FriForma

Alpenglow 7 is one of the peak international events this year in contemporary improvised music that brings together the leading Austrian-Styrian and Slovenian musicians. At the two-day meeting in experimental spirit, 19 Austrian performers will be presented together with 13 Slovenian performers with whom in the past they have never shared the stage before. The purpose of the curatorial team is to offer the audience unpredictable and, at the same time, top achievements of the joint work of ten newly formed ensembles.

The performers are distinctly recognizable not only exclusively in the free-improvisational, jazz, or broader experimental scene, but many are also recognized in new and chamber music.

The initiators of the international exchange are musicians and leading representatives of the Graz association V:NM (Verein zur Förderung und Verbreitung Neuer Musik) Josef Klammer and Elisabeth Harnik. The meeting will take place as part of the FriForma concert series, which will provide conditions for the realization of creative potentials, career opportunities, and the flow of ideas between domestic and Austrian performers.

The cooperation will take place in two steps. The first step is the guest appearance of the 13. V:NM festival in Graz between 18 and 21 August 2021. The festival will be attended by 13 Slovenian improvisers who will performe live together in formations with 24 Austrian musicians. During the festival, a sound installation entitled Interference, which is the work of intermedia artist Nika Erjavec, will also be on display. The ensembles were composed of a curatorial team: Josef Klammmer, Elisabeth Harnik, Nataša Serec and László Juhász. The return “friendly match” – Alpenglow 7 will take place in Ljubljana, at ŠKUC Gallery and Klub Gromka on 26 August 2021; and at Cankarjev dom on 27 August 2021.

26 August 2021, Thursday

ŠKUC Gallery, 19.00-20.30

Tea Vidmar: voice
Annette Giesriegl: voice
Ana Kravanja: voice, violin
Josef Klammer: percussion, artificial voices

Nick Acorne: electronics, joysticks
Borut Savski: electronics, custom-built instruments
Seppo Gründler: guitar, electronics

Klub Gromka, 21.00-23.00

Tanja Feichtmair: alto saxophone
Cene Resnik: tenor saxophone
Urban Kušar: drums

Robert Lepenik: guitar, electronics
Samo Kutin: hurdy-gurdy
Jaka Berger: drums, electronics
Patrick Wurzwallner: drums

27 August 2021, Friday

Cankarjev dom, 18.30-20.30

Tilen Lebar: alto saxophone
Se-Lien Chuang: piano, voice
Andreas Weixler: guitar, electronics

Yvonne Hofmeister: voice
Valentina Štrucelj: clarinet
Maria Flavia Cerrato: piano
Franz Schmuck: percussion

Matej Bunderla: saxophone
Katharina Klement: piano, electronics
Denovaire: esraj

Cankarjev dom, 21.00-23.00

Alfred Lang: trumpet
Kaja Draksler: piano
Reinhard Ziegerhofer: double bass

Elisabeth Harnik: piano
Matjaž Bajc: double bass
Zlatko Kaučič: percussion

Christoph Wundrak: trumpet, euphonium
Cene Resnik: tenor saxophone
Armin Pokorn: guitar

Otganized by KUD Mreža/FriForma Ljubljana and V:NM Graz
Graphic design: Luka Cimolini

Supported by Ministry of Culture – Republic of Slovenia, City of Ljubljana – Department for Culture, Austrian Cultural Forum Ljubljana, SKICA – Slovenian Cultural-Information Center Austria, Land Steiermark, Federal Ministry of Austria Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport, KiG! and others…

On 11 October, Sunday at 20.00 Austrian sound artist and cellist Noid is recording with Slovenian clarinetist Andrej Fon at Cirkulacija2 in Ljubljana. The recording session’s result is coming out at Edition FriForma in the first half of 2021.

Sympathy is a research project on snare drums as resonant objects that Noid conceptualised during a one month residency at q-02 in Brussels in May 2019, where he started to research the possibilities of using 12 chromatically tuned snare drums as an extension of the cello. The outcome so far is a version for cello and one resonant snare drum, premiered at the festival Zentrale in Vienna last year. A sound installation for 12 chromatically tuned snare drums and amplified ambience shall be premiered at Cirkulacija2.

Between 23 and 25 August Slovenian saxophonist Tilen Lebar and Hungarian clarinetist Szilár Benes are having a 3-day recording session for Edition FriForma at Rotunda in Selo.

Romanic rotunda of St. Nikolaj is located about two kilometres to the west from the Slovenian – Hungarian border. It was built in the 13th century in the valley of Kobilje brook by the medieval traffic road from the Alps to the Panonska lowland. In the 19th century they added a rotunda bell tower, covered dome with tinplate and gave the Gothic wing altar to Budapest. The circular sanctuary is architecturally excellent remnant of the presumptively larger medieval post. The interior was first time probably painted around the year 1300. Today’s partly reconstructed appearance was given after the extensive conservator and renovate work in the year 1956. The painting in the cupola was restored in the year 1980. The rotunda of Saint Nikolaj lies in the rising ground under the valley, which protects the church before the flood. The church is built from the brick. They got clay in the nearness of the church. Northwest from the rotunda is the cemetery with the tombstone of the aristocratic family Matzenau from Prosenjakovec. By rotunda is also the energetic point in which are united energies of cosmos and earth.

In this inspiring and historical location the two musicians, Tilen Lebar and Szilárd Benes are working on an album that we expect out in the first half of 2021 on Edition FriForma.

Appart from the Elektrošokboogie trio 25 years ago, there have only been some rare occasions later, but almost never Tomaž Grom and Zlatko Kaučič never played in a duo. Rare occasion can be seen also in the trombone trio, here composed of three different experiences, taken from the worlds of composed, improvised or jazz music scenes. The trio of Matthias Muche, Matthias Müller and Jeb Bishop first appeared on stage in 2016 in Köln, when they recorded their live album Konzert Für Hannes, published one year later at NotTwo records.

KUD Mreža’s first FriForma event in 2019 is happening on 21 February, Thursday at 20.00 at Klub Gromka, and presenting the fresh trio of legendary Japanese guitarist Taku Sugimoto with laptop/electronic musician Léo Dupleix and double bassist Félicie Bazelaire.

Also on the bill: the long-awaited performance of a Slovenian duo with voice performer Irena Z. Tomažin and double bassist Tomaž Grom.

21 February 2019, Thursday 20.00 – Klub Gromka, Ljubljana