Ab Baars trio & Simon Toldam trio

The Ab Baars Trio creates music that stays attractive because of its clear and concise structure. Baars’ compositions, which have been characterized as joyfully obstinate, remain astonishingly accessible even though they rarely rely on recognizable song forms. The band leader himself improvises on tenor sax, clarinet and shakuhachi. Since 1990 he has fomed a trio with double bassist Wilbert de Joode and drummer Martin van Duynhoven.

‘The trio has evolved from good to better to best. Baars blows harder than most tenor players, but on clarinet and in the Japanese pieces he proves himself to be a master of reaching the inner consciousness. Drummer Martin van Duynhoven has a sense of tonality comparable to a bass player. Wilbert de Joode plucks the strings as if he’s behind a drum kit’ (Vrij Nederland).

Pianist Simon Toldam is known around here for his imaginative performances with the Han Bennink Trio. In his homeland Denmark he’s hailed as a band leader who has already won four Danish Music Award (Danish Grammys). Together with double bassist Nils Davidsen and drummer Knut Finsrud he displays the uncanny ability to play as one organism, whether they’re parading or drifting, noising or silencing. Their new album OMHU (Danish for precise, conscientious) reflects on time and space in a sonic exploration of slowness.

‘Simon Toldam is one of the most impressive figures on the bustling Scandinavian improvised music scene’ (Downbeat).