AFTER THE WILDFIRE QUARTET
Originally composed and performed by Arve Henriksen and Jan Bang with Dzijan Emin conducting the Fames Institute Orchestra and soloist from North Macedonia. "After the Wildfire" was commissioned by the Skopje Jazz Festival for the opening of its edition in 2023. On its world premiere performance, it was written that "After the Wildfire" demonstrated a level of artistry and craftsmanship that was not hastily thrown together but carefully considered. It showcased the remarkable skills and emotional depth of the musicians involved, creating a rich and textured sonic landscape that captivated the listener from start to finish. With the album release of “After the Wildfire” for Norwegian Jazzland label (Punkt Editions), Bang and Henriksen return to Skopje Jazz Festival in 2025 to perform as a quartet alongside guitarist Eivind Aarset and percussionist Ingar Zach. Jan Bang is an internationally acclaimed Norwegian musician, composer, one of the most accomplished producers and artistic director of the renowned Punkt festival. He is one of the leading figures in the development of the live sampling method and has extensive experience in leading complex and often interdisciplinary artistic projects. Arve Henriksen, a highly influential trumpet player and composer, has worked with a vast array of prominent musicians from around the world and has a discography counting over 180 records.
GORAN KAJFEŠ TROPIQUES
Goran Kajfeš initially started Tropiques in 2011 with the idea of creating a combination that would approach music-making in a minimalist way – grounding it in a basic groove, patient and slowly evolving forms, melodic improvisation, and mantra-like ostinatos unfolding throughout the monumental setting of electroacoustic textures. The band’s music is often described as “hypno-jazz”. The Tropiques quartet consists of Goran Kajfeš, Alexander Zethson, Johan Berthling, and Johan Holmegard - each a key member in the Swedish creative music scene, with experience from notable and well-known groups such as Dungen, Ghosted, Fire!, Supersonic Orchestra, Oddjob, Suptropic Arkestra, and many more. After their debut release “Enso” and the follow-up “The Wild”, the album “Tell us”, considered a masterpiece, came out last year for the Finnish label We Jazz. A project of three longer tracks – “slow music” in its essence, soaring new heights by expanding a complement of strings, adding wings to the music, and helping it lift off the ground in a personal, highly engaging manner. Tell Us is a beautiful trio of songs that are gentle but energetic, with a cinematic stirring of energy present throughout They will travel even further in this direction in Skopje, as two macedonian musicians, Jane Bakevski and Kliment Todoroski, will join the string section.