Gard Nilssen – Supersonic Orchestra

Translated into German supersonic means “Überschall” (literally “above sound”). This is roughly what it feels like when the Supersonic Orchestra led by Norwegian drummer Gard Nilssen with its brass and woodwind players plus three basses and three drum sets blazes over the heads of the audience. This orchestra was created as a kind of commissioned work when Nilssen was ‘Artist in Residence’ for the 2019 jazz festival in Molde, Norway. However, the performance of this orchestra reveals more than just the sheer power of ten wind players and six rhythm players. The energetic power of the three-piece rhythm section is shaken by the microtiming of the bassists and drummers, which suddenly creates simmering grooves and differentiated dynamics. The sheer volume of the wind instruments is almost vaporised when composed parts are interspersed and the raging clusters of sound are surprisingly condensed and dissolved in equal measure. Today’s orchestral jazz is both aesthetically and stylistically demanding and challenging.