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Editorial commentary:
We at The Sissel Website are excited to learn that Morten Abel has written a song(s) for Sissel's new album, as he is one of the best songwriters in Norway now. We look forward with a great deal of interest to see what Morten Abel has written for Sissel.
Having worked in the music industry, we are a little skeptical that Sissel's new album will actually be released as early as November. In light of the fact that one release date after another for a new Sissel album has been postponed over the past four-plus years, we find it difficult to believe that she will release a single next month and an entire album in only about three months from now. But we hope it does come to pass so quickly. What may be more realistic is a release in Norway only -- or maybe even Europe -- this year and an international release (in the USA, et. al.) later on.
(posted 30. July 2000)
Sissel Replaced
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Lisa Stokke takes over annual Scandinavian Christmas concerts from Sissel. |
Stageway, Sissel's management and the producer of these annual concerts, recently announced that the traditional Christmas concert will continue without Sissel. Lisa Stokke, of Tromsø, Norway will replace Sissel. Stokke has had enormous success in London performing in the ABBA musical, "Mamma Mia!"
"I'm afraid of being compared with Sissel. I have always been amazed by her and had her albums when I was younger. We are two different people and have divergent starting points for choosing songs for Christmas concerts. I'm probably going to choose some British and American Christmas songs together with the known and dear Norwegian Christmas songs," said Lisa Stokke.
The two ladies will do one or two numbers together in addition to their own portions with the big band on the 31st of May.
(posted 10. July 2000)
Hear Sissel Sing!
The Sissel Website recently found a recording of Sissel's performance on the David Letterman show with the Chieftains from March 1998. It's a charming, short song called "Love Will You Marry Me." Sissel only sings for the first 50 seconds or so and then one hears the sounds of some Irish step dancers, but it's worth listening to. The sound quality is surprisingly good, considering someone recorded it off their TV. Click on Love Will You Marry Me and get an MP3 player to listen to the song.
(posted 22. June 2000)
Superb Krall, Even Kyrkjebø
Bergens-Tidende -- BERGEN Sissel and Diana Krall performed in concert together in Bergen on 31. May. A review of the concert, which appeared in the Norwegian newspaper Bergens-Tidende 1. June, has been translated for you and you can read it here.
(posted 18. June 2000)
The Sun Came With Sissel
Dagbladet -- BERGEN Sissel and Diana Krall held a press conference yesterday to discuss their concert in Bergen tonight (31. May). An article from the conference which appeared in the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet 31. May, has been translated for you and you can access it here.
(posted 31. May 2000)
Sissel Dropping Christmas
According to the Norwegian internet newspaper Nettavisen, which cites the Norwegian newspaper VG as its source, Sissel is dropping her annual Christmas concert tour in order to pursue other musical projects. Her management company, Stageway, will continue to arrange the annual Christmas concerts, but it is unclear as to whom will perform this year. Since Sissel won't be performing with the Stageway arranged concerts, the Oslo Gospel Choir has decided to perform this Christmas with Swedes Tommy Körberg and Carola on their Christmas tour.
(posted 23. May 2000)
Sissel Happy With No Career Plans
Dagbladet -- BERGEN There is a great new article about Sissel which appeared in the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet 16. May, which talks about Sissel's career and how she feels about it. We have translated this article and you can read it here.
(posted 18. May 2000)
Kyrkjebø and Krall Singing Together in Bergen
NTB -- BERGEN The celebrated Canadian jazz star Diana Krall will sing together with Sissel Kyrkjebø and Bergen Big Band during the "Nattjazz i Bergen" festival on the last day of May this year.
Diana Krall will sing with Sissel Kyrkjebø in Bergen in May. Photo: Reuters
The arrangers are working to choose melodies of George Gershwin which both are familiar with.
Krall sings and plays the piano and is coming to Bergen with her trio.
She has sold nearly 1.5 million of her last CD, which is unheard of for a jazz artist.
(Article compiled and translated from CNN NORWAY by Robert A Jones --posted 17. April 2000)
Espen Lind Will Help
Sissel Become a Pop Diva
The Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet reports today (15. April) that Norwegian pop artist, Espen Lind, has been asked to help create music for Sissel's new album being worked on now in Norway. The article describes the efforts now in Norway to recreate Sissel as an "ultramodern pop diva" with more "fresh" music than was produced in the USA on the album which she's trashed.
Editorial commentary:
The Sissel Website finds it interesting that the words "fresh" and "ultramodern pop diva" have been used to describe the direction that Sissel intends to now take her career. These are words actually used by Dagbladet, not necessarily Sissel or her management, but we find it difficult to understand how anyone could describe Espen Lind's or Lene Marlin's music as ultramodern pop and wonder then how their collaboration corresponds to making Sissel a "fresh, ultramodern pop diva."
