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Acclaimed Danish vocalist SINNE EEG's "SHIKIORI," Her First Duo Album with Pianist Jacob Christoffersen Acclaimed Danish singer SINNE EEG (seeneh ee) has accrued fans around the world. From Europe to the U.S. to Asia, her superb technique, flawless sense of time, and impressive vocal range have garnered praise from audiences and musicians alike. DownBeat Magazine said, “Eeg possesses exceptional technique—power, good taste, enunciation, control, earned wisdom—and knows how to work a song for all it’s worth.” And JazzTimes called her, “a vivacious vocalist with a winning, unpretentious stage presence … one of the top jazz vocalists on any continent.” Eeg previously released 12 albums as a leader, and SHIKIORI marks her first duo collaboration with her longtime pianist JACOB CHRISTOFFERSEN. Shikiori is the name of the 150-year-old traditional Japanese home-turned-concert venue where she and Christoffersen recorded the live album. Located in the Japanese countryside and lovingly restored by bassist Seigo Matsunaga, the house brims with soul: a Shinto altar, a weathered piano, and a photograph of Matsunaga’s mentor, Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, all quietly infuse the space with reverence for tradition, craft, and communion. It was the perfect setting for this intimate duo performance, because like Eeg, Christoffersen is a world class musician. He is a virtuoso known for his melodic style and fluid technique. Eeg is the preeminent jazz vocalist in Scandinavia. She’s the recipient of numerous awards, including the Danish Music Award, which she won five times. She’s also the first vocalist to ever to receive the Ben Webster Prize and was the recipient of France’s prestigious Prix du Jazz, awarded by the Academie du Jazz. The release of SHIKIORI coincides with a significant international milestone for Eeg: she was awarded the French Order of Arts and Letters in the spring of 2025. The honor, which has been awarded to artists like David Bowie and Meryl Streep, recognizes Eeg’s artistic impact across cultures and continents. Eeg and Christoffersen are not only esteemed musicians; they are also first-rate songwriters. Eeg’s compositional skills won her the prestigious Danish Carl Prize, and her songs are beginning to make their way on recordings by other vocalists. SHIKIORI comprises a mix of originals by Eeg and Christoffersen along with deeply personal interpretations of songs by Billy Strayhorn, Leonard Bernstein, and Annie Lennox. Although Eeg and Christoffersen have been working together for at least 20 years, they have never recorded as a duo. Eeg says, “Jacob is one of my favorite musicians, and I was excited to record with him in this context. Singing with just a piano accompaniment does have some limitations, but it also provides the opportunity for greater freedom and self-expression. I feel that on SHIKIORI, we were able to really focus on one another, and we pushed ourselves to take the music in new and unanticipated directions.” Indeed, the music on SHIKIORI was very spontaneous. The performances were allowed to breathe, shaped only by the duo’s intuitive interplay and the warmth of the room around them. Eeg and Christoffersen each composed three songs on the album. The remaining songs are four standards and one pop tune. They open the album with “Losing You, ” composed by Eeg with lyrics by Søren Sko. This song, the first they performed in the set, was their warm-up number. It sets the tone for the entire performance. Eeg relates, “We really didn’t know how the evening would go, so we decided to just plunge in with this song and see where we would wind up. We were aiming to convey the song’s moody, emotional tone simply and directly.” Eeg composed “Hebi, ” a Japanese word which means snake, specifically for this show. It was the first time the duo performed it. The wordless, dreamy tune is tinged with a Japanese aesthetic and feels like a musical representation of a snake meandering slowly through tall grass on a summer day. “Don’t Be So Blue” is the third song composed by Eeg. It was the title song of an album she recorded in 2010 but wanted to reinterpret it as a duet with Christoffersen. It is a beautiful, spacious ballad that highlights her luminous tone and emotive songwriting. Soba noodles are Christoffersen’s favorite, so he, of course, composed a song titled “Soba Flower” with Japanese lyrics by local singer/songwriter Remi. The soba flower has several symbolic meanings, like love, happiness, resilience, and prosperity. Christoffersen’s spare accompaniment and Eeg’s airy vocals convey a sense of calmness and serenity. Other songs by Christoffersen include “A Second Chance at Love” and “Seems Like Yesterday.” The lyrics to “A Second Chance at Love” were written by singer/songwriter Lisa Freeman. This song once again shows how two masterful musicians can plumb the emotional depths of a melody and lyrics without resorting to vocal athletics or fiery piano solos. Eeg shows her improvisatory chops on “Seems Like Yesterday” with a hip scat solo. The song is reminiscent of the Great American Songbook. Eeg and Christoffersen re-imagine several jazz standards, including “Lush Life, ” a song Eeg has always loved and decided it was time to put her own imprimatur on it. The duo is obviously having fun on “Better Than Anything, ” with Eeg using her controlled, flexible pipes to scat a swinging solo over Christoffersen’s fingers fly over the keyboard. On Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s “Maria, ” Eeg changed lyrics from first person to third person to make it work. The slow tempo of the song enhanced by Eeg’s held, mellifluous tones create a truly new approach to this song. “But Not for Me” has been part of Eeg’s repertoire for many years. She and Christoffersen perform the song with frolicsome verve. Eeg is a fan of Annie Lennox’s singing and writing and includes her version of Lennox’s song “Cold.” Eeg jazzes up the pop tune with fresh phrasing and a different meter. Like all great jazz musicians, Sinne Eeg and Jacob Christoffersen take their music to new and unexpected places. Eeg’s ability to navigate intricate jazz phrasing with her burnished tone, perfect intonation, and adventurous approach to vocal improvisation has won her international acclaim. With his melodic style and dynamic improvisations, Christoffersen is perfect complement for Eeg. With these two virtuosic musicians at the helm, SHIKIORI is bound to join the pantheon of great duo albums. SHIKIORI was released on July 11, 2025 on Stunt Records and is available at Stuntrecords.bandcamp.com and on all streaming platforms. |
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