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Bobo Stenson: Contra la indecision
by Mike Jurkovic
Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson could be considered an anomaly amongst the ECM roster of piano players. His work over the past decades has been more controlled and, not to be taken as an insult or affront to Stenson's earthy lyricism, less challenging than the works of past and current label-mates such as Paul Bley, Marilyn Crispell, Carla Bley, Keith Jarrett, Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer, Django Bates, Benedikt Jahnel, or Colin Vance. Yet Stenson's deceptively beautiful molded organics have ...
read moreBobo Stenson: Contra la indecision
by Karl Ackermann
With a few exceptions, Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson has spent his long recording career with the prestigious ECM label, dating back to his oddly named Underwear in 1971. That particular album turned out to be more a showcase for bassist Arild Andersen and drummer Jon Christensen than for Stenson, and the pianist did not lead again on the label for twenty years. Stenson was hardly absent from Manfred Eicher's iconic label in those intervening years, appearing as a sideman for ...
read moreBobo Stenson: A Discography
by Budd Kopman
This article has been updated since its original 2006 publish date. Over the course of forty years, pianist Bobo Stenson (born 1944, Vasteras, Sweden) has been able to adapt himself to contribute in whatever way is necessary for the music at hand. Always being himself yet never calling attention to his prowess, he plies his skills on projects and always ends up leaving his mark. As a leader, he is an alchemist who can extract, ...
read moreBobo Stenson Trio: Indicum
by John Kelman
With Cantando (ECM, 2008), Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson finally documented the significant renewal of his quarter-century trio with bassist Anders Jormin. The pair had been playing with Jon Fält since the departure of drummer Jon Christensen in the early 2000s. But if Fält was already touring with Stenson when Goodbye (ECM, 2005) was released, its curious--and less than completely successful--decision to record with the late Paul Motian meant that only those fortunate enough to have heard the trio live knew ...
read moreBobo Stenson / Anders Jormin / Paul Motian: Goodbye
by Achille Brunazzi
Avant-garde and jazz legacy: in 2005, the German ECM label released Goodbye, from Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson, bassist Anders Jormin and drummer Paul Motian. The record represents the most accomplished work in Stenson's discography, because it wonderfully and fully embraces the latest jazz musical concepts and the perfect interplay between its band members. The album recalls Bill Evans's jazz trio ensembles, in terms of chords structure and, above all, arrangements. The first tune, “ Send in The ...
read moreBobo Stenson Trio: Cantando
by Martin Gladu
Bobo Stenson sings! Well, not literally, but the highly communicative and evocative qualities that characterize his music are indeed imbued of such conductive lyricism that it seems rather appropriate pointing out Cantando (Spanish word for singing) is a well-chosen title.
Unpretentiously carving their place amidst the select cast of historically-significant piano trios, Stenson and longtime acolyte Anders Jormin reign supreme in the format's already charged heritage. Acclaimed for their distinctive European affect and approach as well ... read moreBobo Stenson Trio: Cantando
by Dan McClenaghan
Fans of the piano trio have been listening hard and wide for a follow-up to the "Holy Grails": Bill Evans' Live at the Village Vanguard (Riverside Records, 1961) and Waltz for Debby (Riverside Records, 1961). Those sets introduced democracy to the group's three-way interplay, making drums and bass near-equal partners with the piano. Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson's later trios have come close to that elusive perfection. Serenity (ECM Records, 2000) and Goodbye (ECM Records, 2006) both achieve rare ...
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