Espen Lind's "Red" album, albeit successful, can best be described as sounding like Richard Marx circa 1985, not 2000 and definitely not "fresh" or "ultramodern."
Lene Marlin's album is quite beautiful and we at The Sissel Website ourselves quite enjoy listening to Marlin's album, but it's neither ultramodern nor pop really. Lene Marlin's music is much more folk-pop oriented. It seemed Sissel's previous USA recording was leaning in more of a folk direction and that she wanted to move away from that, but using the producer of Marlin's folk-pop album doesn't seem to accomplish that.
As for the Stargate trio, we're not familiar with the specific songs they produced, but we are familiar with Mariah Carey and S Club 7. Their music is neither "fresh" nor "ultramodern," but it is definitely pop. Mariah Carey and S Club 7's music is rather banal and unoriginal.
It will be interesting to see what these diverse collaborators are able to come up with for Sissel's new new album (which we differentiate from her finished,old new album from the USA which has been scrapped.)
Sissel is now collaborating with Espen Lind (who had a couple of top-ten hits across Europe in 1998, namely "When Susannah Cries" and "Lucky You" from his album "Red"); Jørn Dahl (the producer behind Lene Marlin's current top-ten European hits with songs such as: "Sitting Down Here," "Playing My Game," and "Unforgivable Sinner"); as well as the Stargate trio (who've produced recent Mariah Carey, Five and S Club 7 hits.)
(Article compiled and translated from Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet by Robert A Jones --posted 15. April 2000)
Sissel's Manager Confirms
Sissel Will Drop USA Album
Sissel Kyrkjebø's manager, Arne Svare, confirmed today (13. April) to the Norwegian newspaper Verdens Gang that Sissel will in fact dump her album recorded in the USA. The Sissel Website was the first to bring you this news a month ago. Although other websites speculated that the original article was due to faulty reporting by the Norwegian newspaper Bergens Avis, it appears that this story is in fact correct, which The Sissel Website believed to be the case. For the most reliable and accurate information about Sissel, check with The Sissel Website first.
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Sissel singing "Nystemte" in Bergen, Norway. |
And there was no doubt that Sissel was the "Queen of Bergen" when she sang Bergen's song "Jeg tog min nystemte."
Sissel was beaming with delight to be in Bergen for the opening of the European Culture City.
"It is an honor to sing Bergen's song for such an event," said Sissel, "I live really in two cities, but I am first and foremost a Bergenser [citizen of Bergen]. It's as great as singing in Grieg Hall in Bergen during the Eurovision Song Contest." [Sissel's first international TV appearance at age 16 -- seen by several hundred million Europeans].
She hesitates considerably when asked when her new album is coming out.
"Now I've taken on the role of mother, so I'm taking a break from my career," said Sissel, "For now being a mother is most important for me."
Two years after Sissel went in the studio to record her long discussed international album, it's still uncertain when it will be released. Sissel is more busy with Sarah (6 mos.) and Ingrid (4) then promoting a new album worldwide.
"It's up to me to decide when the album is released. I must in any case be finished nursing first," laughs Sissel.
Arne Svare, Sissel's manager, confirms it is Sissel herself who decides when the album will be released. Up 'til now the team has used almost three years in recording and planning.
"It will take at least six months of promoting to get the album going. Sissel must have time. Right now she's more occupied with her two daughters," Svare said.
It was last Fall that Sissel become a mother again. Since then, Sissel has held a low profile.
In 1997 Sissel was involved in the million-selling single "Prince Igor" with rapper Warren G and the soundtrack to "Titanic" which sold an unbelievable 30 million copies. But since then, it's been very still.
Sissel has been in New York more than 20 times to work in the studio and she's recorded enough songs for a whole album.
"The album is actually finished," Sissel admits. But she is not completely satisfied although she used star producer Rick Chertoff in NYC.
"I want to do some things here in Scandinavia. Record some new songs and work with it a little more to have an extra 'nordic touch' on the album," Sissel said. This leads to speculation that those who have heard the finished product perhaps miss the personal Sissel sound. Sissel is not committing to any plans for when the album will be released.
Her manager won't say, either. "It will be released when she wants it to be," said Arne Svare, pointing to Sissel.
"Sissel will go in the studio and record a couple of new tracks, but when this happens, is not clear. Neither who will produce them," said Svare.
The album will apparently be the most expensive release ever by a Norwegian artist. The price tag lying somewhere around 10-15 million Norwegian crowns [$1.2-2 million US dollars] and with international promotion, that cost could rise as high as 30 million crowns [$4 million US dollars].
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