| Guy Klucevsek (USA), Maria Kalaniemi (Finland),
Bratko Bibic (Slovenia), Lars Hollmer (Sweden), and Otto Lechner (Austria) News
Sept 21, 2009: Concert dates for 2010
Accordion Tribe will perform in Europe in February 2010. Dates so far:
Feb 19: Hamburg, Germany - Imperial Theatre
Feb 20: Baden, Switzerland - Trafo Saal
August 20, 2009: Music Meeting concert streaming
The 2002 Accordion Tribe concert at Music Meeting in Netherlands is now on-line as audio-streaming. Have a listen at the Music Meeting website: Music Meeting. Dec 25, 2008 : Lars Hollmer
It is with deep sadness to report the passing of Lars Hollmer. A member of Accordion Tribe as well as many other projects and ensembles, he was known as one of the most adventurous musicians in the world for the past forty years, starting with the Swedish band Samla Mammas Manna and continuing forward to his most recent album Viandra. His energy and passion for adventure and fun in music was matched by his generosity and unlimited energy. His spark, in music and character, was unique in the world and will be deeply missed. Fellow Accordion Tribe member Guy Klucevsek sends this tribute to his friend and fellow musician.
My dear friend and Accordion Tribe colleague, Lars Hollmer, passed away on Dec. 25, 2008, at the age of 60. I first heard Lars's music in the early 90s, through singer-songwriter and DJ extraordinaire, David Garland. I instantly recognized a kindred spirit and he was the first person I invited to be a part of what eventually became the Accordion Tribe. We began the group in 1996 and continue to this day, although there will be a gaping void on stage and in our hearts from now on. Lars was an auto-didact and multi-instrumentalist (accordion, keyboards, voice, melodica, etc.) who was completely fearless in his approach to music. He could be unabashedly sentimental (Boeves Psalm, Soon Song), write incredibly dense and complex counterpoint with the best of them (Pas de Valse, Utflykt med Damcyckle), and be mischievous and joyfully wacked-out (Circus I, II). And that's only the Accordion Tribe repertoire! He managed to record about 30 albums in all, mostly in his legendary home studio, the Chickenhouse, both solo (11), and with his many groups, including The Looping Home Orchestra and Samla Mammas Manna. What is the common element in all these? To quote Lars from the documentary film, "Accordion Tribe: Music Travels" (Stefan Schwietert, Maximage Films, 2002), "It all begins here," (he says, pointing to his heart); "it may go through here eventually," (he points to his head), "but it all begins with the heart." - Guy Klucevsek
Regarding the upcoming tour in April 2009, the Accordion Tribe will perform as a quartet, in memory of their friend and colleague.
November 10, 2008 : European tour of 2009 confirmed.
Tour dates for the 2009 European tour are :
April 1: Gütersloh, Germany - Stadthalle
April 2: Graz, Austria - Orpheum
April 4: Ljubljana, Slovenia - Cankarjev Dom
April 5: Wels, Austria - Alter Schlachthof
April 6: Wien, Austria - Konzerthaus
April 7: Lörrach, Germany - Burghof
April 8: Esslingen, Ger - Kulturzentrum Dieselstrasse
April 9: Luzern, Switzerland - Verkehrshaus
April 10: Zurich, Switzerland - Rote Fabrik
April 11: Dornbirn, Austria - Spielboden
April 12: Bern, Switzerland - Dampfzentrale
July 7, 2008 : Hollmer replacement in tour
Lars Hollmer has had to pull out of the July 2008 tour for health reasons due to illness. He will be replaced by Amy Denio from Seattle. We wish Lars a speedy recovery and welcome Amy to the Tribe. February 26, 2008 : Tour dates 2008 announced
Accordion Tribe announces their 2008 European tour in July.
July 24: Karlsruhe, Germany - Zeltival
July 25: Kassel, Germany - Kulturzelt
July 26: Wurzburg, Germany - Hafensommer
July 27: Bochoet, Belgium - Sfinks
January 1, 2007 : Tour dates announced
Following a successful European tour in Autumn 2006, featuring sold out concerts in Luxembourg, Ljubljana and Lucerne, Accordion Tribe announces tour dates for Spring 2007:
March 7: Köln, Germany - Köln Philharmonie
March 8: Zurich, Switzerland - Rote Fabrik
March 9: Freiburg, Germany - E-Werk
March 10: Munich, Germany - Theater im Haus der Kunst
August 10, 2006: Tour dates announced
The 2006 Accordion Tribe tour takes place October 23 - Nov 3.
