Jan Garbarek - Don't Look Back
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Saxophonist Jan Garbarek is perhaps emblematic of the Nordic sound, his piercing and precise tone as instantly recognisable as it has been influential.
And yet the success of his chamber-jazz albums with the Hilliard Ensemble and his more fusion-edged recent solo works contrast heavily with his youthful exploration of hard bop and his string of fired-up, hugely significant 1970s albums on ECM, that highlighted his forthright playing style, as well as his iconic work with Keith Jarrett. With three major new archive releases from the ECM vaults and a central appearance at the London Jazz Festival this November, the great saxophonist talks to Stuart Nicholson about never looking back today, only forward.
Jan Garbarek made his first recording for the Munich-based ECM label in September 1970, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise to learn his past is catching up with him. Within the space of 12 weeks, this year’s London Jazz Festival headliner has been featured on no less than three major ECM releases including two previously unreleased concerts and a re-release in box form of three compact discs that have been long unavailable in either digital or analogue formats. What is surprising is that as his fans – and there are plenty of them, one of his more recent recordings sold well over one million units – scramble to obtain copies, Garbarek himself will not be listening to them.
This is an extract from Jazzwise Issue #168 – to read the full article click here to subscribe and receive a FREE CD...