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Nils Landgren - Christmas with My Friends VIIICD / Vinyl / digital Nils Landgren trombone & vocals Sharon Dyall vocals Jonas Knutsson saxophones Jeanette Köhn vocals Jessica Pilnäs vocals Ida Sand vocals & piano Johan Norberg guitars Clas Lassbo bass For large numbers of people, Nils Landgren's Christmas albums are now a part of their holiday season, just like advent calendars or mistletoe. Seventeen years ago, trombonist/singer Landgren, one of the brightest stars in the European jazz firmament, brought together some of his closest musical companions. To get themselves into the mood for Christmas, they set off on a tour of churches in Sweden and Germany. The album which resulted from that first tour, "Christmas With My Friends" was described by one critic as "the most beautiful of all Christmas CDs." Ever since then, Landgren and his friends have been repeating this special way of celebrating Christmas every other year. That time has come round again: "Christmas With My Friends VIII" is ready to take its place among the presents under the tree. These albums all have a wealth of different moods and colours, and that is what makes them so special, as each musician brings their own highly individual contribution. There is Landgren himself with his unrivalled flexible and velvety-smooth trombone, Jonas Knutsson with his lyrical saxophone playing, Johan Norberg and his folky guitar tone. Here for the first time, we also hear the sonorous bass of Clas Lassbo. Above all, however, it is the vocalists who give each track on the album its own special character, and also complement each other perfectly: the classical soprano singing of Jeanette Köhn, the bittersweet soul of Ida Sand, the radiant clarity of Jessica Pilnäs, the powerful blues of Sharon Dyall and, last but not least, the bright soul of Nils Landgren himself.The repertoire which Landgren – and increasingly his friends – choose is also remarkable for its many colours and for the extensive research work which has gone into finding it. There are carols, Christmas songs from pop and jazz, songs which are played all over the world appear alongside songs unknown outside their countries of origin; there is a range from. This time, Landgren and his friends have taken the idea of the richness of colour quite literally. "My Christmas is orange," Landgren says. "I wasn't keen on presents as a child, but far more interested in the holiday season food. That was what made up my Christmas: My mother Margareta brought a big bag of fresh oranges. I still remember when I peeled the first one, and then enjoyed the smell and the wonderful taste." That's why the glowing cover of "Christmas With My Friends VIII" is so...orange.Listeners are encouraged to associate colours with the tracks on the album. Who wouldn't be thinking of green with "O Tannenbaum", for example, especially when it is played, as here, in New Orleans Mardi Gras style. With the hymn-like "In Dulce Jubilo", which swirls around the classical vocals, it has to be gold. And everyone can imagine their own colours for tunes like the ethereal "Lully, Lalla, Lullay", the folky "Soon After Christmas" or the jazzy- "It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year"... just as Johan Norberg has done in his composition "That's How I Picture Christmas Eve". And there is clearly one colour that must not be missing: the colour of jazz: "When we had recorded everything, Ida Sand said: 'What about Blue Christmas?'" Landgren remembers. And so the album starts with the song by Bill Hayes and Jay Johnson, which gave Elvis Presley his breakthrough to fame, as a wonderfully rolling blues. There are so many colours represented here, and no doubt more will be added when the group tours Germany in December. All that remains is to wish them well: may your days be merry and bright, and may all your christmases be...colourful.Credits: Produced by Nils Landgren & Johan Norberg

