Tenorsaxslåttar (EP) Karl Seglem

• 1 Bruremarsj frå Jostedalen etter Arne Halveg 02:52
• 2 Valsen Nye sva, Karl Seglem 03:50
• 3 Halling fritt etter Sigurd S.Eldegard 01:48
• 4 Springar e.Sjur Eldegard i form e.Håkon Høgemo 03:05
• 5 Karl Fant Vals etter Jens Frydenlund 02:04
• Total Runtime 13:39

Info for Tenorsaxslåttar (EP)

Karl Seglem returns to his roots, performing traditional Hardanger fiddle tunes as solos on the tenor saxophone. This is unique material that has never before been played or presented on a wind instrument. Seglem has created his own folk-jazz genre, and on this release, he plays his way back to the sources.

"I have been working on these recordings and this project since the winter of 2024—or rather, since the winter (March) of 1991, when I met and began playing with the Hardanger fiddle master Håkon Høgemo. I learned most of the tunes on this recording by playing with him, listening to him, and learning from him. This experience has shaped me as an instrumentalist and played a significant role in my artistic career—not least in the musical language I have developed as a tenor saxophonist and composer. The recording features original compositions, some created in collaboration with Håkon. Recording most of the tunes I know feels like coming home; this is my "Real Book." If you consult the volume on culture in the *Bygdebok for Årdal* (local history series), you can read about the rich Hardanger fiddle traditions of Inner Sogn and the many skilled, active fiddlers—music and traditions that today "hang by a slender thread" in what was once my home community. Håkon Høgemo strengthens this thread through his teaching at the Norwegian Academy of Music (NMH), where he has worked for well over twenty years. Yet, performing and arranging these tunes for a different instrument represents pioneering work, and the resulting sheet music may well inspire many wind players to learn these traditional tunes. Likewise, it serves as a goldmine for arrangers across various genres, offering a foundation to create something new based on something truly unique: the Hardanger fiddle music of Norway." (Karl Seglem)

Karl Seglem, tenor saxophone

Recording and mixing: Tor Magne Hallibakken, Svenkerud 2024–2025 Mastering by Espen Høydalsvik, Oslo 2026

Karl Seglem
is described as one of the most exciting contemporary tenor saxophonists and composers in Norway. He has consistently extended musical frontiers with his original perspectives and daring improvisational style. He combines Norway's rich folk music traditions, both the vocal traditions and specially the Hardanger fiddle music, with his own mode of expression. Seglem creates modern soundscapes, a mix between jazz, folk, world, where improvisation and composition are given equal weight.

His saxophone tone blazes a fresh trail through his innovative use of breath, resonance and syncopation. Seglem also plays the Norwegian goat horns. His many CD recordings with different ensembles such as UTLA, SOGN-A-SONG and ISGLEM ranges across the entire spectrum from rooted folk to free form, and is inspired by deep Norwegian roots, via world beats to the poetic and dramatic Nordic landscape.He has composed and performed several works/pieces and has produced a number of CDs for mainly Norwegian, but also some Swedish artists.

This album contains no booklet.