The Squid's Ear Magazine
Squidco Cost Sale — 150+ albums on sale at OUR COST! Sep 12-14



Ensemble Var (Gustafsson / Lindal / Lindstrom / Nordwall): VAR (Confront)

A fully free improvisation of subtly disruptive, extended electroacoustic mastery, recorded during the Svensk Musikvår Festival at Aliasteatern, Stockholm in 2021, in a piece conceived by Mats Gustafsson who performs on saxophone & flute, with Anna Lindal on violin, Mats Lindstrom on electronics, effects & sampler and Joachim Nordwall on analog synths, effects & tapes.
 

Price: $13.95



Quantity:

In Stock

Quantity in Basket: None

Log In to use our Wish List
Shipping Weight: 3.00 units


EU & UK Customers:
Discogs.com can handle your VAT payments
So please order through Discogs

Sample The Album:





product information:

Personnel:



Mats Gustafsson-saxophone, flute, concept

Anna Lindal-violin

Mats Lindstrom-electronics, effects, sampler

Joachim Nordwall-analog synths, effects, tapes


Click an artist name above to see in-stock items for that artist.




UPC: 5904224870966

Label: Confront
Catalog ID: core 24
Squidco Product Code: 31947

Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2022
Country: UK
Packaging: Cardboard Gatefold
Recorded during Svensk Musikvar at Aliasteatern, in Stockholm, Sweden, on March 19th, 2021, by Mats Erlandsson.

Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

A fully free improvisation of subtly disruptive, extended electroacoustic mastery, recorded during the Svensk Musikvår Festival at Aliasteatern, Stockholm in 2021. The piece was conceived by Mats Gustafsson, who performs on saxophone & flute, with Anna Lindal on violin, Mats Lindstrom on electronics, effects & sampler and Joachim Nordwall on analog synths, effects & tapes. The performances were streamed live during the pandemic with no audience. The first piece is the concert performance, the shorter 2nd and 3rd tracks were preparations for the actual concert. Each performer approaches their instrument with extended and advanced techniques, the electronics and synthetics highly controlled, merging and weaving with the acoustic elements.


Artist Biographies

"Born 1964 in Umeå, Northern Sweden.Saxplayer, improviser and composer. Solo artist and international tours and projects with a.o. Sonic Youth, Merzbow, Jim O´Rourke, Barry Guy, Otomo Yoshihide, Yoshimi, Ken Vandermark and in working groups The Thing, FIRE!, Gush, Boots Brown, Swedish Azz and Fake (the facts). Large ensemble work with Barry Guy New Orchestra,FIRE! Orchestra and the NU - ensemble.over 1800 concerts and over 200 record productions in Europe, Australia, Africa, North & South America and Asia.Collaborations with contemporary dance, theater, art, poetry as well as projects with noise, electronica, contemporary rock and free jazz.Discaholic - running the discaholic corner website.Producer of international festivals and concert tours as well as work with own record labels Slottet, OlofBright Editions and Blue Tower Records."-Mats Gustafsson Website (http://matsgus.com/archives/category/bio)
9/10/2025

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Anna Lindal, violin, studied in Sweden and Switzerland. Lived and performed in Switzerland and France for many years, played in the string trio Trio des Lyres specialized in mixed programs with barock and classical music on original instruments as well as contemporary works. During this time the film "Livsstråk" was made which is a musical portrait of Anna Lindal.

From 1983 to 2001 concertmaster of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm and from 2002 Professor of violin at the Royal college of Music in Stockholm.

Currently Professor in Music att Stockholm University of the Arts and free lance violinist. Engaged in artistic research on interpretation/improvisation and tradition/convention versus contemporary expressions.

Performs regularly as soloist, as chamber musician, in experimental theatre and in different groups for free improvisation. Collaborates with a large number of contemporary composers and has had many new compositions dedicated to her. Made several recordings, among others two solo records with works by John Cage and Christian Wolff together with related composers. Has also been performing instrumental Argentine Tango in the quintet Tango Libre for several years."

