Mezzoforte (Band)

Mezzo Forte is a funk-fusion band from Iceland. It was founded in Reykjavík in 1977. The band's name is derived from the Italian term mezzo forte, which means a low voice.

Band History

The group in 1983 by the instrumental Garden Party, which climbed in the UK at # 17 of the hit parade became known. In Germany the song reached # 36 in the Netherlands, even the top 10 to a wider audience, especially in Berlin and the former East Germany, the title of the background music of the RIAS program " music after school " with Gregory Rottschalk was known. Also the WDR1 took a title from Mezzo Forte, namely, "EG Blues " as the theme music of the show " London Calling - the British hit parade " with Achim Preikschat.

The four musicians ( Eythor Gunnarsson on keyboards, Fridrik Karlsson on guitar, John on bass and Gulli Briem Asmundsson on drums ) formed the band were in their teens.

Although Garden Party was their only chart success, the band earned a worldwide fan base. In the following years, the four musicians focused increasingly on their own projects, from starting a family to new musical activities.

Dissolved Officially Mezzoforte have never yet. The four childhood friends remained over long geographical distances always in contact. Seven years after their last studio album Monkey Fields, it was the German drummer Wolfgang Haffner, who aroused the Quartet in spring 2004 from its slumber. Under his aegis, the comeback album Forward Motion was created. With the published 2008 DVD Live in Reykjavik, the band came back again into the international spotlight and is touring again in common and occurs in city halls, festivals or sometimes in clubs. In late summer 2010, the album " Volcanic " have on the co-composed and arranged the new band members appeared, recorded and engineered the album was in Iceland under the leadership of Johann Asmundsson, bassist.

Except for Karlsson ( the still participates in numerous compositions of the band and occasionally in live performances ) are still all of the founding members of it; New additions include Oskar Gudjonsson 1996 (saxophone), Thomas Dyani later (percussion ) and 2006 Sebastian Studnitzky (trumpet & keyboards) and the Cologne guitarist Bruno Müller, occasionally guest musicians perform given such as Joo Kraus in 2010.

Discography

Albums

  • Mezzo Forte (1979 ):
  • Hakanum I (1980)
  • Thvilikt above Annad one (1982 ) (only in Iceland published)
  • Surprise Surprise (1982 )
  • Observations (1984)
  • Rising ( 1985)
  • No Limits (1986 )
  • Playing for Time ( 1989)
  • Daybreak (1993 )
  • Monkey Fields ( 1996)
  • Forward Motion (2004)
  • Live in Reykjavik ( 2008)
  • Volcanic (2010)
  • Islands ( 2012)
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