Tómas R. Einarsson (born 25th of March 1953) is an Icelandic composer and bassist (upright bass) residing in Reykjavik, Iceland.

Career[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

Tómas R Einarsson
Tómas R Einarsson
	Hér má finna upplýsingar um Tómas R Einarsson, tónlistarmann
Fæðing	25 mars 1953.; Blönduós
Þjóðerni	Icelandic
Störf	Musician, composer
Þekkt fyrir	Jazz, Latin Jazz

Tómas Ragnar Einarsson bought his first double-bass in 1979, a year before he finished his studies at the University of Iceland (BA degree in History and Spanish). The music took over and he studied with Jón Sigurðsson, 1st bassist in the Icelandic Symphonic Orchestra and Johan Poulsen, 1st bassist Royal Copenhagen Opera. He was a student at the FIH Music School of Reykjavik and attended a summer course with the Danish/Congolese reedman John Tchicai in 1984. By then he was already playing with the veterans of Icelandic jazz, as well as accompanying visiting guests (a.o. Chet Baker, Kenny Drew, Frank Lacy, Jens Winther, Ernie Wilkins, Ted Daniel, John Tchicai, Doug Raney, Bent Jaedig, Richard Boone, Jesper Thilo, Tommy Smith, Mark Levine, Guy Barker, Olivier Manoury, and Charles McPherson). His first composition on record appeared on the LP Kvölda tekur in 1982, with Nýja Kompaníið, a group of young jazz musicians that played original music.

He was a member of the Reykjavik Jazz Quartet, which was active in the nineties; playing jazz festivals in Scandinavia, Germany, Scotland and England, where the group also played for a week in the Ronnie Scott´s club in London. Einarsson was the bassist in The Ólafur Stephensen Trio, a piano trio that made three CD´s in the nineties and performed in 10 countries.

Latin jazz[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

Einarsson´s first Latin jazz record was Kúbanska (2002). It was well received in Iceland and American critics had praise for the music: “It´s a funny thing, all of this Latin Jazz coming from such remote places. But when it´s played that well, who cares?” (C. Michael Bailey: All About Jazz). In 2003 he went to Cuba to record the CD Havana. Einarsson´s third Latin CD was Romm Tomm Tomm, recorded in 2006 in Reykjavik and in Havana´s EGREM studios, with 14 musicians. It was chosen the Latin record of the year by the French Salsapaca website. When Putumayo World Music released its first Latin Jazz CD they included Rumdrum from Einarsson´s Havana CD. The Icelandic bassist was the only European representative. He has played and toured extensively with his Latin group, performing at festivals and clubs in Europe and America.

Einarsson´s music was arranged for big band by Icelandic trombonist/arranger Samúel J. Samúelsson in 2004 and performed by a 14 piece band at the Reykjavik Art Festival the same year. A recording from the two concerts won all the three awards in the jazz category of the Icelandic Music Awards 2004. In 2007 DJ´s from five countries remixed tracks from his Latin CD´s and the result was Rommtommtechno, produced by President Bongo from the Icelandic band GusGus. Einarsson's Strengur (CD/DVD), for double bass, percussion, water sounds and video, was selected as one of the best Latin records in 2011 by Descarga.com in New York. Bassanótt (Bass night) was released in in 2013 and featured his Icelandic Latin group. It was selected as one of the best Latin Jazz records in 2013 by the Colombian SolarLatinClub.com, one of the main Latin music websites in Spanish America.

Mannabörn, where the singer Sigríður Thorlacius and a choir sing his compositions, was released in 2014 and in 2015 Einarsson recorded Bræðralag, a duo project with guitarist Ómar Guðjónsson. Latínbóndinn (Latin Viking), a documentary on Tómas R. Einarsson was premiered on the Skjaldborg Film Festival in May 2015. Following a stay in Santiago de Cuba in 2016 Einarsson recorded Bongó with a 10-piece Latin band, including the singers Sigríður Thorlacius and Bógómíl Font. In 2017 he released a record of ballads, Innst inni, a duo with pianist Eyþór Gunnarson.

