FREE SPIRITUAL is a spiritual free jazz trio. Its aim is to rediscover and to give a new life to the Medieval Gregorian requiem mass. It is a reinterpretation of the classic plainchant mass written as a celebration of the dead, into a context of free improv saxophone, double bass, and drums trio. The trio keeps and elevates the roughness and purity of the Gregorian chant and focuses on their personal expression of what the two mean to them and how they see the initial energy of this music.
The music was arranged by the bass player Tomo Jacobson who has studied Gregorian chant both theoretically and practically for years. The process was to translate and deconstruct the original Medieval requiem, and put it back together a new, but keeping the feel and forms of the original, as well as its original purpose.
FREE SPIRITUAL plays their music with the intention, as an universal, secular mass dedicated to all killed during armed conflicts.
FREE SPIRITUAL is:
Maciek Kadziela (PL) - sax
Tomo Jacobson - double bass
Anders Vestergaard (DK) - drums
Maciek Kadziela is a saxophone player, composer and band leader. Besides constantly touring, he is currently doing a PhD at the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen graduate. His strong, personal saxophone sound is inspired by free jazz, avant-garde and bands from the edge of heavy rock. Maciek is a successful and highly recognized musician on the European jazz scene. He has toured extensively around Europe and has received numerous awards at festivals and jazz competitions: Jazz nad Odra, Novum Jazz Festival, Krokus Jazz Festival, Azoty Tarnów Jazz Festival, to name the few. In 2013 he has released his quartet album as a leader 'The Opening' with Anders Morgensen, Richard Anderson and Marek Kadziela.
Tomo Jacobson is a Polish-born double bass player, composer and improviser. He has established himself on a Danish improvised music scene soon after moving to Copenhagen in 2008 playing over 100 concerts a year. He graduated with a master degree from the renowned Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen in 2015 and now he is mostly focused on his own career as a composer and band leader, continuing to be highly in demand as a bass player.
In the past few years Tomo has been very fortunate to perform with some of the greats: with late John Tchicai, Andrew D'Angelo, Lotte Anker, Adam Rudolph, Rasul Siddik, PO Jørgens, Mat Maneri, Randy Peterson, Frank Gratkowski, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Jacob Anderskov, Kresten Osgood, Hugh Steinmetz, Søren Kjaergaard, Torben Snekkested, Maria Laurette Friis, Sun Araw and many others.
In 2014 Tomo was selected for a prestigious 8 months scholarship to New York City to work on his new music and to collaborate with New York based musicians. He has been also working as a film music composer and wrote music to a few short movies produced in Germany, Poland, Denmark, and New York.
Anders Vestergaard is one of the most in demand young drummers in Denmark. He is involved in dozens of projects within the improvised genre from experimental, sonic oriented avant-garde jazz to rock and pop. He played on a numerous albums, among others with highly acclaimed Kasper Staub Trio, with collective Bravura In The Face Of Grief, and a beautiful prog pop band Islets of Dust. He has toured all around the world with all kinds of projects, including his solo one. His latest achievement was touring and recording an album with Jacob Anderskov's trio “Habitable Exomusics”. Anders has also invented and built a new instrument, a feedback-loop-snare-drum, that he uses during his performances.
