Carsten Dahl Trio

Carsten Dahl has been Denmark’s most distinctive and musically accomplished jazz pianist for nearly a generation. He himself attributes his musical superpowers to having been given a magic potion as a child. It makes sense when you experience him unleashing his inner keyboard wizard alongside his critically acclaimed trio. Their interplay and the magic of the moment always deliver a poetic, wild, and polyphonic experience that goes beyond the ordinary.

On their brand-new album The Composer’s Suite, they take us with great intensity and fearlessness right to the edge of where we thought the jazz world ended. But as one reviewer wrote about Carsten Dahl: He always surprises me — and surely others too — because he can. Or because he can’t help himself. A true wizard surrounded by equals!

Line-up:

• Carsten Dahl: grand piano
• Daniel Franck: double bass
• Martin Andersen: drums

Reviews: Ivan Rod (Gaffa): "For me, the Danish jazz pianist Carsten Dahl is always a tremendously interesting acquaintance. I have followed him for years and 'recognize' him and his music every time he performs something new or releases something new. And yet he always surprises me (and surely others too), because he can. Or because he can’t help himself. Carsten Dahl is thoroughly musical. He can see and hear. He has a pronounced ability to listen. But also to perform. That is why he is a master at creating — as here with the Golden Ratio Trio, which, besides Carsten Dahl himself, consists of the Swedish jazz bassist Daniel Franck and the Danish jazz drummer Jakob Høyer. Carsten Dahl clearly listens to the others and contributes based on what he hears, and the others do the same. Therefore, the meeting between the three skilled musicians in the Golden Ratio Trio is also what one would call refreshing in old Danish.

Interpretations – the Norway Sessions is, as the title suggests, recorded over two days in two Norwegian studios. The trio has recorded 13 original compositions — two by Carsten Dahl, one by Daniel Franck, and ten jointly. And regardless of the author or authors, the material hangs together organically. But the two sessions, which took place in January and March 2024 respectively, are nevertheless fundamentally different. As mentioned, they were recorded in two different studios, so the soundscapes are different. The January recordings are warm and melodically stringent. The March recordings are freer, rawer, and more assertive. That is why the album also feels like it shifts a bit in the middle. And yet, it is all recognizably Carsten Dahl’s and the Golden Ratio Trio’s.

Again and again, Carsten Dahl appears as both sensitive and disciplined, as well as bold and untamable. But in the interplay with Daniel Franck and Jakob Høyer, it all becomes — regardless of temperature — rich and intense, multifaceted and fantastic. Stretched between action and pausing, harmony and disharmony, the 'interpretations' emerge. And all of that is fine. Personally, however, I am most captivated by the first session and the immediately accessible music — well-crafted tracks like 'Kristallkorall' and 'Vacker'."

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