Nils Landgren - Christmas With My Friends VIICD / Vinyl / digital Nils Landgren trombone & vocals Sharon Dyall vocals Jonas Knutsson saxophones Jeanette Köhn vocals Eva Kruse bass Jessica Pilnäs vocals Ida Sand vocals & piano Johan Norberg guitars & mandolin Christmas 2020 will be unlike the Christmases of the past, because the Covid-19 crisis and social distancing have fundamentally changed the way we live. Maybe they will also make us yearn more for the true spirit and the joys of Christmas. As we reflect and contemplate on what is important to us, we know that we want to keep hold of our sense of friendship and community. We feel a strong imperative to reach out for whatever can bring joy to the world. And with that thought in mind, there can surely be very few people who can gift-wrap the Christmas season in music for us – and do so quite as naturally, effectively and magically – as Nils Landgren. It is all of fourteen years since this risen star of the trombone, charismatic singer and established luminary of the European jazz scene first gathered together his closest companions in a studio to make a "Christmas With My Friends" album and then take the group on tour with him. The project was successful right from the start: the German magazine Stern hailed the first album as "the most beautiful Christmas CD ever." So from that point on there was no looking back, and never the slightest doubt that Landgren and his friends would go on to repeat this special way of celebrating Christmas: they have continued to do so every other year. Legions of fans have welcomed the albums and tour concerts into their own ways of celebrating Christmas. In fact, "Christmas With My Friends" has now estab-lished itself as nothing less than a Christmas tradition in its own right. In similar fashion, this project has become something very personal for Landgren and his cohort: "Ever since we did the first 'Christmas with My Friends' tour, we have seen so many beautiful churches and concert halls, we’ve met so many wonderful people, we are full of gratitude for all of this – we can hardly wait for this year’s encounters.” ACT owner Siggi Loch didn’t need any persuading to get involved in "Christmas With My Friends VII" either. He did, however, make a suggestion, that they should reach outwards and include songs from all over the world. So Landgren enlisted the help of his longtime colleague Johan Norberg to go off and do some research. Norberg is an experienced guitarist/producer, and he returned from his quest with a substantial trawl of songs. Of these, fourteen numbers from fourteen different countries have made it onto the album. In every respect, there has a been a widening of the scope of "Christmas With My Friends": alongside songs by classical composers such as Franz Schubert ("Ave Maria") and Benjamin Britten ("Hodie Christus"), there is a lullaby, the English 16th century carol "Sweet Was The Song". From Poland we hear "Gdy sliczna Panna/Listen to my Lullaby", from Russia there is the children’s song "The Forest Raised A Christmas Tree", and from South Africa the lively “Sizalelwe Indodana”. There is the Finnish song "Sylvian Joululaulu", scarcely known beyond its country of origin. By contrast, there is a hit that has travelled the world: "Feliz Navidad" by the Puerto Rican guitarist and pop singer José Feliciano. There are homages, such as one to the great Belgian chansonnier Jacques Brel, and there are compositions by Johan Norberg and Eva Kruse. And the scale ranges from the purity and simplicity of a cappella (Norberg's opener "This Christmas") to "Just Another Christmas Song", in which Landgren’s group convincingly delivers the sound of a full big band. There is a very appealing variety here, but every single piece also brings out the talent of this unique cohort of musicians. Landgren’s trombone has an inimitable lightness and variety, Norberg’s guitar tone has folk resonances, the saxophone of Jonas Knutssons is imbued with wonderful lyricism, and the sound of Eva Kruse’s bass is warm and full. But above all the magic comes from the fact that the singers have voices that are so distinctive and yet so perfectly complementary: the classical vocals of Jeanette Köhn, the bittersweet soul of Ida Sand, the radiant clarity of Jessica Pilnäs, the dark, powerful blues of Sharon Dyall and – last but not least – the bright white soul sin-ging of Nils Landgren herself. "Each of us has our own way of interpreting," says Landgren of this, "and the personality of each one of us shines through on the album. Mine too - yes I have indulged myself....and every song here really does have a special meaning for us – and maybe for you too." Christmas 2020 is not just something special; with "Christmas With Your Friends VII" it's something especially wonderful.Credits: Recorded at Atlantis studio, Stockholm, December 7 - 8, 2019 Recording and sound design by Lars Nilsson Mixed and mastered by Lars Nilsson at Nilento studio, Kållered (Gothenburg) Produced by Johan Norberg & Nils Landgren

Nils Landgren - Christmas With My Friends - Jubilee CollectionCD Box / Vinyl Box Nils Landgren trombone & vocals Sharon Dyall, Jeanette Köhn & Jessica Pilnäs vocalsIda Sand vocals & piano Jonas Knutsson saxophone Johan Norberg guitar Eva Kruse bass Christmas With My Friends I with Viktoria Tolstoy, Lars Danielsson, Ulf Wakenius, Bugge Wesseltoft Anders Bromander & Walter Brolund Trombone Choir The ultimate Collectors Box for Nils Landgrens Albums "Christmas With My Friends"

