Frode Gjerstad Trio

Paal Nilssen-Love, drums
Øyvind Storesund, bass
Frode Gjerstad, clarinets, alto sax

This trio has a freshness which the big names in London and New York find it hard to muster these days.: Ben Watson, Hi-Fi News:

Frode Gjerdstad Trio:
Thursday December 11th: 8.00pm
The Bluecoat, School lane
Liverpool: L1 3BX

Support Act: the Frakture Big Band

Frode Gjerstad is one of the few Norwegian musicians playing modern improvised music outside the 'ECM-school'. He has chosen to play with foreign musicians because there is no tradition in Norway for free improvised music. With over 20 recordings as a leader he has established himself as a major saxophonist on the international scene. This is his first Norwegian trio, With Øyvind Storesund and Paal Nilssen-Love. They have travelled worldwide and received recognition for their high interaction, energy and their broad repertoire. Frode Gjerstad has for many years declared his enthusiasm towards small line-ups, and especially trio. The trio line up gives space for the musicians, but is at the same time very depending on the musician's physics and musicality. Recently he has worked in the duo format with amongst others Peter Brötzmann. His trios have included Johnny Dyani, Kent Carter and John Stevens, William Parker and Rashied Bakr, and William Parker and Hamid Drake.

After two decades of trios with various international musicians, this is Frode Gjerstads first all-Norwegian trio.

This trio has made 5 recordings just out: "First Last" on the US label, Falcata-Galica. A studio recording from November -99 when the group was quite fresh. Then came a live recording from September 2000 in Oslo, "The Blessing Light" on Cadence Jazz Records. This CD is dedicated to the late British drummer, John Stevens. "Sharp knives cut deeper" with Peter Brøtzmann on the Italian label Splash came in-03, "St.Louis" is a live recording from our 2002 US tour that came out on FMR in -04 and the last year we recorded "mothers & fathers".

The trio has so far toured and/or played festivals in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, Poland, Slovenia,Kroatia, Italy, USA and Canada.

Ben Watson, Hi-fi News:
This trio has a freshness which the big names in London and New York find it hard to muster these days.

Glenn Astarita, All about Jazz:
This band often performs with a distinct sense of spiritualism to coincide with an abundance of hearty soloing and curiously interesting three-way dialogue.

................................

Paal Nilssen-Love first started playing with Frode Gjerstad about 17 years ago, when he was 15. Since then, he has become one of the most active musicians of the new generation in Norway. He has also played and recorded with international sax-players Mats Gustavsson, Joe McPhee, Ken Vandermark and Ian Bellamy. He has also played with super-guitarist Pat Metheney. And is now a permanent member of the Brøtzmann Tentette.

Øyvind Storesund plays the acoustic bass with the group "Cloroform" where they combine improviasations, sampling, hip-hop and modern electronic sounds. Together with Paal, he also plays with Frode Gjerstads "Circulasione Totale Orchestra".

FRODE GJERSTAD has for many years been the most dedicated free jazz player in Norway.

He is one of the few Norwegian musicians playing modern improvised music outside the "ECM-school". He has chosen to play mainly with international musicians because there is no tradition in Norway for playing this music. However, a number of younger musicians are now picking up on the music.

He has played with many of the best European players like Barry Guy, Derek Bailey and Peter Brøtzmann as well as US players Borah Bergman, Rashid Bakr, Wilber Morris, Billy Bang, William Parker, Hamid Drake and Bobby Bradford.

His relationship with John Stevens which started in -81 and lasted up until his death in -94 was of great importance both musically as well as on a personal level.Through Stevens, he was introduced to some of the finest British improvisers and got to know their way of playing quite well.

They co-led the trio "Detail" starting with Johnny Dyani on bass. After Johnny died in -86, with Kent Carter on bass.

He has also been active, running a group of very young Norwegian musicians, the Circulasione Totale Orchestra where he started the group dealing with electric instruments and modern rock-oriented rhythms. He has used the band to present his own compositions as well as a workshop and place for young people to get to know free improvisations.

The band presented a comissioned work at the Molde Festival in -89 with a 13 man band combining free improvisations, compositions as well as rapping and scratching.(Three horns, three bassists, three drummers, accordeon, guitar a rapper and a DJ).
The Circulasione Totale Orchestra is at the moment a 7 piece band with two drummers, two acoustic basses, guitar, trumpet and himself on sax. A powerful ever-changing band.

