NEWS!

FACES OF SPRING, A NEW CHAMBER MUSIC/JAZZ PIECE FOR JAZZ QUINTET AND STRING QUARTET

A new compostion by Amanda, celebrating the differences and similarities beteween jazz and classical music. This piece for jazz group and string quartet was premiered in Stockholm at jazz club Fasching in September last year and was also broadcasted by the Swedish Radio and EBU.

”The title of the piece alludes to the ambiguous character of spring and its enfolding from cold stillness to teeming life. I also included a poem by Maya Angelou, “Caged Bird”, as a reminder of those of us who are shackled and prevented from enjoying the freedom of spring, but whose souls sing and soar against all odds.

The piece consists of five short movements: Serpentine, Frozen Lake, Slide Walk, Caged Bird and Spring Dance. In the composition, I have at times tried to present the jazz group and the string quartet in dialogue towards each other in a kind of “concerto grosso” style, but also at other times mix the two groups, and during the work I was constantly reminded of how closely knitted jazz is with Romantic classical music.”

This piece was originally commissioned by the Association of Swedish Jazz Musicians with funding from the Swedish Arts Council, and I was one of four composers who were included in the same project. All four compositions were presented at jazz club Fasching in Stockholm, Sweden, in September last year, and was being broadcasted by Swedish Radio as well as some European countries of the EBU (Operating Eurovision and Euroradio).”

The musicians in this recording are: Amanda Sedgwick alto sax, Krister Andersson tenor sax, Adam Forkelid piano, Filip Augustson bass, Kalle Rasmusson drums, Victoria Stjerna 1st violin, Anders Åkered 2d violin, Sara Munters viola, Filip Graden cello