Nils Landgren - Christmas With My Friends VCD / Vinyl / digital Nils Landgren trombone & vocals Sharon Dyall vocals Jonas Knutsson saxophones Jeanette Köhn vocals Eva Kruse bass Jessica Pilnäs vocals Ida Sand vocals, piano &school organ Johan Norberg guitars & kantele When things go this well, there is no earthly reason to break with tradition. For this tenth anniversary the participants have been absolutely rearing to go, and to do it all over again. And their mission to spread a message of peace is now certainly more current and more urgent than it ever was. So, welcome “Christmas With My Friends V.” “It is quite amazing,” says Landgren, “what buried treasures there are that can still be brought to the surface, “and for this fifth album we have definitely unearthed a few. For me it is always a joy to go out on search parties with my Christmas friends, they always come back with surprising songs - from medieval times right up to the present day.” Once again an instrumental and vocal powerhouse team has been assembled around Landgren and his trombone. First and foremost the four vocalists: Jeanette Köhn, Jessica Pilnäs, Sharon Dyall and Ida Sand, who is also on piano duty. There’s Jonas Knutsson on saxophone, Johan Norberg on guitar and Eva Kruse on bass who make up the experienced unit to back the singers. Their work together in Landgren’s group over the years has led to the point where they have now created something of a Christmas signature sound. Each of the eight musicians was asked to put forward two pieces for possible inclusion, and thereafter the construction of the programme was a joint effort. The end-result of that process was a comprehensive, unbeatable 18-part kaleidoscope of Christmas sounds. It starts with a trombone choir playing Bach – in reality the multitracked solo sound of Nils Landgren. We move on to Christmas songs in Swedish (“Härlig Aer Jorden”), in German (“Oh Heiland, reiß die Himmel auf”/ Oh Saviour, tear the sky) and American Christmas carols (“Sleigh Ride”) followed by some original compositions to soul-humdingers such as Gary Hines “Love Is Born.” We then move on to a comedy treatment of the old Swing standard “Baby, It's Cold Outside” which is the opportunity for some stunning vocal duetting from Landgren and Pilnäs. When all is said and done, it is once again the wealth of great voices on show that turns this album into a Christmas sleigh ride traversing all kinds of different landscapes: Jeanette Köhn has real authority with her classical singing, Sharon Dyall brings a wicked hot come-hither bluesiness, Jessica Pilnäs has an irresistibly soulful jazz timbre, and Ida Sand gets right into the gospel groove. Equally compelling is the creativity of the musical interpretations, which nonetheless leaves the essential character of every one of the songs completely intact. A footman seems to be beckoning you into an eighteenth century coach for the “Hosianna” by the musical world traveller Georg Joseph Vogler – it has an almost Caribbean feel; “Joy To The World” is even older but it is a smooth cruise through the gears of jazz changes, while Johan Norbergs “Kokles Christmas” seems to connect the listener to some kind of psychic mystery. Sometimes it is endless snowy landscapes and winter Carl Larsson scenes which unfurl before the mind’s eye, sometimes it is the gaudy colours of streets bustling with Christmas shoppers. At other moments the sorrow and the drama of the Christmas story touch the heart, sometimes one can feel oneself transported by the pure sound of hope, or of salvation and deliverance. God Jul, as they say in Sweden, and a very Merry Christmas!Credits:Recorded at Atlantis studio, Stockholm, December 20 - 22, 2015 Recording engineer: Lasse Nilsson. assisted by Janne Hansson Additional recordings by Johan Norberg at Krubaston studio Mixed and mastered by Lasse Nilsson at Nilento studios, Kållered Team Nilento Studios: Lasse Nilsson, Jenny Nilsson & Michael Dahlvid