-Anna Lindal Website (http://annalindal.se/bio.html)
9/10/2025

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Joachim Nordwall co-founded Swedish experimental label Börft Records. He Left the label and Sweden in 1994, and later returned to form the iDEAL Organization including the iDEAL Festival in Göteborg and iDEAL Recordings. He is a sound creator, a µember of The Skull Defekts, and is a festival and concert organizer."

-Squidco 9/10/2025

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.


Track Listing:



1. Konsert 28:48

2. Klang 1:48

3. Lagdynamik 4:01

Related Categories of Interest:


Improvised Music
Free Improvisation
Electro-Acoustic
Electro-Acoustic Improv
Quartet Recordings
European Improvisation, Composition and Experimental Forms
Staff Picks & Recommended Items
New in Improvised Music

Search for other titles on the label:
Confront.


Recommended & Related Releases:
Cosmic Ear ( Bothen / Gustfsson / Kajfe / Zetterberg / Romero)
Traces
(We Jazz)
A rich and spiritually resonant quintet featuring Christer Bothén, Mats Gustafsson, Goran Kajfeš, Juan Romero, and Kansan Zetterberg, drawing inspiration from Don Cherry's transcultural legacy as they weave meditative global grooves with donso n'goni, karignan, electronics, and deep improvisation into a vibrant and exploratory sonic journey.
Gustafsson, Mats / Ken Vandermark / Tomeka Reid / Chad Taylor
Pivot
(Silkheart)
Four master improvisers (Mats Gustafsson, Ken Vandermark, Tomeka Reid, Chad Taylor) from overlapping creative circles engage in a set of powerful interactions, where dense low-end reeds, lyrical cello, and rhythmic elasticity create shifting terrain; through deep listening and long-forged connections, they navigate spontaneous form with urgency, restraint, and a shared sense of sonic purpose.
Gush (Gustafsson / Sandell / Strid) + Guests
Gush 30 - Krakow 2018 [3 CD BOX SET]
(Not Two)
The Gush trio — Mats Gustafsson on reeds and flute, Sten Sandell on piano, and Raymond Strid on drums — celebrate 30 years since their original formation, in extraordinary concerts at Alchemia and Manggha Hall in Krakow, joined by guests in three dynamic configurations — two sextets and a septet — for an unforgettable series of performances of irrepressible collective improvisation.
AALY Trio (Gustafsson / Nordeson / Janson)
Sustain
(Silkheart)
AALY Trio, named as a reference to Albert Ayler, is Mats Gustafsson (winds), Kjell Nordeson (bass), and Peter Janson (drums), who began their journey in Sweden in the 1980s, drawing significant influence from Chicago's creative scene in the 90s, and reuniting now with the same incendiary energy and deep rapport, captured in 11 composed and collective works.
Granberg, Magnus / Nattens Inbrott / Skogen
Holde Traume, Kehret Wieder! [2 CDs]
(Another Timbre)
Two different version of Magnus Granberg's 2021 composition "Holde Traume, kehret wieder!" (Sweet dreams, come back!), first as a quartet performed by the Nattens Inbrott Quartet for which the piece was originally written, and then a second version performed with Granberg's group Skogen as a septet, adding additional parts to the original composition.
Angles & Elle-Kari with Strings
The Death of Kalypso [VINYL 2 LPs]
(thanatosis produktion)
The 12th album from Martin Küchen's Angles ensemble is expanded and developed with notations and string arrangements from Alexander Zethson, and the voice of Elle-Kari Sander, in an engrossing album of powerfully compelling jazz rhythms & soloing, orchestral swells and emphatic songs pivoting around the mythology of the nymph Calypso, woven into contemporary concepts; sensational!
NOUT (w/ Mats Gustafsson)
Live Album
(Trost Records)
Flute, electric harp, and drums become fierce tools of sonic exploration in the French trio Nout, whose riotous live performances blend jazz, noise, metal, and groove with fearless originality; joined by baritone saxophonist Mats Gustafsson on three tracks, the expanded quartet erupts with raw energy, wild textures, and a thrilling disregard for genre.
