* En anglais uniquement
Norwegian saxophonist and composer
Trygve Seim is best known to English-speaking audiences for his recordings as a sideman and leader on the
ECM label. But in his native Norway, he is considered a prolific recording artist, collaborator, and curator of sound. In Europe and Asia where his catalog is far more extensive, he is a nearly ubiquitous presence on the festival circuit as a soloist, bandleader, featured composer, and sideman. His membership in guitarist
Jacob Young's quintet has spread his reputation to the U.K. and U.S. as well.
Seim's 2004 date
Sangam was widely celebrated for its fusion of jazz, international pop, and modernist styles, while 2010's
Purcor: Songs for Saxophone and Piano, paired him with pianist
Andreas Utnem, a longtime associate to duet on various original and traditional compositions. Choosing from a mix of liturgical compositions for mass and some original pieces,
Utnem played in his own classical- and jazz-based style while
Seim improvised around him. The result was a critically regarded hybrid of classical, jazz, and folk styles.
Seim was born in Norway in 1971 and began playing saxophone in 1985 after hearing
Jan Garbarek's Eventyr album. That tone has followed him down through the decades, but
Seim's approach is warmer and sparser than his great influence's. He studied at the famed Trondheim Musikkonservatorium with
Edward Vesala and Terje Bjørklund in the early '90s. In 1991, he and Christian Wallumrød (a fellow student) formed the quartet
Airamero with bassist Johannes Eick and drummer
Per Oddvar Johansen. The saxophonist also joined
Jon Balke's large band
Oslo 13 in 1992. Eventually, he became one of its co-leaders.
Airamero issued a lone self-titled album in 1994. Through the rest of the '90s,
Seim played on records by
Motorpsycho,
Jacob Young, Squid, and
Odd Nordstoga, to name a few. He also co-founded
the Source with
Johansen,
Øyvind Brække, and
Mats Eilertsen, an ongoing concern.
The saxophonist issued his
ECM leader debut Different Rivers in 2001, followed by
The Source with Different Cikadas (with
Brække and
Johansen), Wallumrød's
Sofienberg Variations, and
Balke's Magnetic North Orchestra on
Kyanos in 2002.
Sangam, his next album as a leader, was issued in 2004. In 2006,
the Source issued its self-titled album.
Seim joined
Sinnika Langeland's "Starflowers" group that year -- as did
Arve Henriksen and
Anders Jormin. Her 2007 album of the same name marked the initial collaboration of a band that has continued to tour and record.
Seim followed with two more collaborative, co-headline albums:
Yeraz with accordionist
Frodi Haltli was released in 2008, and
Purcor with
Andreas Utnem came out in 2010. Over the next five years, he recorded with
the Source, and appeared on albums by
Manu Katche and
Arild Andersen, among others.
2016 proved prolific for
Seim: He contributed to
Iro Haarla's
Ante Lucem,
Eilertsen's
Rubicon, and
Langeland's
The Magical Forest. In addition, his own
Rumi Songs appeared in September. It offered recordings of his musical settings of works by the 13th century poet and mystic, sung by mezzo soprano
Tora Augestad. The saxophonist
Haltli and violin-cellist
Svante Henryson provided accompaniment. In 2017, he formed his "Helsinki Quartet" with Norwegian bassist
Mats Eilertsen, Estonian pianist
Kristjan Randalu, and Finland's
Markku Ounaskari on drums. Together they recorded Helsinki Songs with producer
Manfred Eicher in Oslo's Rainbow Studio in January of 2018. The set featured all-original tunes composed (mostly) in the Finnish capital, that offered tributes and dedications to
Igor Stravinsky,
Jimmy Webb,
Ornette Coleman,
Bill Evans, and his bandmates. Helsinki Songs was issued in mid-July followed by a European tour. ~ Thom Jurek