Paavo’s debut album was released in 2007. Word spread quickly about an unidentified bird that flew through the Swedish jazz sky. Joakim Milder, the director of the record label, had claimed that the band was “by far the most bright new appearance on the Swedish Jazz Scene”. The highly-acclaimed debut album with hand-sewn and number covers received great reviews and was named jazz record of year by Swedish newspapers Dagens Nyheter (Svenska Dagbladet). With cameras, pencils and notebooks, reporters from all over the world followed along. In 2008, Paavo was awarded the “Jazzkatten”, a Swedish radio award in the category of “Groups of the Year”, while Sofia received the Royal Musical Academy’s Jazz Award. Paavo thanked all the Swedish establishments and set off to explore the rest of the world. Paavo also visited festivals and clubs in the Nordic countries. He also visited festivals in France and Belgium. The group sound was further developed with the help of the other musicians and Sofia and Cecilia wrote new material. It is not a coincidence that the title of the album is in Catalan. Parts of Canco del Pao were performed in Barcelona as part of a theatre play. Sofia Jernberg, born 5 July 1983 in Ethiopia, is a Swedish soprano and voice-artist. She also improvises and composes. Jernberg studied jazz at Fridhems Folk High School between 2002 and 2004. She later studied with Per Martensson, Henrik Strindberg and The Gotland School of Music Composition. She was awarded the Royal Swedish Academy of Music’s Jazz Award in 2008. Jernberg, along with Cecilia Persson, is the leader of Paavo’s chamber jazz group. Swedish Radio awarded the group the “jazz group award of the year”. Jernberg also works on the contemporary classical music scene where she is both a singer and a composer. She has performed pieces by Lars Brondum as a singer. When Norrbotten NEO performed Arnold Schonberg’s Pierrot Lunaire, she was the soloist. Jernberg has been a composer for many established ensembles, such as Duo ego or Norrbotten NEO. Cecilia Persson, a renowned Swedish composer and pianist, was awarded the Stockholm Jazz Fest Prize. Persson is a creative pianist who leaves an indelible mark wherever she performs. She is a master of music and collaborates often with Pernilla Persson, a renowned artist to create a dynamic performance that includes live digital painting. from http://www.openskyjazz.com