Angles & Elle-Kari with Strings
The Death of Kalypso
(thanatosis produktion)
The 12th album from Martin Küchen's Angles ensemble is expanded and developed with notations and string arrangements from Alexander Zethson, and the voice of Elle-Kari Sander, in an engrossing album of powerfully compelling jazz rhythms & soloing, orchestral swells and emphatic songs pivoting around the mythology of the nymph Calypso, woven into contemporary concepts; sensational!
Gush (Gustafsson / Sandell / Strid)
Afro Blue
(Trost Records)
Recorded in 1998 but sounding absolutely modern, exuberant and often explosively inspired, this live recording at Jazzclub Fasching in Stockholm brings the then 10-year collaboration of drummer Raymond Strid, pianist Sten Sandel and saxophonist Mats Gustafsson to ecstatic heights, bridging free jazz forms and rendering Coltranes "Afro Blues" with intense passion.
Gustafsson, Mats / Ensemble E
EE Opus One
(Trost Records)
Merging contemporary and traditional instruments, including the spilapipa (a fipple flute), hardanger fiddle, the Bilgoraj suka (a vertical fiddle), alongside prepared piano, organ, trumpet, tuba, baritone sax & voice, Mats Gustafsson's ensemble merges folk, experimental forms, improv & free jazz in a conduction shaped by the participants; absolutely unique & fascinating.
End, The (Jernberg / Moster / Gustafsson / Hana / Fjordheim)
Why Do You Mourn [VINYL]
(Trost Records)
The third album from the genre-merging quintet The End of of Sofia Jernberg (vocals), Kjetil Moster (clarinet and tenor saxophone), Mats Gustafsson (flutes, baritone saxophone and electronics), Anders Hana (baritone and bass guitar) and Borge Fjordheim (drums), an experimental song-based project influenced by avant rock, jazz and soundscape in seven nuanced pieces.
Fire! Orchestra
Echoes [2 CDs]
(Rune Grammofon)
A monumental release from Fire! Orchestra led by Mats Gustafsson, Johan Berthling & Andreas Werliin, in an expanded ensemble of 43 international musicians, with new members including Joe McPhee, for a massive work organized into seven parts, presented in a solid box set spread across 3 vinyl LPs of music with titles inspired by Swedish author & poet Erik Lindegren; magnificent!
Guy, Barry and Friends
Krakow 2018 [5 CD BOX SET]
(Not Two)
Two days of concerts in 2018 at Alchemia Club, in Krakow, Poland and a recording at Radio Krakow the next day from English composer, band leader and a bass player Barry Guy, in varying configurations at Alchemia of duos & trios with some of Europe & The UK's leading improvisers, culminating in an 11-piece ensemble at Radio Krakow performing the large work "For To End Yet Again".
Gustafsson, Mats
Naja (Black Cross Solo Sessions 5)
(Corbett vs. Dempsey)
For three days in his own Discaholic Studios in Nickelsdorf, saxophonist Mats Gustafsson recorded the playing-card pieces of Peter Brötzmann--compositional prompts intended for a large group or for solo playing--performing on a cross-section of the saxophone family from sopranino to bass, and also one piece for saxophone mouthpiece, creating a set of stunning improvisations.
Zethson, Alex Ensemble
Some Of Them Were Never Unprepared [VINYL]
(thanatosis produktion)
Exploring how a composition can provide a sense of weightlessness, and influenced by the music of gamelan, krautrock, Tony Conrad & Arnold Dreyblatt, composer Alex Zethson structured these works to influence the 13 performers in his ensemble into a state of intense focus and listening as they strike, bow and pluck their instruments, creating an ecstatic sense of infinite motion.
Zethson, Alex Ensemble
Some Of Them Were Never Unprepared
(Relative Pitch)
Exploring how a composition can provide a sense of weightlessness, and influenced by the music of gamelan, krautrock, Tony Conrad & Arnold Dreyblatt, composer Alex Zethson structured these works to influence the 13 performers in his ensemble into a state of intense focus and listening as they strike, bow and pluck their instruments, creating an ecstatic sense of infinite motion.
Thing, The (Gustafsson / McPhee / Haker Flaten / Nilssen-Love)