Nils Landgren - Christmas With My Friends IVCD / digital Nils Landgren trombone & vocals Sharon Dyall vocals & harmonica Jonas Knutsson baritone & soprano sax Jeanette Köhn vocals Eva Kruse bass Jessica Pilnäs vocals Ida Sand piano, vocals & glockenspiel Johan Norberg guitar & kanteleAnd year after year it rings out at Christmastime: Nils Landgren's "Christmas With My Friends" ensemble is a loyal companion for the most wonderful time of the year. The fourth edition again presents a diverse selection of international, Swedish, traditional and modern carols and atmospheric secular popular songs, with the familiar hushed and intimate mood we have come to know and love. "There are still so many songs that touch us and that we want to make our own," Landgren explains the reason for recording another "Christmas With My Friends". And it is true: the ensemble's interpretations simply do not get any less fascinating. Why? Because a very special magic is inherent in this music, that goes straight to the heart and speaks from the soul of us all. Because it is not sentimentalised and kitschy, but rather exudes a peaceful and familial serenity that is highly addictive. Because this Christmas music is not artificial and calculated, but real, and because it is a special desire and need of Landgren and his family of musicians. Ever since the "Christmas With My Friends" debut came out in 2006, many people simply can't imagine a Festive Season without this music. The "most beautiful, touching, magnificent Christmas CD of the year. […] Luminescent. Sparkling. Celebratory." said STERN magazine at the time, and it remained full of praise for the following albums as well: The music "sparkles like the clear night sky of a Nordic winter" ("Christmas With My Friends II") and the third edition it lauded as simply "splendid Christmas music". All three albums have now attained jazz platinum status in Germany. The ensemble's Advent concerts are generally sold out to the last seat, as will most certainly be the case again on the Germany tour this December, when people flock to the churches and music venues to indulge in Christmas spirit. What makes the "Christmas With My Friends" interpretations so unique? Most of all the fact that the people who have joined up to make them are not only congenial musicians, but also true friends of many years' standing who love to make music together. You can feel the harmony and connection of the group in the results. "Christmas With My Friends" is teamwork, not a one man show. Nils Landgren understands like few other band leaders how to put his comrades into the limelight, to give them the freedom to stamp their personalities on the music: Jessica Pilnäs shines with her mellow, crystal-clear voice, complemented by the soulful timbre of Ida Sand, who also takes charge of the piano. Soprano Jeanette Köhn lends especially the traditional Christmas carols the necessary classical emphasis, and Sharon Dyall provides the bluesy touch, like on Odetta's "If Anybody Asks You". With his tastefully reduced acoustic guitar accompaniment, Johan Norberg injects the folk-music influence and builds the harmonious foundation, perfectly supplemented by Eva Kruse with her restrained and creamy bass. The jazzy embellishments from Johan Knutsson's saxophone set the interpretations alight and give them magnitude and candour. And over and over, Nils Landgren's butter-soft trombone punctuates the atmospheric music, and his typically fragile vocals touch the soul, for example in the intimate duet with Johan Norberg on his own composition "I Wish It Was Christmas". Nils Landgren and his friends never tire of telling their personal, musical Christmas Story. Year after year. Because it is simply such a beautiful one. Merry Christmas! Credits: Produced by Nils Landgren Executive Producer: Siggi Loch Arranged and performed by Christmas With my Friends Recorded by Lasse Nilsson at Studio Riksmixningsverket, Stockholm, December 17 - 19, 2013. Assistant Engineer: Linn Fijal Mixed and mastered by Lasse Nilsson at Nilento Studio, Gothenburg Nilento Studio production team: M. Dahlvid, Jenny & Joakim Nilsson The Art in Music: Cover art (detail) by David Ortins / ACT Art Collection

Together with singers such as Sharon Dyall, Jessica Pilnäs, Jeanette Köhn and Ida Sand as well as 1500 guests, Nils Landgren celebrated a musical Christmas devotion in December 2011 that was as intimate as it was joyful. "It was a magical evening for everyone involved. Our wish is to give listeners the same feeling we had during that concert, which eventually became this album." - Nils Landgren

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"The 15 Swedish and international Christmas songs, in Landgren's and his friends' versions, have such a touching, almost childlike charm that one cannot escape the pre-Christmas atmosphere they reveal." - JAZZTHING

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