Release Date: 23 February 2018
Label: Jazzland
Packaging Type: Digipak
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 0687437791673
Genres: Jazz Vocal Jazz
Release Date: 27 July 2018
Label: Jazzland
Packaging Type: Slip Sleeve (CD or Vinyl)
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 0687437791680
Genres: Jazz Vocal Jazz
Description
A singer, alone, at a piano is not an unusual sight. But when that singer is Solveig Slettahjell, the rarity of the moment becomes vivid, and the expectation of what this moment could deliver is amplified. And, on a September night in 2017, at Nasjonal Jazzscene in Victoria, Oslo, Solveig gave such a performance. "Magical moments guaranteed" ran the tagline, and - for once - it was not advertising hyperbole. Guests joined for some songs: Pål Hausken provided percussive accompaniment on some tracks, while the choir Safari appeared to provide a whole new ambience to proceedings. However, their sparing use adds colour and drama at just the right moments, never resorting to mere chorus build-up and repetition.
Featuring a set made of standards, original material, and settings of poems by Emily Dickinson, Solveig's performance is a masterful blend of emotional honesty and technical brilliance. Her delivery of classics by the likes of Gershwin, or more recent creations by Tom Waits and Leonard Cohen is bold and forthright, and her interpretations retain the spirits of the originals while marking them clearly with her own stylistic thumbprint. Her Emily Dickinson interpretations are much more than mere exercises - they are charged with the energy of the original poetry, and often viewed through unexpected lenses, such as on "Visit" (where Solveig leaves the piano and is accompanied by Pål Hausken) which becomes a blues-washed chaingang song; "Outlet" again takes a view of the lyrics through a blues filter; and "A Day" presents an arrangement that Tom Waits at his Asylum Years best would be proud of.
This Solveig's second release through Jazzland Recordings, the previous being "Tarpan Seasons" (2009), a studio album that introduced a number of the tracks in this live recordings, perhaps most notably her interpretations of Emily Dickinson "A Day" and "Visit".
Personnel
Solveig Slettahjell: Vocals, Piano
Pål Hausken: Drums, Vocals
Safari (Eirik Kaasa, Åshild Kristin Stensrud Kaasa, Martha Sofie Eide, Malin Byberg, Åshild Sandvik, Nora Nesbakken, Tone Ravndal, Christoffer Holten Gidske and Johan Helland): choir
Daniel Mikael Wold: live sound and recording
Description
Norwegian vocalist/pianist Solveig Slettahjell's second album for Jazzland captures her live, solo at her piano with some guests. It's now available on vinyl.
A singer, alone, at a piano is not an unusual sight. But when that singer is Solveig Slettahjell, the rarity of the moment becomes vivid, and the expectation of what this moment could deliver is amplifi ed. And, on a September night in 2017, at Nasjonal Jazzscene in Victoria, Oslo, Solveig gave such a performance. "Magical moments guaranteed" ran the tagline, and - for once - it was not advertising hyperbole.
Tracklisting
Tracklisting
Sidsel Endresen, Jan Bang & Erik Honore
Lyder Roed Quintet
Moksha
Maridalen
Lyder Roed & OJKOS
Knut Reiersrud Band
Erlend Skomsvoll Trio
Bugge Wesseltoft
Billie Holiday
Various Artists
Irene Kral
Ineza with The Alex Webb & The Copasetics
Helena Debono & Charlie Bates
Roberta Gambarini & Hank Jones
Nora Benamara
Ross Lorraine
