Home » Jazz Articles » Nils Petter Molvaer
Jazz Articles about Nils Petter Molvaer
About Nils Petter Molvaer
Richard Spaven: Light Of Day
by Neil Duggan
Acclaimed drummer, composer and producer Richard Spaven has forged a distinctive musical identity by blending jazz, drum and bass, electronica and hip hop. His technical fluency has seen him collaborate with a wide range of artists, including Cinematic Orchestra, Flying Lotus and Loyle Carner. Spaven, initially grounded in big band jazz, was heavily influenced by the London club scene, immersing himself in drum and bass, garage, dubstep and other styles. This has evolved into a singular approach that ...
Continue ReadingNils Petter Molvaer: Be Quiet
by Neil Duggan
For over three decades, Norwegian trumpeter and composer Nils Petter Molvaer has stood as one of the most influential figures in European jazz. On Be Quiet, he continues to push the boundaries of his already remarkable body of work, collaborating with a different artist in a different location on each of the nine tracks Molvær is no stranger to bold concepts. Since first attracting attention through his work with Arild Andersen in Masqualero, his brand of Nordic restraint ...
Continue ReadingDave Stapleton: Quiet Fire
by Geno Thackara
Fourteen years on from the previous album under his own name, the music world is a different place, and indeed, Dave Stapleton is a very different musician. While his distinct ear for melody is recognizable, this affair is a world away from 2012's Flight (Edition). The pianist's breakthrough-at-the-time solo outing was an ambitious and expansive chamber-jazz affair crossing acoustic combo with string quartet. The feeling here is likewise evocative and picturesque, but on a more introspective and intimate scale.
Continue ReadingJazz Juniors 2025
by Martin Longley
Jazz Juniors Cricoteka Krákow, Poland October 2-4, 2025 What is happening with today's youth? The annual Jazz Juniors competition (and accompanying festival) assembled its usual eager participants, vying for cash and concerts in prizes. For this 49th edition, six acts appeared at the very suitable Cricoteka riverside venue, allotted very brief spans to reveal their talents, for maybe 20 minutes and two or three numbers (this being jazz). The entrants are selected in blindfolded fashion, ...
Continue ReadingAlbum Review
Elisabetta Antonini, Alessandro Contini: [R]evolution
by Neri Pollastri
Una riflessione musicale sull'arte e la sua rivoluzionaria capacità di cambiamento di sguardi sul mondo: questa l'ispirazione che muove [R]evolution, lavoro congiunto di Elisabetta Antonini e Alessandro Contini, compagni nella vita e per la prima volta anche in un'esperienza artistica. Il disco si suddivide in nove brani, quasi tutti dedicati a un artista rivoluzionario," iniziando con Pina Bausch e concludendo con David Sylvian, al quale in certa misura si ispira musicalmente, toccando Fela Kuti e Sebastiao Salgado, Dino ...
Continue ReadingKraków Jazz Week: Seifert Competition & Jazz Juniors
by Martin Longley
Kraków Jazz Week Cricoteka/Hevre Kraków, Poland September 26th-October 3rd 2024 This was the second Kraków Jazz Week, but there is a much deeper history unearthed when studying the roots of this new event. Fundamentally, it involves the amalgamation of two long-running festivals: the Seifert Competition and Jazz Juniors, this latter having a history that reaches all the way back to 1976, so now nearing its 40th anniversary. The Seifert event is ...
Continue ReadingVossa Jazz Going Strong and Poetic at 50
by Josef Woodard
Vossa Jazz Voss, Norway March 31-April 2, 2023 Origin stories in the still-young-ish wild frontier of jazz festival culture can be fascinating case studies in feisty pioneer spirit. Take the Western Norwegian Vossa Jazz Festival, an important stop in the storied Norwegian festival circuit, which celebrated its ripe old 50th birthday this year. Its humble origins date back to the dreaming and scheming of twentysomething jazz enthusiasts from Voss, Lars Mossefinn, Arild Wærness and Asle Haaland, ...
Continue Reading

