Just came home from a big band rehearsal for a gig tomorrow on Wiener Stadtfest at Judenplatz here in Vienna. We rehearsed in a tiny little basement with no airflow whatsoever. It was warm, it was stuffy and it was LOUD! The band was very good though and I’m looking forward to the gig tomorrow. Nice to have the trumpet section behind us then, instead of aimed straight into my right ear!

Here’s the link to Swedish TV4:s nyhetsmorgon where I played with Patrick El-Hag.

It was very nice playing there, interesting to see how the studio looks like and how everything is done. The breakfast buffet that I had heard so much about really stood up to the expectations, and the reception from the personnel from the moment you stepped in through the door was very professional. Hard not to like it when everything works and is the way you want it to be!

The early morning was pretty heavy though, I managed to sleep for two hours before the taxi arrived at 03.30. After the broadcast I jumped straight into the next taxi to get to a three hour rehearsal with Jerry the Cupboard at 08.45, which I missed with two minutes. It was hard keeping the concentration up during the whole rehearsal considering my absent of beauty-sleep. Also a bit unusual that when the rehearsal started around 9, I had already been up for around six hours. When did that happen at a morning rehearsal before? Answer: Never.

Straight after the rehearsal I went home, had a sushi, put on the TV, and fell asleep in the couch before I even had chosen a channel.

This weekend I were playing at Karlstad Jazz Festival with Johan Gund Big Band. Johan is an old friend of mine and the whole idea of the project was that he had gathered a lot (a big band) of his friends from around Sweden to make a gig at the festival.

For me the whole thing got a bit of a bad start. I had to leave Stockholm very early last Friday morning and had put the alarm on for 5:15 am. Unfortunately I only managed to get four hours of sleep and was anything but well-rested. Good that I’m gonna sit on a train for three hours I thought, then I can sleep some there. Unfortunately destiny and the train company had something else in mind and placed me together with a mother and her three children, and one of them weren’t the most calm little thing I have ever met. In other words, no sleep on the train either.

After arriving in Karlstad we rehearsed with the saxophones from 10am to lunch, and then with the entire band from 2pm to 7pm. After this I was pretty much out of energy. After waiting to get access to where I was staying I could finally go to sleep around 1am. I usually have a hard time falling asleep, but this night I only had to lay my head on the pillow and I were off in the land of dreams. I wish it could always be that easy! The following morning I slept through the morning and then went out to Mariebergsskogen (Marieberg forest) where the festival area was located.

The gig itself went very well, it had some nerve considering we only had played together once at the rehearsal the day before, but with all the experience in the band this was not a problem. Everyone played really well and the concert seemed to be very appreciated by the audience.

The festival was very nice, good concerts and a great atmosphere. It was fun meeting all friends that were there playing that I hadn’t seen in a long while, both in our and other bands. I also got the opportunity to say goodbye to Per that leaves for China and Carolina for Trondheim, Norway, both for half a year. Good luck to both of you and have fun! The goodbyes also reminded me of my own move to Vienna that is getting closer, and it’s easy to get a bit sad realizing how much you like your friends and how much fun it is here. But I guess I have to make sure I have fun in Vienna as well!

This morning we rehearsed with Thomas Backman’s band Jerry The Cupboard, with which we’re gonna have our premiere gig the 11th of September at Glenn Miller Café in Stockholm. I think it will be a really nice concert, the rehearsal was a blast! Great when you feel that the music begins to find it’s right shape.

Tomorrow morning at 06:30am my train leaves from Stockholm central station to Karlstad, I hope I wake up! We’re rehearsing the whole Friday, then we play at the festival sometime during Saturday. I’m looking forward to it!

I have uploaded a sound clip from one of the tunes from the Fasching gig with Fabulous Five on my myspace. The tune is called Abstrakt Boskap, is written by Rasmus Borg and recorded by Swedish Radio P2. Now you know, listen if you feel like it.