ALBUM REVIEWS

Sparkling fiddles. Three strong fiddle traditions unite in The Nordic Fiddlers Bloc, consisting of Olav Luksengård Mjelva (Norway), Anders Hall (Sweden) and Kevin Henderson (Shetland).

They form a powerful string trio and should evoke pleasurable shudders on all fiddle and folk music enthusiasts.
I surrender unconditionally to these master musicians.

The worn concept of tradition and innovation have rarely been used as smart as this. The group offers an unbelievable swing, yet it is the delicate Fjellvåk (Mountain Bird) which ends up taking my breath away. Phew!

In other popular music genres there is sometimes talk of super groups which too often falls flat when it comes to the music. But here comes folk music´s own supergroup that deserves attention far outside the usual channels!
Lars Lind, Lira

A Shetlander, a Swede and a Norwegian: three fiddlers from the Nordic countries, playing a selection of music from their own traditions, as well as some Scottish and American fiddle tunes, this CD shows the depth and variety of pure fiddle music. Harmonies, rhythms, melody and percussion all come from just three fiddles.

Kevin Henderson from Shetland, Anders Hall from Sweden, and Olav Luksengard Mjelva from Norway provide every note on this album: no guests, no technomancy, and as far as I can tell no overdubs. The level of skill and musicality here is fantastic, but The Nordic Fiddlers Bloc don´t take themselves too seriously: there´s fun and laughter aplenty too. Each member also contributes a composition of his own, brilliantly interpreted in Old King Cole style: no solos in this collection.

From biting reels to beautiful waltzes, the trio presents a wide palette of Nordic fiddle music. Slow numbers are in the majority, but there are plenty of spirited dance tunes too. Several tracks contain something of the mysterious modes and meters of dark northern winters: Polska from Delsbo, Halling from Trondheim, or the eerie slow version of Da Greenlandman´s Tune.

The lads swap between fiddle and viola, octave fiddle and the Norwegian Hardanger fiddle, creating many different tones and textures. There are almost as many highlights as there are tacks here: a great but sadly nameless Shetland reel, a swinging tribute for Maria´s 27th Birthday by Anders, the beautiful Fjellvak by Olav and friends, Kevin´s reel for Jenna Reid, and the final Waltz after Lasse in Lyby deserve special mention. Surprise inclusions are the old-time fiddle standards Midnight on the Water and Bonaparte´s Retreat, as well as Charlie McKerron´s Paella Grande, but even without these exotic additions this CD would be tasty enough.
On the evidence to hand, pure fiddle doesn´t get much better than The Nordic Fiddlers Bloc.
Alex Monaghan, Folkworld

The fiddle has been in its ascendency for the past few years and this Swedish/ Norwegian/Shetland Island trio ramp it up further with a dozen beautifully arranged tunes that draw the listener into worlds at light year´s remove from the quotidian sound patterns that populate our airwaves.

Two of the trio contribute original music to the mix, too, and Shetland fiddler Kevin Henderson´s Jenna Reid of Quarff is a hiccuping joy to behold, as is Swede Anders Hall´s swinging polka, Maria´s 27th Birthday Plattgympa.

For many of us, our ears have become accustomed to the Hardanger fiddle from the playing of Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh, and its plaintive earthy tones are writ large here by Norwegian Olav Luksengård Mjelva.

The Bloc´s real triumph, though, is in binding the disparate sounds of Scandinavia and Shetland with the stray but welcome American tune, Bonaparte´s Retreat. Light and dark, fleet-footed and somnolent in fair measure.
Siobhan Long, The Irish Times

Those who know Shetlander Kevin Henderson´s work with Fiddlers Bid will not be surprised that he´s found two partners in his adopted Scandinavian home whose fiddling blends with his own like beautifully judged voices.

Olav Luksengard Mjelva and Anders Hall bring, respectively, Hardanger and octave fiddles plus standard fiddle and viola to the trio´s armoury, and the result is not just the singing quality they achieve but a rich group sound that suggests occasional bassoon and harmonium on tunes that are by turns fleet fingered, atmospheric, gracefully keening and gleefully conspiratorial.

It´s high class all the way but the boogie-woogie and ragtime-like flavours of Hall´s plattgympa (a type of polka) for a friend´s 27th birthday stand out as a particularly apt link to Midnight On The Water´s American spiritualism.

The laughter that follows Henderson´s tribute to fellow Shetlander Jenna Reid confirms that, as well as playing with consummate skill, these guys are having way too much fun.
Rob Adams, The Herald

Not just for fiddle heads, the dense, rich harmony and pulsing cross-rhythms of this trio are endlessly varied, powerful and beautiful.
Sweden´s Anders plays viola and fiddle, Shetlander Kevin sticks to the fiddle, while Norway´s Olav handles octave fiddle and the resonant stringed Hardanger fiddle, together producing a shimmering display of accurately pitched, highly skilled musical accomplishment.
Norman Chalmers, The Scotsman

I´ve often said that if there was a fiddle war, Shetland would be a world super power. Recently I´ve found myself regularly saying “there´s some great music coming out of Scandinavia at the moment.”
The Nordic Fiddlers Bloc takes both of those statements and hurls them together in a shinty trophy breaking moment of horsehair bow goodness.

