Ole Morten Vågan is one of Norway's most sought-after bass players. He has been the artistic leader of Trondheim Jazz Orchestra since 2017. In May 2014 he premiered his work 'Happy Endlings' with Trondheim Jazz Orchestra at Trondheim Jazz Festival. The project was invited to the international jazz conference Jazzahead in Bremen in 2016 and played many shows in Europe the following years. In 2019 he premiered the work 'Plastic Wave' at the Arctic Arts Festival in Harstad. The music was recorded in May 2020 and released on ODIN Records in 2021 and was nominated for the Norwegian Grammy Award for the best jazz album.
Sofia Jernberg - vocals
Signe Emmeluth - alto saxophone
Eirik Hegdal - saxophone, clarinet
Kjetil Møster - saxophone, clarinet
Espen Reinertsen - saxophone, bass clarinet
Eivind Lønning - trumpet
Øyvind Brække - trombone
Ola Kvernberg - violin
Marianne B. Lie - cello
Ståle Storløkken - synth
Oscar Grönberg - piano
Gard Nilssen - drums
Håkon Mjåset Johansen - drums
Ole Morten Vågan - bass, compositions
Tor Breivik - sound engineer
Reviews
(...)From compositions of the double bass player Ole Morten Vågan, the orchestra deploys a gleam of sound and a cleverly articulated game between the different sections which make all the interest of this music. Depth of field, effects of speed or mass, each member is solicited to give movement to a bright and luminous writing(...)
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And it was great, fantastic, without exaggeration one of the best genre sets I've ever witnessed. Huge energy, instrumental performances, creativity, and all-pervading chemistry between the players, a moment of co-creation imprinted in improvised passages, but also solid leadership and order. All organically immersed in each other, fiercely contemporary, and respectful of the musical past.
Jiří V. Matýsek for fullmoonzine.cz, review of the concert at Jazz Goes To Town 2023
Link to full review: https://www.fullmoonzine.cz/clanky/kdyz-mas-v-centralu-orchestr-jazz-goes-to-town
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The power of the orchestra was enhanced by the two percussionists, who drove the orchestra into the most frantic revolutions, including solo, mainly saxophone runs, which grounded the audience right in the opening track AfterMath Rock. More flicks followed, oozing Latin heat here, fusion, third stream, and post-bop elsewhere. Violinist Josefin Runsteen cut a riveting Coleman-esque solo in Critical Mass Distraction. The orchestral colors and emotions were complemented to the brim by phenomenal vocalist Sofia Jernberg, who went from the deepest of positions to the stratospheric in a second as if it were the simplest thing in the world. Likewise, saxophonist Amalie Dahl, who is truly a European interpretive leader. Indeed, the same can be said, without reservation, of the vast majority of the players in this final festival concert. Without a doubt, the absolute highlight of Jazz Goes To Town!
Jan Hocek for skjazz.sk
Source: https://www.skjazz.sk/news/showNew/jazz-goes-to-town-2023