ADAM FORKELID

DREAMS

Prophone Swedish Jazz

Adam Forkelid, solo piano

This Stockholm-based pianist and composer is a longtime mainstay of the Scandinavian jazz community.  Meet Adam Forkelid, bringing us a package of solo piano jazz that is both beautiful and creative.

It was a quiet October night, a year ago in 2024, when Forkelid sat at his Fazioli F278 grand piano to create this masterpiece. Four of the six album tracks recorded were completely improvised on the spot.

Beginning with a tune called “Liminality” which is a word that means ‘betwixt and between’ or in other words, finding yourself in two states of being. We have all been there at one time or another. Adam Forkelid has endeavored to put that feeling into this musical composition.

The second song on his album is titled “Unfold.”  It is pensive and suspenseful at first. However, it soon develops into something quite beautiful and perhaps even hopeful.  The treble melody arouses a feeling of  gentle excitement and tempered joy.

The final piece on this album is a reinterpretation from his 2024 quartet release called, “Strive” from his “Turning Point” album.   The solo piano work is quite different from listening to four musicians interpret his original composition.

Forkelid’s composition is both melodic and jazzy. With the quartet arrangement, the guitarist takes a soaring solo.  Of course, four musicians sound completely different than a soloist.

When you play solo, you are completely exposed and vulnerable. Adam has played in a number of unique situations including collaborations with Maria Schneider, Nils Landgren, Viktoria Tolstoy and the Norrbotten Big Band.  Always pushing his musical boundaries and striving to be the best in whatever situation he finds himself; he had great pleasure and adventure working with the Soundscape Orchestra. Also, playing with an intimate trio like the Svante Soderqvist trio.

Surely, this solo album is one of his greatest challenges and an expression of great freedom. It is music made in the moment, like an intimate conversation with friends.  It’s a line between “Dreams” and reality, played by a master pianist. This project is very personal. Adam Forkelid shares his innermost feelings with us, whispered from the 88-keys.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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