This self titled album brings together Norway´s Olav Luksengard (Hardanger and Octave fiddles), Anders Hall from Sweden(fiddle and viola) and Shetland´s Kevin Henderson (fiddle) for a genuine fiddler´s power house.
They even manage to name check another Shetland fiddle player along the way, Jenna Reid Of Quarff, but she only gets the song named after her on the album, she doesn´t get to play a note.

Whilst other fiddle bands are available, they´ve tended to concentrate on music from the top parts of the British Isles and Ireland and to be honest, though that trend has definitely been spreading east.

As for the album it´s self it draws on traditional songs from the homelands of all the musicians on the album and mixes them in with contemporary songs, mainly from other fiddlers of the band´s acquaintance.

The thing I like about The Nordic Fiddlers Bloc is their use of tone across the album, light and jaunty tunes are mixed with darker ones to provide plenty of variety.
I think it´s more important for this to happen on an instrumental album than one with words, particularly if you´re trying to reach a wider audience that enjoy fiddle music, but may not have quite the expertise to understand the vagaries between tunes too close in nature. If that makes the album sound a bit like a compromise, fear not, it´s more a stylistic masterclass.

One of the things I like about instrumental albums is the way tunes are named, there seems to be far more dedications to events in people´s lives and the places in tune titles than in songs, as well as a tendency to be a bit more light-hearted where a song warrants it.

As you can probably tell, I like this, I like this a lot. The Nordic Fiddlers Bloc would make a more than welcome addition to any folk collection and who knows a great starting place if you haven´t got a collection yet.
Neil King, FATEA

Comprising Olav Luksengård Mjelva (from Norway), Anders Hall (from Sweden) and Kevin Henderson (from Shetland), Scottish music enthusiasts will of course know the latter from his membership of no less than three distinguished ensembles; Fiddlers Bid, Session A9 and Boys Of The Lough,  but Mjelva and Hall are likely to be more of an unknown quantity to all but those familiar with Scandinavian folk music.

Fear not, for the music they produce together is suitably invigorating, fresh-toned and full of dynamic and textural variety, more so than you´d imagine for a lineup that boils down to just three fiddle players. Part of the essential contrast lies in the actual instruments played: Henderson and Hall´s own fiddles being complemented by the wonderfully plangent sound of Mjelva´s Hardanger fiddle, with Mjelva´s octave fiddle and Hall´s viola providing aromatic alternative supporting soundings. Even so, it might still take the average listener a few tracks to get used to the very special but refined blend of three fiddles. Once accustomed, however, there really is so much to delight in that the lack of other instruments´ timbres is neither deficiency nor disadvantage.

Interestingly enough, the whole project was the brainchild of Hall, who felt that the act of combining the rich and distinctive fiddle styles and traditions of their respective countries would create a unique musical experience. He was of course right, the other integral element in this experience being the breadth of repertoire which the three have brought to their stage, a repertoire which forges links between historical traditions while bringing them alive and presenting them in a lively, accessible and above all genuinely exciting fashion while remaining true to those traditions and their roots.

Highpoints? The exhilaration that pours from your speakers on Halling From Trondheim, the somewhat-rock´n roll of Hall´s own composition, Maria´s 27th Birthday Plattgympa, and the steaming ostinatos of Charlie McKerron´s Paella Grande, all of which are keenly counterbalanced by the stately, beautiful Fjellvåk (Mountain Bird), almost unbelievably the product of a late-night jam session in Norway, and a pleasing treatment of Luke Thomasson´s reliable session staple Midnight On The Water, here coupled to Bonaparte´s Retreat.

This, the Bloc´s debut recording, was released in Scandinavia last year to critical acclaim, and it´s great to see it reach these shores now courtesy of a good distribution arrangement through Discovery Records.
David Kidman, netrhythms.com

A feast of fiddling from Norway, Sweden and Shetland, places with well established and well connected fiddle traditions, this album seeks to bring these connections alive and showcase them in a new and exciting way. And it does what it says on the tin.

The trio (Olav Luksengård Mjelva, Anders Hall and Kevin Henderson) between them play fiddles, viola, hardanger and octave fiddle, and these tools are all they require to produce a sound that is at times dainty and refined, almost chamber music like, and at other times gutsy and powerful.

Shetland reels, Swedish polskas and Norwegian hallings (I didn´t know either wedding dances!) sit side by side, and though very different, blend well together. The boys make clever use of harmony, diverse tones, textures and volumes, and the album is full of pleasant surprises, the arrangements at times not quite going where you expect them to, but always in a good way.

Some well know tunes like Da Greenland Mans Tune, Midnight On The Water (the connection being it was learnt from a Shetlander, Aly Bain), Da Full Rigged Ship and Da New Rigged Ship sit alongside tunes which are new to me from Sweden and Norway, and among them are some real gems. Seek it out.
Fiona Heywood, Living Tradition