He has received several grants from various foundations and has been very active in the Norwegian Jazz Musicians' Federation as well as in the committee for the Norwegian Contemporary Music Federation. Voted Jazz Musician of the Year in Norway, 1997.

FRODE GJERSTAD alto/bass saxophones / clarinets

Has played with: Barry Guy, Audun Kleive, Kent Carter, Bobby Bradford, Courtney Pine, John Stevens, Johnny Dyani, Harry Beckett, Dudu Pukwana, Evan Parker, Nick Stephens, Paul Rutherford, Pierre Dørge, Terje Isungset, Hasse Poulsen, Peter Friis Nielsen, Roger Turner , Derek Bailey, Liam Genockey, Paul Rogers, Billy Bang, Borah Bergman,William Parker, Rashid Bakr, Louis Moholo, Peter Brøtzmann, Willber Morris, Pheeroan akLaff, Hamid Drake, John Edwards, Mark Sanders, Lol Coxhill, Paul Hession, Jackson Krall, Daniel Carter, Sabir Mateen, Kevin Norton a.o.

Released recordings:

Detail:
- Backwards and Forwards,( Stevens, Dyani, Gjerstad) Impetus, London -83
- Okhela, (Stevens, Dyani , Gjerstad) Affinity, London -84
- NESS (Double LP )(Stevens, Dyani, Bradford, Beckett, Pine, Gjerstad.) Impetus,London -87
- Way it goes/dance of the Soul,( Stevens, Dyani,Bradford, Gjerstad) Impetus, London-89
- In Time Was, (Stevens, Dyani, Bradford, Gjerstad) Circ. Totale, Stavanger -90
- Less More, (Stevens, Kent Carter, Billy Bang, Gjerstad) Circ. Totale,Stavanger -91
- Last Detail (Gjerstad, Stevens and Kent Carter) Cadence USA -96.
- First Detail Backwards and Forwards ( Stevens, Dyani, Gjerstad) Impetus, London -00

