Scheen Jazzorkester

Scheen Jazzorkester (SJO) was established in 2010 as a professional large jazz ensemble based in Skien, Telemark, Norway, and has since then become the regional Jazz Orchestra of the Southern Jazz Center in Norway. It has succeeded in becoming a major force in Norwegian progressive composer-based ensembles along with similar units in Oslo, Bergen, and Trondheim, and has released eight critically acclaimed albums. Two of them on the European power house label, Clean Feed Records, and one on the prestigious Jazzland Records in Norway.

The project for their current US tour is a commissioned piece by the great Norwegian saxophonist and composer, André Roligheten. He is known in Europe especially for his contributions in Gard Nilssen Acoustic Unity, Friends and Neighbors, Susanne Sundfør as well as his own quartet which just released the record “Marbles” on Odin Records.

The music Roligheten has written for this project is deeply rooted in the American jazz tradition, with strong influences from the Scandinavian jazz scene, and hints of different traditional music from around the world. Roligheten has a particular sense for strong rhythms and catchy melodies and is often experimenting with the listeners concept of time and space.

Get ready for an atypical big band experience, where Mingus and Dolphy lurk in the background while modern European and Scandinavian contemporary expressions hover above!

This free, all ages performance is presented by the Singletary Center for the Arts as part of it’s 2024/25 programming season, in coordination with the Outside the Spotlight Jazz & Improvised Music Series, which has been bringing “out” sounds to the Lexington community since 2002.

Line up:

André Roligheten - composer/reeds

André Kassen - reeds

Jon Øystein Rosland - tenor saxophone

Guttorm Guttormsen - reeds

Line Bjørnør Rosland - clarinets

Finn Arne Dahl Hanssen - trumpet

Thomas Johansson - trumpet

Erik Johannessen - trombone

Guro Kvåle - trombone

Åsgeir Grong - bass trombone

Eyolf Dale - piano

Jan Olav Renvåg - double bass

Audun Kleive - drums

SJO is supported by the Cultural Fund of Norway, Music Norway, Sørnorsk Jazz Centre and Telemark County.