Olga Konkova’s education in both Russia and the USA encompassed both classical and jazz music. This is the key to her ability to blend brilliant technical capacity with extraordinary improvisational skills, both as solos and accompanist.
Olga Konkova delivers gracious, modern, hard swinging jazz and is able to change direction in a spilt second if required. Olga Konkova’s new trio album ‘The Goldilocks Zone’ features her two ‘husbands’. She is only actually married to one of them, bassist Per Mathisen. The other husband is master percussionist, Gary Husband.
Olga has released top quality albums and performed at major jazz festivals with musicians from all over the world including, Jon Christensen, Adam Nussbaum, Ralph Peterson and Bill Bruford.
Per Mathisen is one of Scandinavia’s most renowned musicians; a session ace, and a phenomenal jazz soloist. He has recorded many albums, is well known for his collaboration with drummer Alex Acuña and musicians such as, Terri Lyne Carrington,
Geri Allen, and saxophonist Bill Evans.
Gary Husband has roots in classical music. His development in the improvisational, jazz and jazz/fusion areas - not to mention his tenure in pop, rock and blues circuits - are all evident in his distinct and versatile musical personality. He plays keyboards in John McLaughlin’s group, ‘The 4th Dimension’, has recently toured Japan with the Soft Machine Legacy Band and recorded and performed with Billy Cobham and Jack DeJohnette in 2015. He is also well remembered for his work with Level 42 and guitarists Gary Moore and Allan Holdsworth.
The Goldilocks Zone is an area of space in which a planet, like our own Earth, is perfectly distanced from its sun.
The planet’s surface is neither too hot nor too cold (like baby bear’s porridge in the fairy tale). Conditions are just right so that liquid water remains on the surface of the planet without freezing or evaporating out into space. Life can form and flourish. Olga Konkova sees this as metaphor and as symbol:
“It’s a place in the human soul where beautiful thoughts are born and nourished”.
There are many beautiful thoughts expressed throughout this album and they are communicated and articulated with grace and with skill. It is not inevitable that the collaboration of three virtuosi will create great art. In space, physics and chemistry must combine and align to produce precise conditions for life to form. In the recording studio, a microcosm of these effects must occur. There must be attraction and interaction; there must be harmony and empathy. The music must engage us on both the conscious and unconscious levels allowing us to experience new depths and insights. This hugely creative album delivers on all levels.
Olga Konkova grand piano, Rhodes
Per Mathisen acoustic upright bass
Gary Husband drums, percussion
| Release | Losen Records |
| May 15, 2015 | Tel. +47 22 19 82 82 |
| LOS 134-2 | info@losenrecords.no |
| 7090025831348 | www.losenrecords.no |