Sunna Gunnlaugs Trio, David Lam Park/Roundhouse Performance Centre, Sunday, June 29, 1:30 p.m. as part of the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival. For more information go to coastaljazz.ca.
Icelandic pianist Sunna Gunnlaugs is steeped in the language of jazz - past, present and future. And just like some of her heroes, such as Bobo Stenson and Bill Evans, she's chosen the trio set-up of piano, bass and drums as a main vehicle of expression.
Regularly performing with Þorgrímur Jónsson on double bass and (her husband) Scott McLemore on drums, Gunnlaugs keeps everything wide open. Born in Iceland and schooled in Big Apple nightclubs she incorporates both European and American styles into her style.
She uses her new album Distilled as a starting off point for explorations into a jazz vernacular that features other elements such as traditional Icelandic folk melodies as part of the mix. The set includes mainly original tunes from all three members plus a new take on Paul Motian's "From Time To Time."
Gunnlaugs talked to the North Shore News as she was heading out on her current North American tour which includes a date Sunday, June 29 at the Roundhouse in David Lam Park as part of this year's TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival. For more information visit sunnagunnlaugs.com.
North Shore News: How did you get into jazz?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: There wasn't a lot of jazz around when I was growing up. I heard a little bit on TV, like at the end of a program, they'd play a jazz theme and it just seemed to appeal to me. I studied music and when I got into my teens I was kind of lost as to what I wanted to do musically but I was always curious about jazz so I started looking for it.
North Shore News: Where did you look?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: At the time there was one school that offered jazz studies in Iceland so at 18 I got into that school and started studying jazz piano and I just completely loved it. It was the greatest discovery.
North Shore News: Who were some of your influences early on?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: I would say Bill Evans. I think the first jazz record that I ever got was a Bill Evans album called You're Going to Hear From Me. It was a gift from my brother. I was sick. I had to stay home for like a week or something. I had the flu so I put that record on and just played it again and again and again. I really fell in love with Bill Evans. I listened to Oscar Peterson. I think I had the Night Train album. (A Canadian player) A Canadian, right. Not that I ever tried to imitate him. I loved the joy in his playing that's what I get from him. Playing with joy and being sincere in your music. I got into Keith Jarrett, especially the European bands. I really loved those albums, especially Belonging and Personal Mountains. And Wynton Kelly and Kenny Barron were favourites for a long time and then Bobo Stenson, the Swedish pianist.
North Shore News: That was a big move going from Iceland to study in America - what was that like?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: Yea, that was huge. It was a big shock really - I don't think I even realized it at the time - not just to come to the States but I was in an area that was not in the city. The school I was going to, William Patterson, was in Wayne, New Jersey, and I was surprised at how difficult it was to get around because the busses stopped running at seven. I walked everywhere and there were no sidewalks. It was a cultural shock. but a great experience musically. coming to a school with a protective environment where there was really nothing else to do but just practice and play sessions. That was great - and the proximity to New York was awesome. I eventually figured out I could walk to Patterson and take the bus into New York and go hear Kenny Barron play at Bradley's. That's one of my favourite clubs. It was amazing. Going to the Vanguard and seeing all these great players play close up.
North Shore News: When you came to the U.S. did you speak English?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: Yes we studied English in school. I had a pretty thick accent when I came to the States but I think I had a good vocabulary.
North Shore News: Did you play your first shows in New York?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: Probably in New Jersey in the area close to school. I had played a little bit in Iceland too. I played in pop bands and did a few jazz gigs but it would be with a singer or a horn player - it was really in New Jersey when I started playing as a leader, you know, leading a trio.
North Shore News: Were you already writing music when you went to school? Sunna Gunnlaugs: I wrote a lot of music when I was a kid. I was fascinated by chords. They were pop-like melodies. I studied the organ so I played them on the organ and the keyboard but I think when I got into jazz I really got preoccupied with studying the jazz language. I kind of stopped writing for awhile until I'd been at Patterson for maybe a year, or maybe in my second year, I started writing again. It was probably an assignment from a teacher, you know, 'Everybody go home and write a tune,' and then I just kind of got back into it and haven't stopped since.
North Shore News: Do you have any process you follow when you are writing music?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: I try to listen. I just try to hear something and figure out what I'm hearing. I think some of the best tunes I write I write away from the instrument like when I was living in New York I would just hum something in my head and then when I got home I would figure out what it was on piano and write it out. Sometimes when I feel like we need a more energetic tune or an uptempo tune I try to put myself in the mood and just listen like it's coming from somewhere.
North Shore News: A couple of your recordings delve into Icelandic folk music. What's your relationship to those melodies?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: It's just something that everybody in Iceland knows. We sing a lot as kids and in school there's a lot of singing of these tunes and when people get together for a celebration like something similar to Labour Day we all start to sing. There's a lot of singing in Iceland. For me it was kind of interesting to take those melodies and harmonize them and see what we could do with them, just use them as vehicles for improvisation really.
North Shore News: Did you perform the material much before you recorded the new album?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: Some of them. Others were very new. The tune "Distilled" I don't think we'd ever played live before we recorded it. But yea, we have an easy time playing together, the three of us - and the recording session went really smooth. I think we did it in one day and played like a gig.
North Shore News: The album is a real work of art - something you can't appreciate if you just listen to it digitally.
Sunna Gunnlaugs: Thank you. A lot of people have commented on the packaging on how it kind of sets you up for what you are about to listen to.
North Shore News: The last time you were at the Vancouver jazz fest you had an unusual mode of transportation.
Sunna Gunnlaugs: In Vancouver we got a surprise. We were getting picked up at the hotel to take us to this gig and they picked us up in this boat. The bass hardly fit but it was a fun experience. We took a boat to Performance Works. Funny thing Bobo Stenson actually played just before us and I'm such a fan of his. I thought that was very cool. I got to play the same piano Bobo Stenson was playing.
North Shore News: What's the festival experience like for you as a band. Do you get much of a chance to relax?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: A lot of it is work. We usually just stop for one night and then we're on to the next gig but it's nice at a festival - you get to catch somebody else that's on before you or after you.
North Shore News: Touring you get to see a lot of the world. Do you have any favourite places to visit?
Sunna Gunnlaugs: I think I just like going places in general. It's really different touring North America and touring Europe but I like both. I like experiencing new things and new places. We always try to eat the local food wherever we go - that's kind of a part of being there. The Germans are surprised when we say we want to go to a German restaurant and they go, 'Really?' I like seeing the world and meeting people. People are lovely everywhere.
