Search - Arild Andersen :: Sagn

A beautiful world to explore

Otto Olah | San Diego, California | 04/24/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First I did not really like this album, the music was very different from anything I had listened to before. After a while I started to get to know the tunes and understand them. This is a whole different world, a soul-stirring blend of jazz and ancient Norwegian folk music. The result is neither jazz nor folk, but a meditative and refreshing very emotional music. It is composed and arranged by Arild Andersen, a double bass player, the lyrics are Norwegian poems. The impact of the album is the most dramatic when listened in whole, the compositions are correlated and they form three major sections. The disturbing, more complex tunes are followed by soothing melodic songs. Some parts are a bit difficult, but most of them are enjoyable for everyone. My favorite song is 6. "Laurdagskveld" which follows "Draum" (Dream?) with a pauseless transition and is one of the most beautiful melodies I have ever heard. It touches me every time I listen to it. All songs are in Norwegian, I have little idea what they are about, although a Norwegian guy translated me one of them, I wish I had more time to have all translated... The singer Kristen Braten Berg is a known folk singer in Norway and she did a wonderful job in this album. The sound quality of the recording is exceptional, it can be used as an audiophile demo CD. This music is one of a kind, I truly love it and recommend to everybody who wants to explore something different. The 30 second samples don't do justice, you have to listen to the whole album at home."