The program and the album Everything in Between is documenting Anne Mette's year as Composer in Residence 2016 for Norrbotten Big Band (S). The album, recorded live at three different concerts in 2016 and 2017, was released on Prophone Records (Naxos) on Oct 12, 2018. Below 'Swing of the Time' from our concert at Aarhus Jazz Festival, 2017.
The program Everything In Between is a tribute to Norrbotten Big Band and its musicians. It is a celebration of the wide spectrum of sounds they inhabit as a band, and a homage to their homegrounds; to the nature and the landscape they live in, as it unfolds during the seasons of the year. Everything In Between developed through the reciprocity between Anne Mette, the composer, and the band. "The musicians were all a great inspiration to me" - says Anne Mette, "and I tried to kick the ball back to them, to challenge their musicianship and give them collective and individual room for expression. As my visits to Luleå spanned over a full year, I experienced every season of the year there. That became important to me on the inspirational level. Visits to Luleå often sent me flying – in my mind – to other places I have been in the world; and a consciousness about nature and the richness of our lives manifested itself in me. I started connecting the music I wrote to different seasons. In a few cases, also to specific places. And I chose to group, sometimes tie, the pieces together under the name of the season. Everything In Between is therefore also a celebration of multitude, variety and richness – on a worldly level; and the seasons correlate beautifully with the broad palette of colors Norrbotten Big Band can produce."
The press on Everything in Between:
"...two hours high-octane new-composed jazz music, through-composed. No un-necessary details or infirmities...Anne Mette's music is classic jazz when it is at its best." - Johan E. Skoglund, Norrländska Socialdemokraten (S), 2016
"It is driving, swinging, big-city jazz..." Henrik Broström, Kuriren (S), 2016
"One of the most delightful aspects of this music is that the songs cover so much territory. And, the music is so melodic." ... "If you enjoy adventurous large ensemble music, then 'Everything In Between' should really grab your attention. Like many suites it is best listened to all the way through but one can also jump in on any track and be pleased. Anne Mette Iversen sets aside her bass for the conductor's baton to lead the Norrbotten Big Band through this delightful aural journey; there are moments throughout when one can sense the waves crashing or the countless stars in the cool, clear, night sky." - Richard B. Kamins, Step Tempest, 2018