Circulasione Totale Orchestra:
- ACCENT, (Stevens, Kleive etc. 10 musicians) Odin,Oslo-89
- ENTEN ELLER, Circulasione Totale, Stavanger-93
- Recycling Grieg. Circulasione Totale.Stavanger -96
- Borealis ( Gjerstad with 6 young Norwegians) Cadence, USA, -98
with William Parker
- Seeing N.Y. from the Ear(Gjerstad, R. Bakr dr. and W. Parker, bass) Cadence, USA -96
- Remember to forget (Gjerstad, William Parker, Hamid Drake) Circ. Totale, Stavanger -98
- Ultima (Gjerstad, William Parker, Hamid Drake) Cadence, USA -99
- The other side (Gjerstad, William Parker, Hamid Drake) Ayler rec. Sweden 2006
with John Stevens
- Sunshine (Gjerstad, John Stevens) Impetus, London -96
- Let´s just keep on playing ( gjerstad, Stevens) FMR London -05
with Borah Bergman
- Ikosa Mura (Gjerstad, Bobby Bradford, Borah Bergman, Pheeroan akLaff) Cadence USA -98
- Rivers in Time (Gjerstad, Borah Bergman) FMR, London -03
with Øyvind Storesund -- Paal Nilssen-Love
- The Blessing Light (Gjerstad, Storesund, Nilssen-Love) Cadence, USA -01
- Last first (Gjerstad, Storesund, Nilssen-Love) Falcata-Galia
- Sharp knives cut deeper(Gjerstad, Brøtzmann, Storesund, Nilssen-Love) splasc(H), Italy -03
- St. Louis (Gjerstad, Storesund, Nilssen-Love) FMR, London -03
- mothers & fathers & (Gjerstad, Storesund, Nilssen-Love) Circ. Tot. Stavanger -06
with Peter Brøtzmann
- Invisible Touch ( Gjerstad with Peter Brøtzmann) Cadence, USA -99
- SORIA MORIA( Gjerstad with Peter Brøtzmann) FMR London -03
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- TOU (Gjerstad, Lasse Marhaug ) FMR, London -03
- Red Edge(Gjerstad, Lasse Marhaug ) Sunship, USA -04
with Derek Bailey
- Hello goodbye (Gjerstad, Stevens, Bailey) Emanem, London -01
- Nearly a D (Gjerstad, Bailey) Emanem, London -03
with Steve Hubback
- Demystify (Gjerstad, Hubback) FMR, London -00
- One foot moving(Gjerstad, Hubback), Utech, USA 2005
- One foot moving - reinterpretations. (Gjerstad, Hubback), Utech, USA 2005
with Kevin Norton
- No definitive ( Kevin Norton, vibraphone, Gjerstad) FMR, London -04
- Instinctual Eye (Gjerstad, Kevin Norton,vib - dr. Ni. Stephens, b)Barking Hoop, USA -06
Ultralyd
- Ultralyd (K.Brandsdal, Hana, Olsen, Gjerstad) FMR,london -04
- Chromosome gun (K.Brandsdal, Hana, Olsen, Gjerstad)Load, -USA -05
Calling Signals
- Calling Signals(Moholo, Stephens, Poulsen, Gjerstad) Loosetorque, London -05
- Dreams in dreams( Gjerstad, Stephens, Nilssen-Love, Eivin O. Pedersen) FMR, London -05
- Live in the UK (Gjerstad, Stephens, Tony Marsh, Eivin O. Pedersen) FMR, London -06
Frode Gjerstad Solo / Duo / Trio / Quartet etc.
- Through the Woods (Gjerstad, Bradford, Morris, Baker) CIMP, USA -98
- Ism (Frode Gjerstad solo saxophone) CirculasioneTotale. Stavanger -98
- North Sea Drift (Gjerstad, Nick Stephens) Falcata-Galia, USA -02
- Shadows and Lights(Gjerstad, Isungset)FMR, London -02
- The Welsh Chapel (Gjerstad,Edwards, Sanders) Cadence, USA -03
- Mayday (Gjerstad, Paul Hession) FMR, London -04
- The longest day ( N.H.Asheim -organ, Gjerstad) FMR, London -04
- Born to collapse( Hana, Olsen, Gjerstad, Zanussi) Circ. Totale -04
- This that and the other (Lol Coxhill, Nick Stephens, Gjerstad) Loosetorque, London -05
- Good question (Gjerstad-Sabir Mateen) FMR, London -06
- Antiphonic (Gjerstad, Kjetil Brandsdal, bass) Utech, USA -06
- Theremite Club(Gjerstad, Nick Stephens, Paul Hession dr) Loosetorque, London -06
- The walk (Gjerstad, Kevin Norton, Eivin One Pedersen) FMR, London -06
- The cello quartet(Gjerstad, Nilssen-Love, Amit Sen, Fred Lonberg-Holm) FMR, London -06

HiFi News: (England) Ben Watson

In the early 1980's alto saxophonist Frode Gjerstad led a superb trio, Detail, with Johnny Dyani, bass and John Stevens, drums. Unjustly overshadowed by his compatriot Jan Garbarek, Frode Gjerstad is a more vital player, less dependant on Getz/Trane cliches. Here the New York rhythm-section is superb, laying down a groove simultaneously brutal and sensitive. Welding such a profusion of idias into emotional coherence is not easy. When achieved, hipsters call it: top-notch living jazz.

Jazziz, USA, -Sam Prestianni

"Frode Gjerstad may be the heaviest Norwegian alto saxophonist you´ve never heard of. His melodic phrases are punchy and surprising, soaring, at times beyond the Milky Way. This album exemlifies the health and wealth of energetic, contemporary free jazz."
Cadence, USA , Stuart Broomer:
Gjerstad has a voice of his own: he is a singer and a storyteller with his horn, with a talent for extended improvisations in which motifs are developed incrementally.

Cadence, USA, Michael Rosenstein:
Gjerstad has a a crying alto tone that has a searing emotional directness. starting with simple, insistent themes he skillfully builds extended improvisations out of fleet, leaping lines colored with a chilling, souldful directness. He plays with the command and authority of a mature musicianwho has honed a personal voice, while continuing to push in new directions.

The Oregonian,USA,Bill Smith
As Gjerstad searches the soul of his instrument and Drake and Parker awaken the silce behind him, the three achieve a primal squawl, that echoes not only the raging beauty of John Coltrane, but at times, the raw and ancient glory of the Master musicians of Jajouka