Johannes Gammelgaard Kvartett + Mikko Innanen (DK/SE/FI)

1960s Jazz and Scandinavian Song Tradition

Johannes Gammelgaard is a Danish saxophonist and composer based in Stockholm, where he leads a quartet. For this concert, he has handpicked three prominent musicians from the Scandinavian jazz scene to perform newly written music as well as songs from the quartet's debut album I Venners Lag (Jaeger Community Music, 2021). As a special guest, they have invited Finnish saxophone icon Mikko Innanen, Gammelgaard's former teacher at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and a personal role model for many years.

The music sounds like a mix of 1960s jazz and Scandinavian song tradition, played with lots of energy, swing, and humor. Occasionally, the musicians also move into more freely improvised passages. All in all, the music covers a wide range of emotions from childlike joy to gloomy melancholy.

In April 2021, Johannes Gammelgaard Quartet's debut album I Venners Lag was released on the Aarhus-based record label Jaeger Community Music. The album has received praise from critics at home and abroad and has been played on the radio in both Denmark and Poland. The album cover is adorned with Asger Jorn's painting Midsummer Play, which complements the music in the best possible way.

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