23.10: Wien, Austria - Konzerthaus
24.10: Ljubljana, Slovenia - Cankarjev Dom
26.10: Graz, Austria - Orpheum
27.10: Budapest, Hungary - Palace of Arts
28.10: Amsterdam, Netherlands - Bimhuis
29.10: Luxembourg - Philharmonie
31.10: Luzern, Switzerland - KKL
01.11: Lörrach, Germany - Burghof
02.11: Bordeaux, France - Musiques de Nuit
03.11: San Sebastian, Spain - Gaszteszena
July 15, 2006: Lunghorn Twist "Top of the World" in Songlines
Lunghorn Twist is picked in Songlines Magazine "Top of the World" chart. The album received a 5-star review and the piece "Heimo" is included in the free CD enclosed with the magazine. April 28, 2006: New album Lunghorn Twist released in Europe
The third Accordion Tribe album entitled Lunghorn Twist is released in Europe by Intuition Music and Media. The album was recorded in November 2005 at Lars Hollmer's Chickenhouse Studios in Uppsala and features new compositions by the five Tribe members. |  | August 28, 2005: Music Travels released on DVD
The Accordion Tribe film entitled Music Travels was released on DVD in Switzerland by the film's producers, Maximage. Interested fans can purchase the DVD by emailing them directly at: info@maximage.ch |  |
March 3, 2005: Accordion Tribe film wins three prizes
The Accordion Tribe film "Music Travels" has won three prizes: Swiss ART TV – Best Film of the Year, Swiss Film Prize – Best Documentary, and Wurzburg Film Festival – Best Documentary. The film, now seen by 12000 people in Switzerland, has opened now in Austria and will open in Germany in April. The film will do a short festival tour in USA in April including San Jose, Erie and Minneapolis followed by screenings at the Thessaloniki Film Festival, Greece and another in Poland. | January 12, 2005: Accordion Tribe film to open in Germany and USA
The Accordion Tribe film "Music Travels" will open at cinemas in Germany this month and it makes its US premiere on April 2, 2005 at Mercyhurst College in Erie, PA. | November 8, 2004: Accordion Tribe - Music Travels
The feature film about the Accordion Tribe, entitled Accordion Tribe - Music Travels, with its world premiere taking place on Feb 22, 2004 in Wien, opened in Slovenia and Switzerland in October 2004. The film is now showing in cinemas across Switzerland while other European openings are planned for Austria and Germany in the very near future. The film is also scheduled for Finnish YLE Teema digital TV broadcast in 2005. The documentary film was directed by Stefan Schwietert and produced by Cornelia Seitler of Maximage, Zurich. |
BiographyIn May 1996, five of the world’s most innovative contemporary accordionists converged in Europe for a three week tour. Each of these players is recognized in classical, jazz, folk or avant-garde music circles as being not only technically skilled but having profound compositional ability as well as an unquenchable thirst for adventure. Individually, they are uncompromising and driven by a deep passion for breaking down musical barriers. Collectively, they make the challenge to integrate these forces into a whole, of which the combined energy is greater than the sum of its parts. The program featured solos and combinations, compositions and collaborations from individual and collective group members. The full presentation was a major event in the accordion renaissance, a turning point for the accordion as a contemporary instrument and a powerful, thrilling experience for all modern music enthusiasts lucky enough to witness it. Update: On May 16, 1998, the Tribe regrouped for an appearance at the famed International Festival Musique Actuelle in Victoriaville, Canada. November 2001: The Tribe reconvened for recordings in Lars Hollmer’s Chicken House studios in Uppsala, Sweden. The second Tribe album features compositions by all members and will be released by Intuition in autumn 2002, followed by European tour Oct–Nov 2002. Maximage films of Switzerland is making a documentary film about the Accordion Tribe. Filming has taken place in Uppsala, New York and Helsinki and will take place on the tour. Note: The “Music Meeting” concert given at Nijmegen, Holland on November 3rd, 2002 is now available online at JAZZ bij de NPS. In February 2004 the group made their third tour of Europe climaxing with the sold out concert at the 5th International Accordion Festival in Wien and the World Premiere of the feature film Accordion Tribe — Music Travels by Maximage of Zurich. The Accordion Tribe film, Music Travels, directed by Stefan Schwietert and produced by Cornelia Seitler of Maximage, Zurich, was released. The feature film had its world premiere on Feb 22, 2004 in Wien. The film was shown extensively throughout Switzerland plus Germany, Austria, Slovenia and was broadcast by Finnish YLE Teema digital TV. The film won three prizes: Swiss ART TV – Best Film of the Year, Swiss Film Prize – Best Documentary, and Wurzburg Film Festival – Best Documentary. The film made a short festival tour in USA in April including San Jose, Erie and Minneapolis followed by screenings at the Thessaloniki Film Festival, Greece and another in Poland. The Accordion Tribe DVD, Music Travels, was released in Europe in 2005 by Maximage. 2006 saw the release of the third Accordion Tribe album, Lunghorn Twist, recorded in Uppsala at Lars Hollmer's Chickenhouse studios. It was picked in Songlines Magazine "Top of the World" chart. Discography
Accordion Tribe  |  | | Accordion Tribe
Intuition INT 3220-2 | Sea of Reeds (2002)
Intuition INT 3327-2 | Lunghorn Twist (2005)
Intuition INT 3389-2 |
| | | Music Travels (2005)
Maximage DVD | | |
Contacts
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