Frifot brought together three of the most colorful characters on the Swedish folk music scene, all of them with deep roots in the tradition. The group was formed in 1987 and thanks to their successful tours both in Sweden and abroad, they won a large following beyond just the normal folk circles. Together they created powerfully contemporary music that gave new life to the old traditions without losing touch with the thoughts, feelings and expressions of our own day.
Frifot were:
Per Gudmundson — fiddle and bagpipe.
With his poetic interpretation of traditional tunes, he has made a name for himself as one of Sweden´s best fiddlers. His musical home and source of inspiration is the fiddle tradition of Rättvik which provides the distinctive color in the language and keynote of his music, both on the concert stage and to accompany dancing. He has also made crucial contributions to the revival of the Swedish bagpipe tradition.
Ale Möller — mandola, hammered dulcimer, flutes.
Ale is a master of many instruments who has found his way home to Swedish traditional music by many devious routes. He is one of the major forces in the search for new sounds and expressions of Nordic music. In close collaboration with different fiddlers he has brought new instruments to the old music, at the same time as he has also become an expert on old folk instruments.
Lena Willemark — vocals and fiddle
From her home in Älvdalen in the north of Dalarna she brought with her a treasure chest of extraordinary tunes and songs that she interprets both as a fiddler and, above all, as an extremely distinctive singer. Her meeting with the jazz tradition has taken her music along several paths. With traditional music as her guiding light she has sparked off inspiring work together with some of Sweden’s leading jazz musicians and managed to create new forms.
These three musicians also formed the basis of the Nordan Project, who e released various successful recordings on the ECM label.
Discography:
Frifot (1991)
Jarven (1996)
Summer Song, compilation (NorthSide 1998)
Frifot (ECM, 1999)
Sluring (2003)
Flyt (2007)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