The major part of Einarsson´s compositions are to be found on his own records, that he made with Icelandic as well as Cuban musicians. Einarsson's music is nevertheless also to be found on more than two dozens of other musicians records. He has been a sideman on numerous recordings, with a.o. the singers Bubbi Morthens, Ellen Kristjánsdóttir, Jóhanna V. Þórhallsdóttir, Megas, Mugison and Sigurður Guðmundsson and pianist Gunnar Gunnarsson.

Literary activity[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

Einarsson's music can be found in 13 movies and TV films, and he directed and wrote the manuscript of a documentary film on the writer Guðbergur Bergsson, one of the most controversial figures in Icelandic literature. In 2011 Einarsson wrote music to Anti American wins Nobel, a documentary film on the Icelandic writer and Nobel prize winner Halldór Laxness. Einarsson has also been active as a translator; mainly from Spanish (including Latin American authors like Isabel Allende, Gabriel García Márquez, Julio Cortázar and Luis Sepúlveda), but also from English (The Dancer Upstairs by Nicholas Shakespeare).

Selected discography[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

As leader[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

1989: Nýr tónn (Skífan SLP 53, SCD 53)

1991: Íslandsför (PS Músík PS 91032)

1994: Landsýn (Jazzís 102)

1998: Á góðum degi (Mál og menning MM 012)

2000: Undir 4 (Mál og menning MM 022)

2002: Kúbanska (Ómi jazz 009)

2003: Havana (Blánótt BN 001) 2003

2004: Dance you idiot! (Dansaðu fíflið þitt dansaðu!) (Smekkleysa SMJ7CD)

2005: Let jazz be bestowed on the huts (Blánótt BN 003)

2006: Romm Tomm Tomm (Blánótt BN 004)

2007: Rommtommtechno (Blánótt BN 005)

2008: Trúnó (Blánótt BN 006)

2009: LIVE! (Blánótt BN 007)

2009: Reykjavík-Havana (Blánótt BN 008)

2009: Early Latin (Blánótt BN 009)

2011: Strengur (Blánótt BN 010)

2012: Laxness (Blánótt BN 011) From the film Anti-American Wins Nobel

2013: Bassanótt (Blánótt BN 012)

2014: Mannabörn (Blánótt BN 013)

2016. Bongó (Blánótt BN 016)

2017: Innst inni (Blánótt BN 017)

As co-leader[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

1985: Þessi ófétis jazz (Jazzvakning 005)

1987: Hinsegin blús (AB 8702)

1994: Hot house - Reykjavik Jazz Quartet live at Ronnie Scott´s (JHCD 032)

1995: Koss Ólafía Hrönn/Tómas R. (Jazzís 104)

2000: Í draumum var þetta helst Einar Már Guðmundsson /Tómas R. (MM 021)

2015: Bræðralag Ómar Guðjónsson/Tómas R. Einarsson (Blánótt BN 014) 2015

Compilations[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

2000: Icelandic Jazz Favorites (Íslenskir tónar IT 038)

2007: Putumayo Presents Latin Jazz (PUT 265-2)

2008: Putumayo World Music Sampler

2007: Solar Latin Club DJ El Chino Vol. 1

2010: Solar Latin Club DJ El Chino Vol. 2

2012: Kristjana Stefáns Bezt (DIM 56)

2015: Salsa en Europa Vol. 1

2016: Jazz in Icelandic (BN 015)

2018: Swing & Salsa in Icelandic (BN 018)

External links[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

1. Official website

2. http://www.vivreenislande.fr/2013/12/interview-tomas-r-einarsson.html

Honors[breyta | breyta frumkóða]

Artist's grants from the Icelandic Ministry of Culture and the City of Reykjavik

1997: The SPRON Artists Award

2003: Icelandic Music Awards: Jazz Record of the year; Jazz composition of the year

2004: Icelandic Music Awards: Jazz composition of the year (w/ Ólafía Hrönn Jónsdóttir)

2012: Icelandic Music Awards: Jazz composition of the year

2014: The Order of the Falcon – Knight's Cross, for contribution to jazz and culture, granted by the President of Iceland.

Notandi:Reinhard/sandkassi