arranger and composer Hans Ek, who, together with Ale Möller, composed the music. For the past 25 years, Hans Ek has made the symphony orchestra into a meeting place for classical, jazz, pop and folk music.

As a trio, we have been jammin' for a couple of years. We thought it would be nice to bring the group into a studio and make a recording. Here is the result, featuring some tunes written by me and others. Hope you'll enjoy! (Max Schultz) Max Arndth Schultz, born August 31, 1960 in Stockholm, is a Swedish jazz guitarist who plays and composes music in the jazz, blues and pop genres. He started playing a guitar at the age of 10 after seeing a concert with Jimi Hendrix in Stockholm, and began touring in 1979 with the band Rena Liquid. Max Schultz has collaborated with jazz musicians and artists like H�kan Brostr�m, Herbie Hancock, Bob Moses, Nils Landgren, and Esbj�rn Svensson, Svante Thuresson, Anna Nederdahl and Tommy K�rberg. Max Schultz has also worked as studio musician on recordings with Marie Fredriksson, Rebecka T�rnqvist and other artists. The Max Schultz Trio also features Andreas Hellkvist and Daniel Olsson.

A live recording featuring the trio of Thomas Fonnesb�k (bass); Lars Jansson (piano); and Paul Svanberg (drums) which mixes standards with improvisations illustrating the give and take that occurs in ensembles of comprised of players that truly listen to one another.

This Prophone release offers a brand new tribute by the Robert Wells Trio to legendary musician and entertainer Charlie Norman, whose Swedish show business career lasted nearly 60 years. "From my and Charlie's first meeting in the 1980's and in our fifteen years touring as a double piano act on and off, I got to learn from Charlie both on stage and off; it was a time of pure joy. I've written an all new boogie for this CD called Old Time Boogie with the playful subtitle "It was better in the old days"... The rest of the material is all favorite numbers that we played on tour." (Robert Wells)

Kjell �hman was recognized at an early age as a musical prodigy, and had already his first jingle on the board at the age of nine. Since then things have just continued rolling on. He has played with of Sweden's jazz greats, from stars like Arne Domn�rus and Putte Wickman to many internationally known jazz musicians.He certainly is a studio fox, having participated in over 8000 recordings! This trio - pianist Kjell �hman, bassist Hans Backenroth and drummer Joakim Ekberg - has played together for the last decade or so as a both featured group and accompanists in various situations.

Two years ago when I started to write the music to The Law of the Lady" I had the intention of saying yes to all my ideas and not let practical details rule the artistic work. I followed my vision and when I was ready with my sketches I showed them to Calle Rasmusson, drummer, arranger and co-producer on this album.When all the songs were edited and arranged it was clear what kind of sound I wanted." (Christina Gustafsson)Born in Sweden in 1970, vocalist Christina Gustafsson has been accorded recognition as both vocalist and composer in recent years. The Law of the Lady is her third release.

Classical Music

Classical Music

"I've been listening to Hans's music for more than 25 years in many contexts, and I have noticed how he has grown and matured as an artist. And how he's always thinking "we" instead of "I". So, all things considered, here's a tribute that everybody involved should be proud of. I'm sure that Charlie Parker would have smiled approvingly. Yes, Bird lives!" (Thorbjørn Sjøgren) Hans Backenroth discovered jazz at the end of his teens, which led him to play double bass influenced by, among others, Paul Chambers, Ray Brown, Scott LaFaro and NHØP. In 1986 Hans moved to Stockholm to study at the music department at Birkagarden college, followed by three years at the Royal Academy of Music, where he graduated in 1989 in both jazz and classical bass, arranging and improvisational education. During the final year Hans became a member of Fredrik Norén Band, with tours in Sweden, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Baltics, and soon he began to appear at Stockholm's jazz venues like Fasching and Stampen and at many jazz clubs around Sweden. He appears on this album alongside Klas Lindquist, Erik Soderlind, and Karl-Henrik Ousback.

Swedish jazz has since the 50s had a unique sound. The fire of American, mixed with the melancholy of Swedish folk music, evolved into a genre of its own. The great baritone saxophonist Lars Gullin composed music in this way with ingredients from jazz, Swedish folk music and the classical repertoire. This record emphasizes these elements and gives new life, not only to his music, but also to Swedish jazz. A child prodigy on the accordion Lars Gullin became a professional musician first as a pianist in 1947. He planned on a classical career until in 1949 he filled the baritone chair in Seymour Osterwalls ban. In 1954 he won the best newcomer award in DownBeat magazine. Over the next two decades, he would go on to work with some of the biggest names in contemporary jazz, including Archie Shepp, and Chet Baker. He died in 1976.

