Danes dally with free spirits
- Source: Global Times
- [09:59 August 09 2010]
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Keyboard player Søren Kjærgaard. Photo: Courtesy of YGTwo Productions
By Nick Muzyczka
Bandapart, a Danish quartet whose music blends post-rock and contemporary jazz, has returned to Shanghai for a tour that promises "music with a lot of free improv and spirit," according to keyboard player Søren Kjærgaard.
Playing yesterday at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, Monday'night at the JZ Club and Tuesday at the Expo site, the quartet brings a highly original sound that has been compared to ECM-era Bill Frisell, Tortoise, and Godspeed You! Black Emperor.
Kjærgaard, who plays a Wurlitzer piano in Bandapart, told the Global Times that the group's influences extend way beyond the confines of jazz. "We grew up with the music and trends that surrounded us in society. Jazz and improvised music are a passion for all of us, but we also have a common background in stuff like grunge (Nirvana), heavy metal, hip hop, Michael Jackson and Björk."
"We all started playing as kids, and in our early teens we started to get interested in jazz and improvised music. When we started studying at the conservatory in Copenhagen we focused more and more on jazz, looking at different phases of that tradition. Swing from the 30s, bebop from the 40s, free jazz from the 60s," he explained.
Alternative rock
Although the influence of the American jazz tradition can be found in its music, Bandapart's pounding rhythms and melancholy guitar riffs sound more like a haunting form of alternative rock. "We don't want to get stuck in straight-ahead jazz, in something that in some ways is so far away from our Danish reality, so I think we all underwent the process of realizing that we probably wouldn't become black American-sounding jazz musicians, although we love that music," said Kjærgaard.
Bandapart has emerged out of the vibrant music scene in Copenhagen, a city with a strong history of experimental jazz, fusion and rock music. "We had to search and find our 'Danish' sound in Copenhagen. There's no real division between genres and subcultures, but more a feeling of being in a musical family. It is a togetherness which we all feel is very precious," explained Kjærgaard.
Bandapart's cinematic sound is at times juxtaposed with moments of free improvisation, during which the band members rely on their intuitive knowledge of each other's styles in creating music out of nothing.
"There is a heavy use of free improvisation in our music. Because we have played together for so long, and know each other so well, we can enter the music without agreeing on what to do, and still, it comes out as a collective piece of music, composed in the moment," Kjærgaard said. "This is a very challenging art form, but a very giving one, if you keep your mind open and listen."
The group has a mellowness that transcends the grungy, morose sound often connected with alternative rock. On tracks like "Dusana," with its powerful, ethereal melody lines, it manages to create something that is profoundly sad. Bandapart's music is densely layered and compositionally strong, with a sound that is much more expansive than would be expected from four musicians.
This is Bandapart's third trip to China, a favorite destination for the group. "We are very thankful that we get to experience Chinese culture, to taste the rich food, to see the historic architecture and places, to experience the language, and of course to meet so many different people," Kjærgaard said.
The last trips to China in 2007 and 2009 cemented the group's affection for this country. As well as playing with symphony orchestras and internationally renowned jazz musicians the band has also performed with Chinese traditional puppeteers.
