STRINNING - LONG - HEINEMANN
LINEUP
Jakob Heinemann, double bass
Norman Long, electronics
Sebastian Strinning, reeds
TOURDATES 2026
February 16th to March 1st
ABOUT
The “first-meeting” designation represents something of a misnomer in free improvisation circles. Though oft-used, it’s somewhat rare to find a situation where the musicians truly arrive at the gig blank, with no knowledge whatsoever of their colleagues and what type of sounds they may make. The free improvisation community exists as a broad, interconnected web, and most who regularly run in these circles possess the mutual friends, listening pedigree or hearsay needed to come adequately prepared. Such was the case when Sebastian Strinning, Jakob Heinemann, and Norman Long came together in Chicago at Elastic Arts for a first-meeting performance of their own. Though they had never played together in this formation, the shared history and aesthetics between the trio run deep.
Bassist Jakob Heinemann remained a regular on the Chicago scene from 2017-2022, and now lives in Los Angeles. He first met with reedist Sebastian Strinning, from Lucerne, CH, in 2018 while he was in town on an artist exchange program. The pair quickly found a shared improvisational interest in extended techniques, textural soundscapes and a consideration of quietness and silence. In Sebastian’s third visit to the US, they decided to embark on a Midwest duo tour, teaming up with guest improvisers in each city, during which Elastic Arts comprised their Chicago stop.
Hailing from Chicago’s South Side, Norman Long has long contributed to the Chicago scene as an improviser, electronic musician and installation artist. He finds a mutual interest with Jakob in field recordings and acoustic ecology. They both sit on the board of directors of the Midwest Society for Acoustic Ecology, a small organization dedicated to exploring the role of sound in natural and cultural environments. Having played several times together in different groupings, Norman’s hydrophonic and close-mic’d field recordings mirror the sonic detail found within Jakob’s approach to his double bass.
These overlapping interests are on clear display during the Elastic Arts set. Norman’s vast library of field recordings, in addition to an array of sample processing and sound synthesis gear proves an even match for the two instrumentalists, who included a small number of preparations within their arsenal. The trio provide a masterclass in close listening and attention to detail, finding an extensive array of microscopic soundscapes between their three instruments. They access a wealth of novel, obscure textures seemingly impossible to create using only double bass, saxophone and electronics, moving between ideas with a measured patience and strongly collectivist ethos. Jakob and Sebastian also provide two duo tracks, recorded a few days later at Bill Harris’ Marmalade Studio, that provide a similarly precise document of the improvisational closeness that can only be achieved on the road. Far removed from a true first-meeting concert, this trio exhibits a strong sense of mutually-shared, finely-hewn aesthetic considerations, beautifully matched together on their debut recording.
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