Christian Wallumrød

Christian Wallumrød (1971), musician/composer

Christian Wallumrød has worked as a musician and composer since 1992, and he is considered one of the most prominent musicians of his generation in Norway.

Following his debut on ECM Records (“No Birch”, issued in 1996), he has released a string of albums with Christian Wallumrød Ensemble (CWE) on the same label, all to considerable critical acclaim. The record ’Outstairs’ was rewarded with the Norwegian Grammy (Spellemannsprisen 2013). While being the composer and leader of his own ensemble, Wallumrød also focusses strongly on improvisation with another longstanding collaboration, the French/Norwegian group Dans Les Arbres (DLA), also with two releases on ECM. These groups have represented the main body of his work over the last 15 years, and both are touring extensively. Brutter (issued in 2012), Christian’s collaboration with drummer brother Fredrik, is a duo dive into human and machine driven pulses and has released two albums on the Norwegian label Hubro Music. The label is also the home for albums with his ensemble and Dans Les Arbres, as well as Wallumrød’s solo piano record Pianokammer (2015). More recent bands and collaborations includes 3 pianos (with A.Tanaka and J.Lindvall, album out on Nakama Records) and a trio with Anna Petrini and Qarin Wikström.

Wallumrød has had long term collaborations with groups and artists such as Sidsel Endresen, Close Erase, Audun Kleive. He regularly gives solo performances and he has participated in a variety of ad hoc constellations  with artists such as Susanne Sundfør, Nils Petter Molvær, Ricardo Villalobos & Max Loderbauer, Lasse Marhaug, Streifenjunko, Karl Seglem, Jim Denley, Kim Myhr, DJ Strangefruit, Magda Mayas, Sofia Jernberg, David Stackenäs, Oslo Sinfonietta.  

Over the last few years Wallumrød has been commissioned to write for smaller chamber groups (a.o. BIT20, Håkon Stene, Barolo, BOA). The Ultima Festival (Oslo) and the AngelicA Festival in Bologna commissioned and put on his orchestra piece ‘When celebrities dream of casual sleep (second try)’ in 2013. For their 50th anniversary festival in 2014 Kongsberg Jazzfestival commissioned a piece from Wallumrød with Trondheim Jazz Orchestra (album released on Hubro Music, 2015). In 2015 Wallumrød wrote for the vocal ensemble Trondheim Voices and their project Gjestehus, premiered at Olavsfestdagene. Norwegian dance company Ingun Bjørnsgaard Project commissioned music for the performance Notes on frailty, which was premiered at the Coda festival in 2017. At the Tromsø International Film Festival 2019 Wallumrød and his ensemble gave a performance with music  written for a film concert version of Egil Håskjold Larsens film Where Man Returns.

Oslo, May 201