Finland Tour in May 2024
The project
Herbert Könighofer: vocs, flutes, sax, contra alto-clarinet, live-loops, a.o.
Sid Hille: Fender Rhodes, synthesizer/piano, percussion, live-loops, theremin, a.o.
Hille and Könighofer met by chance and that’s how the Hille-Könighofer Experience commenced in September 2016, when they toured Austria “in the shadow of the moon” (Kuun Varjossa). With their first public performance only hours after their first personal encounter, improvisation compellingly became the core of their collaboration. The multi-instrumentalists presented their programme, oscillating between mystical, Scandinavian sounds and hard-hitting Alpine reality. In 2017 and 18, the musicians played jazz clubs, museums and churches in Austria, Finland and Estonia. In addition to their duo work, they have also had the opportunity to engage in creative dialogue on stage with Finnish and Estonian musicians, such as F# with Jori Huhtala (FI) on bass, Markus Ketola (FI) on drums, Virpi Taskila (FI) on electric violin and Lina Saar (EST) on vocals. Especially their performances at the Sara Hildén Art Museum in Tampere and their stay at the artist residency Villa Eläintarha Helsinki allowed them to work across the boundaries of art genres. After experimenting with online concerts during the pandemic, they were able to resume touring in Austria and Finland in 2022 and 2023 and performed for example together with F# at the Flame Festival on the Baltic Sea.
The duo also offers workshops, allowing participants to experience and become part of the art of improvisation – a useful skill in- and outside the realms of music!
Album All & Everything
Satnamusic CD 191 – www.satnamusic.fi
About the album: The first time Sid Hille met Herbert Könighofer was when Herby picked Sid up at the Salzburg railway station in autumn 2016. Three hours later they had their first concert; no rehearsals, no repertoire, no strategy – just improvisation pure, two individuals communicating with each other and with the audience through their music. Improvisation is an art form that demands trust and fearlessness – additionally, of course, to the technical skills and a general ability to convey meaning. It’s not enough to have mastered your craft. You have to go beyond that, take risks, jump into opportunities when they offer themselves. In fact, you have to create your opportunities first, and trust your own ability and the ability of your fellow musicians to deal with whatever happens. After the concerts, Sid often wonders where this continuous flow of ideas comes from. The musicians have been amazed and somewhat surprised to notice the seamless communication between the three of them (with the great Markus Ketola joining them in the concert featured on the album). The concert has been recorded live at Temppeliaukio Church in Helsinki on November, the 14th, 2018. You can hear their love for the fearless forward motion of the music as it seems to give birth to itself. Within this one hour, the musical journey of the Finnish and Austrian multi-instrumentalists seems to touch on all and everything, unrepeatable so, and yet in every concert again, in a different unique way.
This project has so far friendly been supported by:
