Manafonistas

It was made right in the middle of the punk thing when everyone was trying to get more aggressive, and Brian Eno went away (…). If I had to just listen to one song for the rest of my life it would be ‚1/1‘. It’s not just a mellow thing, I’ve listened to it in the morning and it’s beautiful, I’ve listened to it last thing at night. I’ve listened to it as a stimulant and a calming thing, it does something very physical, very chemical to me. I’m always fascinated by how he made that track. Did he sit there and play it live for 17 minutes? Smoked some dope? I’ve always meant to ask him, I’m always bumping into him and I always forget. I see him having coffee in a café near me and we always have a nice little chat. He’s a lovely chap. I never let onto him how much of a fan I am because that would be weird and a bit distasteful. If I ran up to him saying ‚how did you do that track?!‘ he’d probably start backing off slowly

Es hat nichts mit Fan- Attitüden zu tun, nichts mit vorauseilenden Geschmackssicherheiten, nicht mit Parapsychologie und nichts mit sich selbst erfüllenden Prophezeiungen, aber es es gibt Alben, bei denen ich vor dem ersten Ton weiss, dass ich sie nicht nur schätzen, sondern lieben werde. Bei dem zweiten Album, das der norwegische Komponist und Tastenspieler mit Batagraf bei ECM rausbringt, werde ich diese These gewiss einmal mehr bestätigt finden.

Jon Balke: tougone, darbouka, hand drums, piano, keyboards, electronics, voice

Helge Norbakken: sabar, talking drums, djembe, metal percussion

Emilie Stoesen Christensen: vocals

Erland Dahlen: drums

Torgeir Rebolledo Pedersen: poetry reading

Batagraf is a percussion think tank, a constellation of players researching the outer parameters of rhythmic music. Inspired by techniques and traditions from West African Wolof music, the group explores new polyphonic textures. The relation between language and rhythm is constantly being investigated in Batagraf, the collective centered around the collaboration between Helge Norbakken and Jon Balke. Norbakken has developed his personal approach to percussion, inspired by African drum music traditions, but also developed in new directions through collaborations with numerous artists. He has been a member of Balke’s Magnetic North and Siwan projects and has also played on ECM recordings with Jon Hassell and Miki N’Doye. While best-known as pianist and composer-arranger, Jon Balke has also been a devoted percussion player since the early days of Eolén, Afro-jazz group of the early 80s.Drumming is speaking” says Balke, “and language is a miracle in all its manifestations.” On “Say and Play” Batagraf are inspired by the rich traditions of Wolof, Yoruba, Cuban and Arabic music, most particularly the inner energy and creativity of these cultures.