The Land That Is Not (ECM, 2011)
Sinikka Langeland is a singer, composer and kantele player from Norway. In recent years she has been exploring the boundaries between folk music and contemporary jazz. The Land That Is Not is the sequel to her previous ECM album titled Starflowers.
The Land That Is Not combines Langeland’s marvelous voice with Scandinavian poetry and the spatial chamber jazz that ECM is well known for. Sinikka Langeland provides vocals and plays kantele. She is joined by an excellent group of jazz musicians that includes Arve Henriksen on trumpet; Trygve Seim on soprano and tenor saxophones; Anders Jormin on double bass; and Markku Ounaskari on drums.
On this new recording, Langeland uses the poetry of Edith Södergran (1892-1923) and Olav Håkonson Hauge (1908-1994). The two poets now count as forerunners of literary modernism in Sweden and Norway. Södergran was a Swedish-speaking poet in Raivola, near St Petersburg. She is regarded as one of the pioneers of modernist Swedish poetry. Olav Håkonson Hauge was an influential Norwegian poet who wrote modernist poetry.
The CD booklet features lyrics in Swedish and Norwegian with English translations.
The Land That Is Not is a remarkable exploratory album that brings together one of the finest folk singers from Norway and a superb group of contemporary jazz musicians.
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.