She Knows...
(ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)
Named for a Don Cherry composition included on this album, the core trio of The Thing--Mats Gustafsson on reeds, Ingebrigt Haker Flaten on bass, and Paal Nilssen-Love on drums--is joined by saxophonist and pocket trumpter Joe McPhee, recording classic free jazz and harmolodic pieces by Don Cherry, Ornette Coleman, James Blood Ulmer, Frank Lowe, & Joe McPhee.
Grubbs, David / Mats Gustafsson / Rob Mazurek
The Underflow
(Corbett vs. Dempsey)
Recorded during two nights at Underflow Records and Art Gallery in Athens, Greece in 2019, The Underflow trio of Mats Gustafsson (reeds, fluteophone, electronics) from Sweden, with Chicago-based Rob Mazurek (trumpet, electronics), and David Grubbs (electric guitar) present an album of wide-ranging, powerful, often explosively eccentric, and always informed improvisation.
Granberg, Magnus / Skogen
Nun, es wird nicht weit mehr gehn
(Another Timbre)
Composer Magnus Granberg took influences from Schubert's song cycle "Die Winterreise", extracting tonal material, which he merged with rhythmic influences from medieval English folk music and a song by Dowland, merging them into a temporal framework for this large and subtle composition, executed by a setpet including Angharad Davies, Erik Carlsson, Henrik Olsson, d'incise, &c.
Bondi, Cyril / d'Incise
Kirari-Kirari
(Edition Wandelweiser Records)
A sextet of Cyril Bondi (vibraphone), d'Incise (metallic objects), Magnus Granberg (piano), Anna Lindal (Baroque violin), Anna-Kaisa Meklin (viola de gamba) and Christoph Schiller (spinet) perform two works composed by Bondi and d'Incise, recorded by Simon Reynell of Another Timbre, works of repetition with distinct variations that evolve as each piece progresses.
Thing, The (Gustafsson / Haker Flaten / Nilssen-Love + McPhee)
Again
(The Thing Records)
The Thing "again" as Gustafsson on saxophones, Haker Flaten on electric and acoustic bass, and Nilssen-Love on drums & percussion present 3 extended blues-based, Ayler-inflected free jazz pieces, with Gustafsson's powerfully emotional playing over Haker-Flaten and Nilssen-Love's powerful polyrhythmic foundations; Joe McPhee joins for one track taking on a Frank Lowe piece.
Gustafsson, Mats / Jason Adasiewicz
Timeless
(Corbett vs. Dempsey)
Unexpected directions in this meeting between Swedish saxophonist Mats Gustafsson and Chicago vibraphonist Jason Adasiewicz, in an introspective album of beautiful tonal conversations, relaxed and sophisticated dialogs that mostly eschews the more aggressive side of both musicians in deference to a thoughtful, reflective and elegant set of tunes.
Gustafsson, Mats And Friends
MG 50 - Peace & Fire [4 CD BOX SET]
(Trost Records)
A box set documenting the October 2015 3-day event held at Porgy and Bess in Vienna for the 50th birthday of saxophonist Mats Gustafsson (The Thing, Fire! and innumerable duo/trio/ensemble formations) with a who's-who of collaborators invited to join in various formations.
Skuggorna Och Ljuset / Magnus Granberg
Would Fall From The Sky, Would Wither And Die
(Another Timbre)
A new composition by clarinetist and composer Magnus Granberg, the leader of the highly acclaimed ensemble Skogen, this time with a new, smaller group that includes percussionist Erik Carlsson, performing his beautiful, melancholic music.
Thing, The
Boot! [VINYL]
(The Thing Records)
The sixth studio album from the trio of Mats Gustafsson (saxophones), Ingebrigt Haker Flaten (electric bass), and Paal Nilssen-Love (drums), the first release on their own label, a record that transforms rock, noise, and improv in intense and exultant ways.
Thing, The
Boot!
(The Thing Records)
The sixth studio album from the trio of Mats Gustafsson (saxophones), Ingebrigt Haker Flaten (electric bass), and Paal Nilssen-Love (drums), the first release on their own label, a record that transforms rock, noise, and improv in intense and exultant ways.




The Squid's Ear Magazine

The Squid's Ear Magazine

© 2002-, Squidco LLC