Martin Taxt, born in Trondheim, Norway in 1981, finished his studies at the Academy of Music in Oslo and CNSMDP in Paris in 2006. Since then he has focused on improvised and contemporary music. With the japanese guitar player Tetuzi Akiyama and the Norwegian duo Streifenjunko he has released two albums on the reputable norwegian improv label SOFA. ”Varianter av døde trær” in 2008 and ”Selektiv hogst” with Toshimaru Nakamura in 2010. This quintet now performs under the name Koboku Senjû. Both albums received great critics in magazines such as THE WIRE and SIGNAL TO NOISE. Over the last years Taxt has been touring Europe, Japan, China, USA and Canada with the groups Koboku Senjû, Murmur, Flymodus and Kim Myhr & TJO. Since 2010 he’s running the label SOFA and he has also been organising the festival Fri Resonans in Trondheim every November since 2006.
Koboku Senjû, meaning something like «Selection of Dead Trees», is a continuation of the music developed on the album with the same name, Varianter av døde trær, released on SOFA in 2008. Since then, the ensemble has performed numerous concerts in Japan, Europe and US, finding a particular way of making music together. Their new release «Selektiv hogst» sees the former quartet of Tetuzi Akiyama, Martin Taxt, Eivind Lønning and Espen Reinertsen joined by the no-input mixing board of Toshimaru Nakamura, who is adding yet another level of timbral ambiguity to the group, creating a rich ensemble sound. Akiyama and Nakamura have both long been two of the leading improvisers from the Tokyo scene, and Lønning, Reinertsen and Taxt, are three young and active improvisers from Norway with an increasing reputation for their adventurous yet mature musicality. The most recent performances include PUNKT festival in Kristiansand, Norway, TAKTLOS in Zürich and ANGELICA festival in Bologna.
NEWS Koboku Senjûs second album "joining the queue to become one of those ordinary ghosts" will be released on the London based label MIE Music in January 2013. Stay tuned!
REVIEWS “Selektiv Hogst is easily the best free-improv recording I've heard in years.” -Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader
“Koboku Senju pushes against the opposite extreme, demanding meditation and awarding mystery, a crime scene in a Zen garden. It would be misguided, however, to call it minimalism. The band deals in absence, not silence; implication, not restraint.” -Shaun Brady, Philadelphia City Paper
Consisting of three improvising tuba players, microtub explores the potential of group tuba music beyond the standard format of the tuba quartet. One F tuba and two C tubas are used to produce a palette of sound previously unexplored. With a focus on microtonality and timbral exploration, microtub draws on both the compositional and improvisational skills of its members to make intense and memorable music.
REVIEWS "An amazing depth of twining tones, long-held, resonating, forming fluctuating pulses that buffet the eardrums in delicious fashion" -Brian Olewnick, Olewnick Blogspot
"Une exploration très singulière donc, profonde et extrêmement riche et dense. Recommandé !" - Julien Heraud, Improv Sphere
Muringa consists of four of the most active improvising musicians from Norway. The quartet moves quickly between textural and percussive material, an agility that creates unpredictable and often entertaining improvised music.
The energy can maybe be traced back to freejazz, but the music of Muringa is definitely one of today. The rich sound-palette gives them many possibilities, which they can navigate through with an effortless flow.
Muringa plays neither minimalism or maximalism, but moves organically and playfully between the opposites.
Flymodus
Håvard Volden – guitar and electronic devices Martin Taxt – tuba and sheng
Two carnivores slowly approach one another, go in and out of sync. Håvard Volden and Martin Taxt explore the nuances between synchronicity and braiding, free improv and form, tension and moments in love. Your pulse will follow. Flymodus released the EP “Milky Ways” on the Seattle based label and/OAR in 2009. Since that they have toured countries such as Canada, Poland, France and Norway.
"...the most rewarding concert at the Suoni per il Popolo..." - Mathieu Belanger, All About Jazz
