Muse (nWog Records)
Nils Wogram
Released October 8, 2021
German Jazz Prize National Instrumental Album 2022
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mY30zVBoZkYZSmqXLJTEjnVqhzlruj5HE
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About:
All or nothing! No half measures! Where routine weariness becomes noticeable in the careers of many other artists, one senses that every new project trombonist Nils Wogram takes on is his very first one. This is particularly noticeable on his new CD, Muse, recorded with harpist Kathrin Pechlof, violist and overtone singer Gareth Lubbe and Wogram’s long-term companion Hayden Chisholm on saxophone.
And so everything on Muse is actually completely different than what one is used to from Nils Wogram and his musical environment.
Nils Wogram’s music has always been characterized by a great sensuality. While he has celebrated the sensuality of the moment in almost all his projects so far, the sensuality of the lasting comes to the fore on Muse.
This laid-back openness to all the possibilities – ones that can arise from what has just begun – is also easily transferred to the listener. The music may be complex, but its immanent beauty and friendliness, for all its formal rigor, is also enormously relaxing for the listener. Muse is a quiet album. Every note counts. Sound is the crucial component.
For the first time in the long history of his music, Wogram has recorded an album in a sitting position in order to engage with the demands of the harp from all sides. Kathrin Pechlof, on the other hand, absorbs the input of trombone, saxophone, viola and voice in her thousand and one strings. This almost fairytale-like harmony is the basis, not the result of playing together. In this way, even from the outside, it is quite easy to listen to the four participants listening to each other.
In ancient mythology, the muse is a figure who unites the divine principle of creation and passes it on to mankind. The fables of great artistic personalities and their muses fill entire compendia. Nils Wogram, Kathrin Pechlof, Hayden Chisholm and Gareth Lubbe, however, do not need a personified source of inspiration to enter together into the service of the musical muse. Their tone poems without lyrics are full of poetry and show one thing above all: The first step is always the easiest!
Track Listing:
1. All the things that could go wrong 07:42
2. Hope and Fear 09:38
3. Chillin with J 04:20
4. Basis of learning 06:23
5. Miniature 09:04
6. Hard to like him 03:51
7. Albis Abelis 06:58
8. Michel`s Secret 08:36
9. Hell of the Intellect 05:48
Personnel:
Nils Wogram: trombone
Hayden Chisholm: alto saxophone
Gareth Lubbe: viola, overtone voice
Kathrin Pechlof: harp
Recorded December 20 & 21, 2020, at Sendesaal Bremen, by Oliver Bergner
Tape Operator: Sebastian Muxfeldt
Mastered by Chris von Rautenkranz
Artwork and Cover Photo by Corinne Hächler
Produced by Nils Wogram
Review:
How many ensembles does this man actually have? Nils Wogram (49), exceptional trombonist and Swiss by choice, now has yet another ensemble. It’s called Muse and features a presumably unique instrumentation. Alongside Wogram, the new quartet consists of Hayden Chisholm (alto sax), Gareth Lubbe (viola and overtone vocals), and Kathrin Pechlof (harp). So, no drums, no bass, no piano, no guitar – Muse sounds like no jazz band before. The 13 fantastic pieces Wogram wrote for Muse reflect and utilize the special, soft legato timbre of this instrumental combination. Some pieces thrive on a muted pulsation, others are reminiscent of the cool jazz avant-garde of 1950, while others veer toward the Baroque or Balkans. The low volume of the harp demands a restrained dynamic at all times, even in the improvisations. Perhaps Muse’s music could be described as a new third stream—a chamber aesthetic alongside jazz and classical. Sonically gentle, but musically a blast.
Hans-Jürgen Schaal (Jazz thing)
