Is It Meditation? - Jazz Concert

Contemporary Jazz to calm your mind? With the SWL trio’s music in the mesmerizing, entrancing acoustic of a church? Perhaps YES! Only one way to find out …

On the 21st of October the Église Réformée Wallonne de La Haye warmly invites you to a soothing musical evening with the „SWL trio“, a Contemporary Jazz trio based in The Hague. Jazz improvisation tradition and European contemporary music whirl together and draw soft contours. Their music speaks

romantically of journey and discovery and of the longing for the very distance. Yet it also encourages to value and celebrate the simple, already given but often forgotten in life. A constant, undeniable inner urge to create truly in the moment and to challenge the unknown fuels this young ambitious trio’s spirits and fills their hearts with joy and excitement every time they take the stage. These Feelings, they thrive to convey too to their listeners.

The “SWL Trio” is formed by the Korean pianist Sujae Jung, the German bassist Wolf Robert Stratmann and the Italian drummer Lorenzo Mastrogregori. Who met during their jazz bachelor and master studies at the Royal Conservatory in the Hague in the Netherlands.

Under the premise to calm your mind the „SWL trio“ will furthermore team up with the Dutch Saxophonist Nadine Serhalawan and the Icelandic singer Björg Blöndal throughout the evening’s progression. A promising premier of this constellation of personnel! Or as the the programmer of the Église Réformée Wallonne de Haye, Tristan Marcillaud, likes to put it:“ With this acoustic the cymbals of the drums will sound like rain drops, the notes of the piano will shine like stars, the saxophone will sound otherworldly, the vocals make you dream and all this while the bass will warmly embrace you!“

The evening will consist of two sets of original music of the trio, the special guests and interpretations of fellow Contemporary Jazz artists’ music.

Drinks will be available for purchase at the bar.

Sujae Jung:

Sujae Jung is a Korean pianist who is studying jazz piano at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague and has learned from Rob van Bavel and Juraj Stanik. She plays various genres from classical music to modern/contemporary jazz and is expanding her musical field as a pianist, composer and arranger.

Wolf Robert Stratmann:

Wolf Robert Stratmann is a young german bassist who studied Sound Design and Music Production at the hdpk in Berlin and worked with bands and musical ensembles of various musical styles in Berlin. After a few celebrated releases with his project "Aeroglyph Collective" he decided to leave Berlin to continue his musical journey in Jazz in the Netherlands at the Royal Conservatoire, The Hague. Recently he is developing his Contemporary Jazz Project, the "SWL trio", in which he is also active as a composer. Wolf plays both instruments, the Electric Bass and the Double Bass.

Lorenzo Mastrogregori:

Lorenzo Mastrogregori is an Italian drummer based in the Netherlands. He plays drums in different styles from jazz music to percussion and electronics. He is deeply rooted in rock music but he studied the jazz tradition with Gregory Hutchinson, Eric Ineke and Ettore Fioravanti. He runs a big band in Den Haag where he lives and he is an active composer and arranger in different projects.

Nadine Serhalawan:

Nadine Serhalawan is a Dutch-Australian alto and soprano jazz saxophonist. She began studying the saxophone at the affiliated high school of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and later transferred to the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague where she is now completing her Bachelor’s of Music. Though being heavily inspired by the more traditional period of jazz, Nadine loves playing and improvising over various styles.

Björg Blöndal:

Björg Blöndal is an Icelandic vocalist and composer based in Den Haag. She started studying jazz vocals in The Royal Conservatoire Den Haag in the fall of 2019 and she is currently in her final year of her bachelors studies.

Björg is heavily influenced by Nordic Folk Music and Icelandic nature. She strives to intertwine the vocals with the other instruments, with the use of extended technique, effect pedals and experimental methods.