Wood & Strings - Jazz Trio
The Jazz Trio Wood and Strings enchants audiences with their own compositions and the wonderful melodies of well-known jazz standards. Their repertoire includes groovy, swinging songs, as well as lyrical pieces by Louis Durra and Abdullah Ibrahim. The trio places particular emphasis on the works of American baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan. As a special feature, the trio plays jazz versions of Swedish folk songs, inspired by the interpretations of Jan Johansson, who composed the theme for "Pippi Longstocking.” Woods and Strings are also known for their performances of spirituals during church services.
Christine Balig
Who grew up in Freiburg and studied "Early Music" in Nuremberg, performed for many years in concerts both domestically and abroad with the recorder quartet L'arcobaleno and as a soloist with an orchestra. In recent years, she has taken up the saxophone and plays in various big bands, such as the Big Wabbit Band and the Bavarian Teachers Big Band, with which she toured South America. She founded the trio "Wood&Strings," which performs original compositions and jazz-arranged Swedish folk songs. A highlight of her musical work is classical concerts featuring the combination of organ and saxophone, which creates an exceptionally harmonious sound. Additionally, she has been teaching at the Maria-Ward-Schools in Nuremberg for over 25 years, where she leads two wind classes and a big band.
Anders Grop
Originally from Stockholm, Sweden, has been living in Berlin since 2001. He studied ensemble conducting at the Stockholm Musical Institute and has worked as a freelance musician and music teacher in the field of jazz and popular music since 1995. Since 2007, he has been a jazz ensemble instructor at the Berlin Jazz School. As a bassist, he plays in numerous Berlin ensembles and was a member of the Berlin Big Band and the Flintstones Big Band. He also works as a theater musician in various Berlin theaters and has toured Scandinavia, Germany, France, Greece, Poland, Russia, and the USA.
Louis Durra
As a teenager Louis was already accompanying theater groups and jazz choirs on the piano. After studying at Berklee College of Music, he moved to Los Angeles and worked as a freelance musician. He has recorded six albums under his own name and is active as a collaborator with other artists. His albums “The Best of All Possible Worlds” and “Rocket Science” were both successful on radio in North America, and he has performed at the Scottish Fringe Festival to glowing reviews. Since 2013 Louis has made his home in Berlin. During the Corona lockdown, he began combining music with video, becoming a YouTube artist.
Voices from concertgoers
"The uncomplicated and open musicians brought many beautiful compositions to life. Besides standards and pieces from places like Sweden, the compositions by Mr. Durra were an absolute highlight. The trio complemented each other perfectly, with each of the three members being highly skilled both as soloists and accompanists. Thank you for the wonderful concert!"
"My right big toe is still grooving..."
"All the concertgoers looked really happy after the concert."
"I got real goosebumps during "Dragonfly."
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