Reconnection is the sophomore album of Norwegian, Oslo-based violinist-composer-vocalist Tuva Halse, following Two (Jazzland, 2023). This album asks what happens when you return to the music, places (Halse comes from Molde, studied in Trondheim, and spent formative time in Svalbard), and feelings that formed you in an attempt to reconnect, only to discover they cannot sound the same way twice. This necessary, introspective process reflects on themes of time, belonging, memory, and the friction between past and present, reaching melancholy, nostalgia, and a quiet sense of wonder that coexist.

The eleven short, contemplative, and intimate yet melodic and openly emotional pieces suggest Halse’s mature, rich, and engaging musical universe. These pieces are often touched by quiet, reserved melancholy, often associated with the lyricism of Nordic jazz, but it is spiced with Baroque-inspired structures, Norwegian folk music, subtle elements of Middle-Eastern music, and hints of funk syncopation.

Halse quintet features the same musicians that accompanied her on Two – trumpeter Oscar Andreas Haug (of Amalie Dahl’s Dafnie and Bliss Quartet), pianist Benjamín Gísli Einarsson (who plays with Halse in the Bento Box trio), bassist Gard Kronborg (also of the Bliss Quartet), and drummer Øyvind Leite (of I Like To Sleep and Bento Box Trio). This quintet has established a close, collaborative dynamic that always serves and enriches Halse’s touching melodies.

Reconnection is a journey into inner landscapes, the passage of time, and finding a way back – to others, to nature, to oneself. This journey revisits nostalgic places and familiar people and ideas, but this impressive musical statement is not nostalgic. It seeks to open up to new perspectives and to move through and beyond.

Eyal Hareuveni

Tuva Halse (violin, vocals), Oscar Andreas Haug (trumpet, vocals), Benjamín Gísli Einarsson (piano), Gard Kronborg (bass, vocals), Øyvind Leite (drums)