MGV
FriEnsemblet
Free Spirited Jazz Ensemble led by Mathilde Grooss Viddal
FriEnsemblet was established in 2004. The music is mainly composed by Viddal, while each of the members improvisational and sonic expressions gives the band it’s unique and distinctive sound. Together they constitute a large ensemble with a significant impact.
Releases
FriEnsemblet has released 5 CDs to great critical acclaim amongst reviewers of jazz in Norway and internationally. Holding Balance, Come Closer, Undergroove, El Aaiun – Across the Border and Out of Silence.
FriEnsemblet 2018 ft. Naïssam Jalal
| Naïssam Jalal | Flute |
| Mathilde Grooss Viddal | Saxophones, Bass and Contrabass Clarinets |
| Kristoffer Alberts | Alto Saxophone |
| Per Willy Aaserud | Trumpet, Electronics |
| Øyvind Brække | Trombone |
| Britt Pernille Frøholm | Hardanger Fiddle, Violin |
| Tellef Kvifte | Electronics, Laptop, Keyboards, Grand Piano |
| Knut Kvifte | Vibraphone, Drums |
| Ellen Brekken | Double Bass |
A nifty mix of old-school ECM folk-jazz and 1970s Alice Coltrane soul-on-the-sleeve spiritual adventurism. There aren’t a lot of ensembles that set out to build just such a construct, and there are even fewer doing it this well.
- Bird Is The Worm
Outstanding large ensemble. An expansive viewpoint, Just sensational. The kind of boundless creativity one hopes for in their artists.
- Wondering Sound
“Saksofonist og komponist Mathilde Groos Viddal fikk 1500 middelalderballader i fanget og ble spurt om å skape noe nytt. Musikken hun skapte er som en nomadisk vandring på tvers av landegrenser og tid.” – Spillerom, NRKP2
Tri vendur blés ho i den høgaste sky – Comissioned work, performed at Molde Internationale Jazzfestival 2019, Hemnesjazz 2019, sesongåpning på Riksscenen 2019, NasjonalBiblioteket 2018, Vossajazz 2018, Åpningen av det Europeiske Kulturarvåret, Freiasalen #EuropeforCultur 2018 and UNESCOS International Jazz Day at Kampenjazz 2018.
Other highlights from the Norwegian side of the (Molde)festival included reedist and composer Mathilde Grooss Viddal’s performance with her tenet, FriEnsemblet
- John Murph, Down Beat
The music consists of what Viddal calls “Worldmusic in Contemporary Jazzform” – a project merging different musical cultures and genres from east to west, to create new music with deep entity on its own right.