Terje Isungset

Terje Isungset (born 4 May 1964) is a Norwegian drummer. From his background in jazz and traditional Scandinavian music, he has designed musical instruments from non-traditional materials, including ice.

Career

Isungset was raised in Geilo where he played traditional dance music with his father (accordion) during his high school days. Moving to Bergen in 1984 led him to be a popular member of a number of Bergen groups, such as Ictus and Tordenskjolds soldater (1984–85), Growl and Gruv (1984-88), Saksbehandlerne and Night and Day (1985–86), Salsa Pati (1985–87), and Supply (1985–88), in addition to periods within the Big Band Emanon from 1986, and his recording debut Amalgamation (1985) with Kenneth Sivertsen.

His work is highly acclaimed in the press, often described as innovative, visual, energetic, and different from any previously known concepts. His love for ice music was raised in 1999 when the commission of the winterfestival at Lillehammer asked him to compose and play in a frozen waterfall. He has invented the concept of icemusic, and also invented a way to perform icemusic indoor in ordinary concert halls, doing around 50 indoor ice concerts every year. CNN calls Isungset the first and only icemusician in the world.

Isungset has been commissioned to compose music for jazz festivals, dance performances, theatre, and film, with 41 commissioned concerts. together with Arve Henriksen. They released an album named World of Glass in late 2014. The recordings were largely made in front of a live audience in Tallinn. All the instruments were made from glass by students from the Estonian Academy of Arts.

He is a member of the bandsGroupa (Sweden), Utla and Isglem. He has ongoing duos with Per Jørgensen, Arve Henriksen, Sissel Vera Pettersen, Didier Petit, Therese Skauge, Jorma Tapio and Stian Westerhus.

For the 2017 Vossajazz festival, Isungset was commissioned to compose new music for a new band.

Isungset is also an associate professor at the Grieg Academy, University of Bergen.

Honors 1996: Vossajazzprisen 2016:Financial Times named Isungset as one of the "First persons". 2008: Edvardprisen in the Open class for the album Igloo

Projects 2010: Organic expressions, project with three dancers (Rebecca Hytting, Guro Rimeslåtten, Christine Kjellberg) from the Carte Blanche Dance Company 2012: Isslottet, at the Oslo Opera and Ballet

Discography

Solo albums 1997: Reise (NorCD) 2000: Floating Rhythms (Via Music) 2002: Iceman Is (All Ice Records) (Jazzland/Virgin), with Arve Henriksen 2003: Middle of Mist (NorCD) 2006: Igloo (All Ice Records), nominated for Spellemannprisen in the class Jazz, with Sidsel Endresen 2007: Two Moons (All Ice Records), with Per Jørgensen 2008: Ice Concerts (All Ice Records) 2009: Hibernation (All Ice Records) 2010: Winter Songs (All Ice Records) 2014: World Of Glass (All Ice Records), with Arve Henriksen 2015: Meditations (All Ice Records) 2015: Terje Isungset & Stian Westerhus (All Ice Records), with Stian Westerhus 2015: Isslottet (All Ice Records) 2016: Oase Terje Isungset & Sissel Vera Pettersen (All Ice Records) 2019: Sildrande (All Ice Records) Terje Isungset with Arve Henriksen, Mats Eilertsen, Nils Økland, Morten Qvenild, Sissel Vera Pettersen & others

Collaborative works With Kenneth Sivertsen 1985: Amalgamation (Hot Club Records), including Knut Riisnæs and Bjørn Kjellemyr

Within Karl Seglem's Sogn-A-Song 1991: Sogn-A-Song (NorCD) 1994: Rit (NorCD)

Within Isglem (duo with Karl Seglem) 1991: Rom (NorCD) 1992: To Steg (NorCD) 1996: Null G (NorCD) 2003: Fire (NorCD) 2016: "Femte" (NorCD)

Within Orleysa, fest. Tore Brunborg 1991: Orleysa (Odin Records) 1993: Svanshornet (Odin Records)

Within Utla (including Håkon Høgemo and Karl Seglem) 1992: Utla (NorCD) 1993: Juv (NorCD) 1995: Brodd (NorCD) 1999: Dans (NorCD) 2003: Song (NorCD), feat. Berit Opheim Versto

Within Groupa (including Jonas Simonson and Mats Edén) 1999: Lavalek (Xource) 2008: Frost (Footprint) 2014: Silent Folk (Footprint) 2016: "Kind of folk,vol1. Sweden. (All Ice Records)

With others 1995: Haugtussa (Kirkelig Kulturverksted), with poems by Arne Garborg (including Lynni Treekrem, Annbjørg Lien, Arild Andersen, Børge Petersen-Øverleir, Hans Fredrik Jacobsen, Ketil Bjørnstad, Per Hillestad and Tone Hulbækmo) 1995: Det syng (Kirkelig Kulturverksted), with Lynni Treekrem 1996: Prosa (NorCD), with poems by Jon Fosse (including Arve Henriksen, Håkon Høgemo, Karl Seglem and Reidar Skår) 1996: Tya - frå Bor til Bytes (NorCD), with Elin Rosseland, Karl Seglem and Reidar Skår 1998: Spir (NorCD), with Karl Seglem, Berit Opheim Versto, Morten Sæle and Audun Erlien 1999: Bergtatt, with Grete Helgerød and Oslo Kammerkor 2000: Daa (NorCD), trio with Arve Henriksen and Karl Seglem 2001: Shadows And Light (FMR Records), duo with Frode Gjerstad 2004: New North (NorCD), with Karl Seglem 2005: Didier Petit - Terje Isungset (Vossa Jazz Records), duo with Didier Petit live at Vossajazz 2003 2006: Aihki (Ektro Records), duo with Jorma Tapio 2006: Sáivu, with Arve Henriksen and Torgeir Vassvik 2006: On the Great Alkali Plains (Jester Records), with Espen Jørgensen 2008: Agbalagba Daada (Ektro Records), duo with Per Jørgensen 2008: Laden With Rain (FMR Records), duo with Stian Westerhus 2008: Sådagen (Etnisk musikklubb), with Eilif Gundersen, Gunnlaug Lien Myhr and Tor Egil Kreken 2011: City Stories (NorCD), with Daniel Herskedal 2011: Beginner's Guide to Scandinavia (Nascente/Virgin), with various artists