Description

“Steam Waterfall” is the second album of an extended version of Paal Nilssen-Love’s Large Unit. But this is not the same Extra Large Unit as heard of 2018’s “More Fun Please”. This is a live recording from Oslo Jazz festival in 2022 with key members of Large Unit and a host of younger musicians which Paal had met through workshops and teaching in the two years prior to the concert. The number of musicians heard is 25, the largest Unit yet, but during the performance four dancers was also part of the performance – one Norwegian contemporary and three traditional Columbian dancers.

The piece clocks in at 75 minutes, and is quite a journey – from the opening, when we hear the audience entering the room, to the end (spoiler alert) when 100 ping pong balls are thrown around on stage by all musicians, bouncing on the floor and instruments and even knocking down a glass or two. In between there’s a whole world of different events – as Paal has set up the piece as a juxtaposition of techniques, combining written passages with conceptual sections, graphic scores, as well as solos and sectioned group improvisations. It’s an ambitious piece, but listening to the recording it never feels forced and overly conceptual – it’s still all about the music and the collective experience of both listening and playing.

The CD comes with extensive liner notes by Paal, detailing the thoughts and inspirations that shaped the project. This passage gets to the core of it:

“Steam Waterfall” is a result of my attempt to question what a concert is, when it begins and when it ends. The composition is also an attempt to question what a piece of music is. Do I define the course of the music, and/or how much can I rely on the performers to move the music forward? What is a concert? When does a concert start? Is it when you walk into the concert venue, or when the band takes the stage? When the musicians first produce sounds on their instruments? Or has it already started when you have just read about the concert and decided to go? When does it end? When the last sound is over? When the audience starts applauding? When they leave the room? Or does it go on resonating forever? 

Label: PNL Records

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