Projects
Jan Lundgren/ Lars Jansson "Face to Face"
Two pianists, two grand pianos, face to face. Jan Lundgren meets Lars Jansson.
Jan Lundgren is among our foremost musicians. Through around 50 albums and numerous projects and collaborations, he has demonstrated his ability to embrace tradition while undergoing continuous renewal. Every year, Jan Lundgren presents three concerts under the collective name Kind of Jazz, featuring collaborations with guest artists and ensembles. Kind of Jazz 2024 is the sixth season of this subscription.
The season’s first Kind of Jazz performance is entitled Face to Face: two pianists, eye to eye, with a nod to Jan Lundgren’s Back to Back concert at Konserthuset in 2011, with pianist Bengt Hallberg (1932–2013). “It was an encounter with my mentor, one of my earliest jazz piano role models. That evening was magical. We sat back to back at our own pianos then, but Lars Jansson and I are facing one another: Face to Face.”
Like Jan Lundgren himself, Lars Jansson is one of Sweden’s major jazz pianists – and composers. Stylistically, they move in similar pathways of jazz and are both exquisite melody composers. “We’re playing his music and mine, and a few jazz standards may slip in too. We’ve never done this together before, so this is a premiere.”
