Magnetic North Orchestra Explained

Magnetic North Orchestra
Origin:	Oslo, Norway
Genre:	Jazz and contemporary music
Years Active:	1992–2005
Label:	ECM Records
Website:	Magnetic Music Official Website
Current Members:	Jon Balke Per Jørgensen Arve Henriksen Jens Petter Antonsen Morten Halle Tore Brunborg Fredrik Lundin Bjarte Eike Peter Spissky Gertrud Økland Henrik Hannisdal Odd Hannisdal Trond Villa Marek Konstantynowicz Jonas Franke-Blom Svante Henryson Morten Hannisdal Thomas Pitt Anders Jormin Ingar Zach Helge Norbakken

Magnetic North Orchestra established in Oslo, Norway (1992–2005) was a Norwegian jazz orchestra, created and led by Jon Balke.^[1] MNO was originally a jazz ensemble inspired by Oslo 13, put together with strings and percussion. As Olympic musical ambassador from 1993 to 1994, for the 1994 Winter Olympics at Lillehammer, Jon Balke created the work Magnetic North for a larger group, and under this name (MNO) he has toured in Europe, USA and Japan.^[2]

MNO was further developed with fourteen string musicians from "Stavanger Symfoniorkester" for the production Grand Magnetic (2001), and in a version with the "TrondheimSolistene". After 2002 they had close cooperation with Balke's band Batagraf. The lineup has varied from seven to thirteen.^[3]

Members

• Jon Balke (piano, keyboards, percussion, electronics)^{[4] [5] [6] [7] [8]}
• Jens Petter Antonsen (trumpet)^[4]
• Per Jørgensen (trumpet, vocals)^{[4] [5] [6] [7] [8]}
• Arve Henriksen (trumpet, vocals)^{[5] [6]}
• Fredrik Lundin (bass flute, soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone)^{[7] [8]}
• Morten Halle (alto saxophone, flute)^{[4] [5] [6]}
• Tore Brunborg (tenor and soprano saxophones)^[4]
• Gertrud Økland (violin)^[4]
• Henrik Hannisdal (violin)^[5]
• Odd Hannisdal (violin)^[5]
• Bjarte Eike (violin)^{[7] [8]}
• Peter Spissky (violin)^{[7] [8]}
• Trond Villa (viola)^[4]
• Marek Konstantynowicz (viola)^[5]
• Jonas Franke-Blom (violoncello)^[4]
• Svante Henryson (violoncello)^[6]
• Morten Hannisdal (violoncello)^[5]
• Thomas Pitt (bass violin)^{[7] [8]}
• Anders Jormin (double bass)^{[4] [5] [6]}
• Marilyn Mazur (percussion)^[4]
• Ingar Zach (percussion)^{[7] [8]}
• Helge Norbakken (percussion)^{[7] [8]}
• Audun Kleive (drums)^{[4] [5] [6]}

Commissioned Works

• Il cenone (Vossajazz, 1992)
• Magnetic North (OL Lillehammer, 1994)
• Grand Magnetic (Copenhagen, 2001), augmented Magnetic North with a 14-piece string group^[3]
• ECM Autumn Cycle (Dublin, 2005)^[8]

Discography

• Further (ECM Records, 1992)^[4]
• Solarized (Emarcy, 1999)^[5]
• Kyanos (ECM, 2002)^[6]
• Diverted travels (ECM, 2004)^[7]
• Magnetic Works 1993-2001 (ECM, 2012), compilation^[9]

On Video

• Live in Bruxelles (Prospect Media, 2005), Video documentary
• Magnetisk musiker (NRK, 2004), video portrait made by Audun Aagre

External links

• Magnetic Music Official Website

Notes and References

1. Web site: Magnetic North Orchestra - Bransjeregister MIC.no.
2. Web site: Jon Balke Biography - SNL.no. 25 February 2020. Store Norske Leksikon (in Norwegian
3. Web site: Jon Balke & Magnetic North Orchestra Biography - GubeMusic.com.
4. Web site: Further - ECMrecords.com. 19 August 2012.
5. Web site: Magnetic North Orchestra: Solarized - Puls.no.
6. Web site: Magnetic North Orchestra Kyanos Review -. BBC.co.uk
7. Web site: Jon Balke and Magnetic North Orchestra: Diverted travels - Listen to Norway MIC.no . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100528180258/http://www.ballade.no/mic.nsf/doc/art2005053011161739156786 . 2010-05-28 . (by Tomas Lauvland Pettersen)
8. Web site: Live Reviews: ECM Autumn Cycle – Jon Balke's Magnetic North Orchestra Whelan's, Dublin, 17 November 2005 - JournalOfMusic.com.
9. Web site: Magnetic Works 1993-2001 - ECMrecords.com . 2012-09-08 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160116023552/https://www.ecmrecords.com/Catalogue/ECM/2100/2182_83.php/?lvredir=712&cat=%25252FArtists%25252FBalke+Jon%252523%252523Jon+Balke&catid=0&doctype=Catalogue&order=releasedate&rubchooser=901&mainrubchooser=9 . 2016-01-16 . dead .