Primary Instrument: Band/ensemble/orchestra
Swedish trio Plunge has been in existence since 2001. The Malmö-based trio deals with collectively improvised, acoustic music. Their music is based on interplay, presence, spontaneity and a far-reaching sense of form. Plunge has toured in Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Switzerland and the UK and has also released two trio albums on the Swedish indie-label Kopasetic Productions, “Plunge” (2004) and “Refreshingly Addictive” (2007).
Besides working as a trio, Plunge also has an ongoing collaboration with renowned Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson. The rewarding collaboration between the trio and Stenson started in the fall of 2002, and has so far resulted in numerous tours of Sweden, several national and European radio broadcasts and two CD's on Kopasetic, “Plunge with Bobo Stenson” (2005) and “Origo” (2009).
PLUNGE is:
Andreas Andersson - Saxophones
Andreas has, with his powerful sound and lyrical playing, established himself as one of Sweden's most personal saxophonists. He is active on the Swedish improv scene, as well as in the jazz community. He plays in duos with pianist Ola Hedén and renowned organ improviser Markus Wargh, and has also performed with Bobo Stenson, Marilyn Mazur and Sten Sandell among others.
Andreas has composed music for improvising big band, amateur theatre, documentary movies, and numerous tunes for smaller ensembles.
Mattias Hjorth - Double bass
Mattias's melodic and sensitive playing is featured in several groups, such as Cennet Jönsson Quartet, Loïc Dequidt Trio/Quartet and Footloose. Mattias has worked with many renowned musicians, such as Bobo Stenson, Dave Liebman, Tommy Smith, Lotte Anker, Lennart Åberg, Fredrik Ljungkvist, Lina Nyberg and Peter Danemo.
Mattias is also a highly regarded improvisation and ensemble teacher at the Malmö Music Conservatory and at Fridhem's Folkhögskola in Svalöv.
Peter Nilsson - Drums
Peter has established himself as one of the most in-demand drummers in Sweden. His varied and organic playing can be heard in many constellations, including Cennet Jönsson Quartet, Anders Nilsson's Aorta, Loïc Dequidt Trio/Quartet, lim, The Opposite, Double Standards, Ola Hedén Trio and 15,5.
He has also worked with Paul Bley, Miroslav Vituos, David Liebman, Marc Ducret, Bobo Stenson, Tony Malaby, Raoul Björkenheim, Eugene Chadbourne, Marilyn Mazur, Palle Danielsson, Lotte Anker, Sten Sandell and many others, and has toured in many European countries, as well as in Azerbajdzjan, Mexico and the US.
- John Kelman/All About Jazz (on ”Plunge”)
”This urgency is what is ultimately satisfying. The ever-present forward movement and direction end up inviting the listener, along with a hint of tonality that hovers over the proceedings. Based on this highly recommended release, we can look forward to Plunge’s continued recordings, with or without Bobo Stenson.”
- Budd Kopman/All About Jazz (on ”Plunge with Bobo Stenson”)
”Malmö based Plunge has made a name for themselves on the Swedish improvisation scene over the last few years and this, their third release, is a good testimony of why. With Andreas Anderson’s near plastic baritone sax in focus, the trio springs into the unknown in seven improvisations that sound more like lyrical, minimalist compositions than traditional free jazz. Mattias Hjorth (bass) and Peter Nilsson (drums) do not make up a rhythm section in the traditional sense either. Rather, organically fused parts conspire from all three players and not only is the group's music unusually succinct and passionate, but also demonstrates that you actually can find new paths within the paradoxically rather narrow frames of free jazz.”
- Magnus Nilsson/Smålandsposten (on “Refreshingly Addictive”)
“The music's attraction lies in how freedom, structure and development are balanced. While not being tonal in terms of key, or even modal, each piece does have a center of gravity defined by its phrase kernel, which is fleshed out by Stenson's pithy chordal clusters. Development feels logical while being unpredictable, as each player's contributions (both pro- and re- active) move the piece forward. Furthermore, each piece has a mood, the sum total of which puts the album on the introspective and meditative side, combined however, with an underlying intensity borne of concentration and the lack of anything extraneous. Origo seems to simply unfurl before the ears in a timeless way, paradoxically demanding attention while simultaneously ignoring it. Origo is multilayered music for immersion, creating a perfect excuse for the repeat button and hours of becoming lost in its spell. Marvelous.”
- Budd Kopman/All About Jazz (on “Origo”)
