Tummel is a 7-piece band based in Malmö, Sweden and Copenhagen, Denmark. “Tummel” is, in Yiddish, the sound that arises from a totally unrestrained party. This reflects the musical influences of the band, which are a mixture of different forms of traditional music from Eastern Europe and pop/rock.
Right from the start in 1997 they won the hearts of both folk and rock audiences, and has since attracted a growing number of fans across Sweden, Denmark, Finland, the UK, Italy, Slovenia and Estonia. Due to their reputation as a great live band, Swedish Television choose them for the show "Concert of the week" with a full hour of televised Tummel Live. They have also appeared live on Estonian Television and Danish National Radio on several occasions, not to mention local stations in Siberia, Texas, Turkey, Greece, Germany etc. They have toured with Iraqi-Israeli oud and violin player Yair Dalal, and also cooperated with Bulgarian kaval virtuoso Lyuben Dosev. During the autumn of 2009, they will for the first time also tour in Germany and Switzerland.
What makes Tummel special is their ability to adapt to whatever kind of scene or stage they are thrown upon. Although all band members are strong instrumentalists, what really makes the crowd go wild on a Tummel concert is their extraordinary capability as a live band. The Tumlers spare no effort to give the audience a once in a lifetime experience, leaving the audience gasping for breath with sweat flowing from their armpits.
Tummel has played every kind of venue from small bars to big rock festival stages, and people seem to get a kick where ever they set foot. Besides normal concerts, Tummel often does school concerts and workshops, and have also developed a special material for cooperation with amateur orchestras.
In 2001, Tummel released their debut album “OY!” (EUCD1687), which is available worldwide from ARC (www.arcmusic.co.uk). The record was met with excellent reviews both in Sweden and abroad. Their second album “Transit” (TUMCD002) in 2004 was also very positively reviewed, and was nominated for best Folk and World CD in Sweden 2004. By now, ten out of thirteen songs were composed by the band.
The recent addition of Singer Jens Friis Hansen to the lineup (that was previously instrumental) has meant a new path for the band, and a new cd with this lineup, “PABACK TIME” (TUMCD 004), was released in april 2009.
Tummel is:
Edin Bahtijaragic: accordeon. While growing up in Bosnia, it was Edin´s plan to become an architect, and it was not until he came to Sweden that a real and passionate interest for the music he had grown up with started to claim Edin. Now there is only one thing in his head besides music: football! Has a degree in traditional music from the academy of Malmö.
Pär Moberg: saxophone. Former rock-singer wannabee who fell in love with folk in his early twenties and picked up the saxophone. Although Pär claims to be true to Balkan, he has a very serious affair with Scandinavian folk music. Known as the “professor” of the band, who does a lot of composing for all kinds of groups.
Jonatan Aisen: drums. Raised on a diet of funk and rock, Jonathan became a regular member of the band in January 2006, though he has previously toured with the band as replacer. He also plays with Klezmofobia (a Danish klezmer band). Together with Tobias he represents the Jewish heritage in Tummel.
Jonatan Ahlbom: tuba. The newest member of the band (in 2008). Although born and raised in Gothenburg, Jonatan feels just as home among the Romani people of Serbia and Maccedonia, where he has travelled a lot of times learning to play trubacci (Roma brass band music). In Gothenburg, he also plays with local trubacci band Erdogan, and just got a degree from the Academy of music at the world music department.
Tobias Allvin: guitar and bozouki. Speaking fluent Russian is only one of the many talents of this punk-guitarist-turned-bozoukiman, who besides playing klezmer also plays Greek music and has his own rock band Babian. Has a degree in traditional music at the academy in Malmö.
Jens Friis-Hansen – vocals. A charisma that can move a heart of stone is the trademark of Tummel’s visionary singer Jens Friis-Hansen. Out of the years of studying biology, medicine and experimental contemporary composition, Jens has become a devoted professional story teller and sound maker. Also has a degree from the Academy of Music in Malmö. In addition to Tummel, Jens is working with other groups such as the hyper duo HappyNewDog. With his trilingual background and great experience of different musical genres Jens concludes the very idea of Tummel.
Andreas Rudenå. A year in Bukarest gave this Scandinavian fiddler the true Romanian sound which blends so nicely with Tummel. Somewhat of a computer freak, he is also the webmaster of Tummel.
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