Trygve Seim & Frode Haltli

In the organizer's words:

On Our Time, saxophonist Trygve Seim and accordionist Frode Haltli renew their long-standing musical partnership - a duo that can look back on a quarter of a century of working together in 2025. The album presents a program of thought-provoking improvisations and compositions, including the Ukrainian lullaby "Oy Khodyt' Son, Kolo Vikon" and the North Indian traditional piece "Shyama Sundara Madena Mohana". With Our Time, they build on their 2008 duo album Yeraz and show a revitalized creativity and a deep sense of wonder.

The collaboration between the two Norwegians dates back to Trygve's ensemble The Source And Different Cikadas in 2002 and has since produced many fruitful projects. But in this intimate setting, they have greater freedom and dynamic possibilities that lead to even more playful, imaginative and fragile music-making. As Downbeat magazine noted of their most recent work together, "the improvisations unfold with exquisite care, in lines imbued with melancholy beauty and sometimes shimmering hope."

The German weekly Die Zeit wrote about their debut album Yeraz in 2008: "Pure beauty is the common tone of Trygve Seim and Frode Haltli. There is something folk-song-like in these musical intersections, where secular and sacred music come together to dance." This statement still holds true today, but the connection between saxophonist and accordionist has become even more fluid since then.

On Our Time, Trygve and Frode exchange contrapuntal glances, lyrical surges and textural explorations with grace, eloquence and supreme nuance. They present a program of original compositions, improvisations and sensitive reimaginings of traditional folk songs from Ukraine and Northern India. The album was recorded in 2023 in the Himmelfahrtskirche in Munich and produced by Manfred Eicher. On Our Time, the sounds of saxophone and accordion merge into a surreal and magical dance.