Sarah-Jane Summers & Juhani Silvola
Oslo, Oslo County, Norway | Established. Jan 01, 2011
Music
Press
This is a contender for one of the most magical CD releases of late. Sarah-Jane Summers is an esteemed student of the fiddle tradition of the Shetland Highlands, long admired for her performances with bands such as Fribo and RANT, for her passion in teaching others, and also for love of the Norwegian tradition that led her to make her home in Oslo and study there.
Juhani Silvola is a Finnish guitarist and producer known not just for his sensitivity to traditional music but as a respected producer and performer on the contemporary music scene. He is also based in Norway.
Together they make music that is energetic, inspiring, invigorating, yet played with enormous sensitivity and intelligence; both are absolute masters of their instruments. They have a real gift for making the most delicate, haunting sounds, born of a complete understanding of each other, yet they also know how to make their instruments party. The background to the material on the album is mainly Summers’ Highland roots, but the pair have made the tunes totally their own, whether it’s a lament, a jig, a strathspey or the final waltz. A treasury of melody and magnificent music-making, beautifully produced.
Fiona Talkington, Songlines. - Songlines Magazine
Discography
Sarah-Jane Summers & Juhani Silvola: Sarah-Jane Summers & Juhani Silvola (Dell Daisy Records 2013)
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
Not your average fiddle & guitar duo, Sarah-Jane (Scotland) & Juhani (Finland/Norway) lift you from the ordinary everyday to a captivating world of spacious, meditative soundscapes and driving rhythms, strongly rooted in Sarah- Jane's traditional Highland Scottish background.
Their recent CD was awarded the prestigious Top Of The World' status from Songlines, accompanied by a fantastic 5/5 star review.
Sarah-Jane's total mastery of her tradition is paired with Juhani's innovative and expressive playing, creating a truly unique sound equally suitable for dancing and dreaming. The level of interplay between them implies a form of musical telepathy. They switch effortlessly between melody and accompaniment, floating in and out of improvised passages blended in with the tunes in an intuitive way.
Taught by the late great Donald Riddell, SarahJane is a tradition bearer of the Highland fiddle style known from the awardwinning group RANT as well as being a successful solo artist. Juhani has played with many of Norway's top traditional and indie acts and is a sought after record producer.
"Absolute masters of their instruments...magnificent" (Fiona Talkington, Songlines)
"eye-wateringly beautiful ... sets a standard for others to follow" (Folkwords)
"otherworldly ... enchanting" (Living Tradition)
"magically intuitive and telepathic" (FiddleOn Magazine)
Band Members
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