User:Pierre Dorge/New Jungle Orchestra

New Jungle Orchestra was formed in 1980 by Danish guitarist Pierre Dørge and saxophonist Simon Spang-Hanssen and named after the legendary growling “jungle” sound of the early Duke Ellington Orchestra, some of whose compositions have appropriately been covered by NJO. From 1982 the band was named Pierre Dørge & New Jungle Orchestra. Other major jazz influences that can be heard are Charles Mingus’ experiments with combining improvisation and large-scale forms with the mobility of a group that is sized somewhere between a traditional combo and a big band; the Gil Evans flux between forceful anarchy and carefully layered, complex structures; and the ironic cabaret touch of Carla Bley. The mere mention of names like these also indicate the level of innovation and artistry on which the NJO, in its 30-years of existence, has distinguished itself as an original, intense and enjoyable groups to be heard on today’s global music scene. As things stand today, however, these are not the only jazz giants who – along with a large array of non-Western musics – have contributed to the New Jungle Orchestra’s sound.Through the years, however,the orchestra has also displayed an unremitting curiosity about other cultures and genres. Elements from European, Asian, African and Afro-American music traditions have been assembled by bandleader Dørge into an original synthesis. The band hans been working with solist as John Tchicai, Shashank Subramanyam, Yusef Lateef, Yu Jun, Sainkho Namtchilak, Johnny Dyani, Don Cherry, Jim Pepper, David Murray, Harry Beckett, Marilyn Mazur, Ray Anderson, Han Bennink and Hugh Masakela, among others.

New Jungle Orchestra has been touring in India, Australia, Bali, Brazil, Japan, Malaysia, Syria, China, Korea, Thailand, Belgium, New Zealand, Vietnam, South Africa, England, Singapore, Java, Ghana, Spain, Portugal, Greece, France, Scotland, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Ireland, Luxembourg, Poland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, the Faroe Islands, the Virgin Islands, Iceland, California, Washington, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Texas, New York, Canada, Germany, Argentina, Mexico, Russia, Slovakia, Italy, Austria, Estonia, Latvia and Denmark.

In 1993 New Jungle Orchestra was appointed as the Danish State Ensemble. They became musical ambassadors for Denmark and travelled with the Royal Danish family and performed for President Mandela in Pretoria (1996) and for the Japanese Emperor Akihito in Tokiyo (2004)

New Jungle Orchestra was nominated for the Nordic Council Music Awards (2003).