Anders Widmark "Carmen" (2000) / jazz

The double bass does the Toreador. The piano is Carmen. Or perhaps Don José? Drums and percussions play parts in a drama. Improvisers have always interpreted well-known melodies, trying to create a tension between the familiar and the new. Yet Carmen's blend of Spanish folk music and the popular song of the day - the aria - was a revolution in the world of music. I made my first recording of the Seguidilla ten years ago. The Toreador aria I had only just hummed. It was not until much later that I came up with the idea of interpreting the whole opera. The musical aspects of the opera sounded rather bombastic at first. The language of jazz felt alien. Yet Georges Bizet's Carmen somehow tempted me. I Wanted to move on with her. The secret lay in stricking a balance berween the grandiose opera form and the simple melodic line. So I Started humming the Toreador again...