NR4: Spacening

With “Spacening,” Swedish trombonist, composer, and arranger Niclas Rydh presents his first album under his own name. The compositions were written with the rhythm section of Kjell Jansson (double bass) and Anders Kjellberg (drums) in mind, whose playing Rydh has known and appreciated since the early 1990s. Harmonically, he draws inspiration from musical modernism, particularly from composers such as Igor Stravinsky and Alban Berg.

From 1990, Rydh played tuba for 25 years with the Bohuslän Big Band before moving to the first trombone chair in 2016. At the same time, he has increasingly distinguished himself as an arranger and composer: for the Bohuslän Big Band, he wrote the suite “Faces,” as well as a concerto for the 20th anniversary of the Vara Konserthus; other works were written for the Folkteatern and a large brass ensemble of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra.

On “Spacening,” Rydh plays trombone and tuba. The quartet is completed by Joakim Rolandsson, who alternates between alto and baritone saxophone, clarinet, and flute. According to Rydh, the album title refers to a state of expanded consciousness and the creation of space for new experiences.