In brief
24.04.2022

Tubasøjler i øret

Microtub + Blue Lake – Brønshøj Vandtårn/Alice
© Andreas Thaulow
© Andreas Thaulow

En tubatrio, der spiller afmålte mikrotonale flader på deres hjemmedrejede instrumenter – og ovenikøbet kalder sig for Microtub… Ingen grund til at pakke noget ind, åbenbart. Hvad du hører, er, hvad du får, og hvorfor ønske sig mere, når den kirurgiske klang bliver sendt ud i et vandtårn med 40 sekunders rumklang? 

ALICE havde inviteret til Brønshøj, og som opvarmning i det betonkolde rum skulle vi først afstresses af en klarinet-, zither-, og fløjteimprovisation af Jason Duncan aka Blue Lake. En kælende ambient leg: fabulerende på grænsen til det søvndyssende. Bare en enkelt lussing blandt de drømmende kærtegn havde været godt. 

Så hellere den firkantede tilgang, som Microtub stædigt diskede op med: Dirrende klange rejste sig som de grå betonsøjler, der bærer den rungende konstruktion. Stålsat, nærmest kynisk, smeltede musikkens og tårnets funktionelle arkitektur sammen. 

Den transformerende minimalisme var som sådan ikke vanvittig opfindsom: en toptone, der pludseligt hæver sig i akkordbrydningen, så en bundtone, der senere følger efter. Men klangene skabte den fornødne turbulens i rummet, der gjorde værkerne spændstige. Mest inciterende var de helt tætte ansatser hen mod slutningen. Dér slog lyden sprækker i luften, så det gyngede i hovedet, og det indre øre hylede med. Det stabile fundament blev faretruende usikkert: Man vidste aldrig, hvilke fascinerende knæk lyden ville tage. 

© Hreinn Gudlaugsson

»Music for me is like a sourdough. If you don't feed it right it is going to die. If you feed it correctly a lot of people can benefit from it.« 

Halym Kim is a drummer, composer and project coordinator based in Copenhagen. His music is mainly based in free improvisation and experimental music but performs also as a traditional Korean percussionist. He has a Master and an Advanced Postgraduate Diploma in Music Performance from RMC in Copenhagen. Together with Nana Pi he organizes Impro Camp which is a music camp for free and structured improvised music that is happening every year in Fredericia, Denmark.

© DMF

»Music for me is a tool of infinite expression. It’s where I’ve had the most complex conversations and open-minded experiences. It is the highest form of energy I know.«

Nana Pi is a saxophonist, composer and conductor working within the experimental music scene. She has developed a unique musical vocabulary on the saxophone by incorporating objects and extended techniques, pushing the boundaries of sonic expression. Beyond her work as a saxophonist, she is known for conducting improvisation using her music sign language, Extemporize, for which she received the P8 Jazz Award Årets Ildsjæl in 2020. She is a member of the well established record label Barefoot Records. In addition to her musical career, Nana Pi is organizing events such as Impro Camp and FredagsJAM that focuses on creating networks and inspiring music environments between musicians.

© PR

»For me, music is an emotional refuge. When I sit at the piano I feel safe, it's where I can release everything I carry inside. It's not about performing, it's about being honest, vulnerable and free.«

Samanta Yubero, known artistically as Samyula, is a composer, pianist, and neuroscientist based in Barcelona. Trained as a classical pianist and holding a PhD in her scientific field, Samyula bridges the worlds of art and science in her work. Her music – often within neoclassicism – blends both serene and intense piano melodies with vivid, dynamic string arrangements, creating emotionally resonant and immersive soundscapes. With a deep passion for both composition and performance, Samyula offers audiences a uniquely powerful and moving experience.

© PR

»Music is the ultimate gateway to presence, a true expression of the moment.«

Praised by DownBeat Magazine as one of Europe’s most versatile and inquisitive musicians, Polish-born, Scandinavian-based trumpeter and composer Tomasz Dąbrowski creates music that whispers before it screams – blending open, lyrical melodies with raw, unconventional trumpet sounds. Dąbrowski has revealed an unceasing curiosity, stretching and expanding his jazz roots in an ever-widening circle of exploration. From the beginning he’s rejected hierarchies, preferring to see creative music as a boundless practice that can accommodate ideas drawn from every spot on the stylistic map. While plenty of musicians pivot toward new directions, sometimes transforming their aesthetic wholesale, Dąbrowski has long revealed a more ruminative and holistic mindset that has allowed him to retain a clear artistic identity through countless projects, whether driven by improvisation or composition. 

© Malthe Ivarsson

»Music is where my heart is. The place where I feel the most freedom and possibility to express myself. It's also the place I seek to when I need to calm down.«

Anna Roemer is a Danish guitarist and composer from South Zealand, now based in Copenhagen. She has performed with artists like Hannah Schneider, Jacob Bellens, and Guldimund. Together with saxophonist Cecilie Strange, she forms the acclaimed duo K A L E II D O, known for music that constantly evolves. The duo has received national and international praise and won the Carl Prize for »Jazz Composer of the Year« for their albums Elements and Places (2024).