Cockpit Music
Cockpit Music plays experimental music – a mxiture of free form jazz, rock, chamber music, and other elements. Strict compsitions mixed with improvisations.
Cockpit Music was formed in 1978 and is still going strong with the original lineup:
Thorsten Høeg: Saxophones.
Søren Tarding: Guitars.
Pere Oliver Jørgens: Drums, Marimba, Vibes, Steeldrums +
a van full of other percussion instruments.
History:
Both Jørgens and Høeg had been members of John Tchicai’s Festival Band which disbanded in 1977.
For a short period in 1977/78 Jørgens and Høeg continued to perform under this name – now as a trio – with Tarding on guitar, but quite soon the group got it’s name & brand – Cockpit Music – a name taken from P.O. Jørgens’s studio, which (at that time) was built just to have room enough for a drum kit and a guitar amplifier – with a saxophonist squeezed in between.
The Music:
Cockpit Music have always soley been performing compositions by Jørgens, Høeg and Tarding. The music represents a lot of different moods and approches, wich arrise from the fact that the musical scope of Cockpit Music is very open, currious and broardminded – taking inspirations from avantgarde, improvised, eksperimental, rock’n’roll, different patterns from the third world music, jazz and western compositional music, wich over the years have resulted i very different compositions, who by all means have one thing in common – the unique Cockpit Music sound.
If you go to a Cockpit Music concert or listen to their releases, one will hear a lot of daring sounds and compositions – from very melodic ballads to the most far-out heavy flights, interupted by beautifull compositions for marimba, alto & acoustic guitar – all tied together by ambient soundscapes created on a whole world of percussion, strings & reeds.
So, welcome to the full range – from silence to storm, and beyond that.
The surrounding milieu have called Cockpit Music everything from
– the first and only- Punk-Jazz Band, Modern Chamber Music, The Hybrid-Trio, Leatherjazz , Structured Kaos ??? and other odd things.
So……………….What kind of music does Cockpit Music play ?
The Music of Today, The Music of Tomorrow, The Music of Yesterday ?
No – they play Cockpit Music !!!!!!.
Hence the huge amount of different compositions Cockpit Music build up over the years, the group is capable of performing in most places and situations. Cockpit Music have played venues like jazz & rock club’s, concert halls, small and major festivals, museeums and galleries, squated houses and so on – for a audience ranging from punks to a classical audience, for government people and GMO people and so on.
Over the years the group toured several times in most of Europe (including former east europea) and Scandinavia.
The Members:
Thorsten Høeg:
Leader of the 10tet Mongo Dilmuns, over the years Høeg worked with a lot of different artists like Sort Sol, Audun Klive and Scanner. Has composed for various ensembles including the Arditti String Quartet and El Hombre Invisible.
Has as author written noumerous novels and radioplay.
Søren Tarding:
Former member of No Knox, played with Danish Art-Rock Icon Martin Hall and other Danish bands.
Pere Oliver Jørgens. aka P.O.Jørgens / Peter Ole Jørgensen:
Central figure on the freeform/improscene for three decades both as a super creative drummer and producer/labelowner (Ninth World Music).
Has composed for more than 30 Ballet, film and performances
+ a lot of compositions for his different groups.
Leader/co-leader of the groups: Sweetheart in a Drugstore (Axel Dörner), David (Pere Ubu) Thomas & Foreigners, The Wild Mans Band w/ Peter Brötzmann, Global Guaranty Orchestra, Ghost In The Machine w/ Evan Parker /and Mokuto w/ Herb Robertson.
Has played and recorded with ao: Evan Parker, Fred Van Hove, David Moss, Phil Minton, Mats Gustafsson, Thomas Lehn, Irene Schweizer, John Tchicai, Zëv, Frank Lowe, Poul Rutherford, Tim Hodgkinson, Alan Silva, Pat Thomas, Roger Turner, Verner Lüdi, Andrea Neumann, Fred Lonberg Holm, Johannes Bauer, Per Åke Holmlander & Sirone.
Currently composing for for the wind quintet Reed 5, touring as a duo with David (Pere Ubu) Thomas performing the show/concert
“Live Free or Diet / The Orange Show”
Cockpit Music has recorded 9 LP / CD’s released on different lables. The last three CD’s is released on the VME owned lable Ninth World Music and distributed in Scandinavia by VME. (Voices Music & Entertainment)
Furthermore Cockpit Music CD’s / Ninth World Music is distributed in :
US A by North Country and Cargo. Japan: Disk Union and Marquee.
Germany: FMP Distribution and Open Door. England: Cadillac and Impetus.
Benelux: Lowlands. France: Improjazz and Metamkine.
Italy: Silensio and Metalogo. Canada: Verge.