Ellen Andersson has been described as two voices in one - the young, curious and the older, experienced - a performer with a rare artistic weight. Her second album in her own name is titled You Should Have Told Me. She has in recent years been seen and heard on stages and concert halls across the country, including with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. (Prophone)

When Anna Lundqvist (voc) and Jonas Andr� (piano) met over 20 years ago, they soon realized they had a special kind of musical connection - a communication of a near telepathic nature. Now the duo reunites to rekindle that old spark again, and to release their debut album, Reunion, into the world. The music flows seamlessly between European jazz and pop, where original material intertwines with songs by, for instance, Joni Mitchell, Kenny Wheeler, Norma Winstone, Alexander L�vmark, Anders von Hofsten, and Jay-Jay Johansson. Melancholic harmony and drama are the key elements that make up the profound and honest repertoire with lyrics about life, passion, and will. It was 20 years ago, when they both studied at Skurup's Folk High School, that they played together for the first time. And despite coming from different musical backgrounds, they quickly realized they had a special kind of musical chemistry. However, life and further studies made them decide to pause the duo indefinitely. But the will to play together never went away, and now the duo has been revived to develop that chemistry and to make new music.

Peter Asplund is one of Swedens foremost trumpet players. Or why not say it like it is? He is one of Europes or even the worlds foremost trumpeters. Why draw a line when there is no need to? Jazz is not limited by any national borders. It has been written: ""A fantastic musician who always plays straight from the heart"" - and to which we can all readily agree! Over the years he has developed his dynamic and energy-loaded, slightly melancholic and melodic trumpet style until he can express what he feels when he feels. This applies when he plays a standard by, say, George Gershwin, Cole Porter or Duke Ellington. And it also applies when he plays some of his own original compositions, tunes with a distinct accent on melody, my own standards he calls them. Of his new release, he writes: I was born in September. There is something special about that month. The light, the air, the scent of nature. For many it is a beginning of something, for others, an end. You reminisce. You look forward in time. You pause and regard the present. Wherever you happen to be, September brings forth both feelings and thoughts on life. These are mine. All My Septembers stay with me forever.

An internationally admired jazz quartet consisting of a Dane and three Swedes plays Nordic jazz, with a lyrical expression and a living interplay. SE-Quartet gets their inspiration from many different genres, like gospel, avant-garde, soul, classical and popular music. Their music is captivating, with it's beautiful melodies and energetic beats, as well as a sensitive interaction with epic improvisations. SE-Quartet released their third album Going North, in April 2017, which now has more then 2.5 million streams on Spotify. In addition, radio stations and newspapers in Scandinavia, have highlighted the album and acclaimed SE-Quartet as it conveys an ideal. Since the beginning in 2007 SE-Quartet has performed 100 concerts in Sweden, Denmark and Norway. During the next decade SE-Quartet will hopefully reach out for the rest of the world.

Simon Westman Trio has been playing together since 2010, they have performed at jazz clubs in Gothenburg and are praised for their sound and their interaction. The members of the trio are individually strong voices on the Swedish jazz scene. Simon has played and collaborated with Bohuslän Big Band, Yasuhito Mori Scandinavian Connection, Lasse Lindgren Big Band, Svante Thuresson, Magnus Lindgren, Lina Nyberg and Samuel Ljungblahd, among others. The trio initially called themselves MMS Trio, the music they played was a mix of American jazz standards, European "ECM jazz" and Nordic show. But in May 2019, Simon began composing original music for the trio, after getting his thumbs out (thanks to his friend and colleague Alexander Lövmark) and booking time for recording in Nilento Studio. The debut album "Stay a While" was recorded in January 2020.

From the artists: "An album of instrumental Christmas music with a piano trio, is that a worthwhile idea? We asked that same question 17 years ago when we recorded In dulci jubilo in 2003. We decided it was and the result has followed us and lived with us since then. It has almost become our trademark. We have performed these songs in innumerable joyful Christmas concerts every December for our audiences. At the same time, we have tried to renew and expand the repertoire till we finally felt it was time for a sequel. So here it is. A Christmas present to ourselves and to you dear listeners. Like the last time all the music is from Sweden and the European continent."

Swedish jazz pianist Emil Ingmar presents his newest release, Karlavagnen. Emil Ingmar is a pianist, composer, and freelance musician who lives in Uppsala, Sweden. A former piano student at KMH, he is the Chairman of the Uppsala Jazz Club and organizer of the Live Jazz Bar at Uplands Nation and the Jazz Corner at UKK. He is also active in Orphei Drangar as a singer and accompanist. Ingmar is joined for these twelve original tracks by an all-star lineup of musicians, including Fredrik Jonsson, Calle Rasmusson, Jonas Knutsson, and more.

Karin Hammar writes: "Dear listener! After the release of 2 albums with Karin Hammar Fab 4 in 2016 and 2018, the time felt right to extend the Fab4 soundscape. As I have always being inspired by film music and classical music, the choice of adding string quartet to the jazz group felt like the extra flavoring needed to both enhance and expand the musical horizon. The idea of combining the Karin Hammar Fab 4 and the string quartet with Olivier Ker Ourio's chromatic harmonica transpired after I met and played with Olivier in Tel Aviv 2017. As a result, the beautiful sound of the harmonica, Ker Ourio's virtuosity came to be the 9th voice of this project. We hope you enjoy listening to this music - we certainly enjoyed writing and recording it!"

In the past, jazz musicians had both a tradition of playing for dancers and a tradition of picking inspiration and music from other genres. LSD does the same thing on this record. Harmonically simple, singable songs with a clear groove are the foundation that is then allowed to blossom in all it's splendor or maybe become something completely different. "It brings the music to the people, for the people, and by the people". (Jason Marsalis) The trio feels like a three-headed beast when they play together. One organism, one unit that can do whatever it wants. LSD has worked together since 2011 and has since then been touring a lot in Sweden and even in Nordic neighboring countries. They also toured in Canada in 2017 and have previously released two albums: "Trio Colossus" in 2012 and "Soon" in 2014, which both received brilliant reviews internationally. So great that even Sonny Rollins has expressed his appreciation of LSD's Trio Colossus.

Pianist, arranger and bandleader Kjell �hman is one of Sweden's most well-respected musicians. With his 40 years in the music business and a frequently engaged studio musicians he has a unique ability to play all kinds of genres, such as pop, rock, jazz and folk music. With all these versatile skills he can be compared with the Swedish legend Jan Johansson."I was offered the chance to record a Christmas album and this is my take on the best Christmas melodies. Christmas is best spent among friends, and on this disc I am in excellent company.(Kjell �hman)

Star pianist and acclaimed composer Joel Lyssarides releases new album. "Joel's compositions are small masterpieces that he performs with a virtuosity and timing I haven't heard in Sweden for a long time, if ever" wrote Johan Norberg about pianist Joel Lyssarides' debut album, "Dreamer", which now has over 2.5 million streams on Spotify. The sequel, "A Better Place", is a conversation with Esbjörn Svensson, Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett with inspiration from Bach and Rachmaninov. "The creative process of this album was very different from my previous one, where I could pick and choose from songs that I had had years to complete. This time the music was created during mere hours over the course of a few evenings. There is a magic in the moment when improvising that I’ve found difficult to recreate afterwards. ”A Better Place” consists mostly of written down improvisations and then recorded with the trio without further processing. I think one tends to make better musical decisions on the spot, instead of at the desk where time is unlimited.”

Trio X is one of Sweden's foremost improvisational groups. The trio's distinctive feature is exploratory and boundary-crossing music, and the experienced musicians find inspiration in many genres. Lennart Simonsson, Per V Johansson, and Joakim Ekberg started collaborating in 2002, and since then they have made several recordings, worked with numerous well-known artists, and toured in Sweden and abroad. Trio X is a multi-faceted ensemble that works with many projects, from concerts in jazz clubs, in concert halls, and at major festivals to classroom appearances. Alongside their public concerts, they also play in healthcare and caring institutions. The musicians also teach and provide inspiration for amateur groups. The present album is a showcase of traditional Swedish melodies.

“Best right now!” – that’s what Swedish National Radio said when Ellas Kapell released their debut album “Longing” in 2019, which also was rewarded ”Best Album of The Year” by the readers of Swedish jazz magazine Orkesterjournalen. Now, more than one million listeners later, they’re releasing their second album “What’s It All About?” The ten songs of the album create a story about the most important moments in life; the beautiful ones, the difficult ones, the seemingly insignificant and the ones we have yet to experience – everything that comes together to constitute a life. In classic Ellas Kapell fashion the songs are carefully arranged to capture the atmosphere of each specific moment. The album also contains guest performances by internationally renowned musicians Karin Hammar on trombone and Magnus Lindgren on tenor saxophone.