Georg Wadenius

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..Georg Wadenius. Made in Sweden... Progressive rock is what they labeled it in the 60s and 70s, but if you watch the video "Down To Earth" below, you might easily use the tags jazzrock and fusion in a contemporary fashion. All the more proof this music has stood the test of time pretty aptly.

..Blood, Sweat & Tears... A legendary band with legendary founders and members. In 1972 they released New Blood, which found the group moving into a more overtly jazz-fusion repertoire. The album broke through the top-40 charts (their last to do so) and spawned a single ("So Long Dixie", chart peak: 44) that received significant AM radio airplay and a cover version of Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage" featuring the voice/guitar soloing of Georg Wadenius.

..New York. Saturday Night Live. (excerpt from Mizar5 Interview, 2004)..
M5: After B, S & T you went back to Sweden, only to return to the American scene in 1978 to play in the legendary Saturday Night Live Band for six seasons. What was significant in the musical climate those days, if you can remember: about major developments, like players who made their mark in the music scene?

GW: There were some great places in NY where one could go and listen to live instrumental music. Those kind of places still do exist, but nobody in the rest of the world knows that much about them, unless they are the established 'Jazz Clubs'. I had the honor and pleasure to play with a few bands like that and I also had my own band for some years (some of the members were Mitch Forman ..boards, Wayne Pedziwiatr or Francisco Centenna on bass, Dave Weckl or Buddy Williams on drums, Sammy Figueroa on percussion). I played in some bands with Marcus Miller (who at the time was 19-20 years old) and Kenny Kirkland and the guys in the SNL Band were basically (at least if I am not speaking for myself) the best in NY, including people like Dave Sanborn, Michael Brecker, the Blues Bros horn section, Marcus Miller, Neil Jason, Leon Pendarvis, Ronnie Cuber etc. We had a ball playing together.

"Funny thing about Jojje is that in Sweden he's known as "the guy with the children's songs," based on two classic albums from the early 70's that are still still being played for kids today by their parents who grew up listening to Jojje that way," says Nebukadnessar Stephenson (Radio Dupree).

(This page is created by Gina/Mizar5 and Georg Wadenius) .. ..

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established in 2001; owned and run by
Leif Johansen and Georg Wadenius

For an experienced musician, it can be meaningful to share with others who might benefit from mistakes made or success harvested. Georg Wadenius has an array of experiences in the music world and knows a thing or two about the ups & downs in this versatile business. His honesty makes for interesting clinics; the breeze of sobriety about music as a craft and job, might tone down the glamour of ambition some, but it will also highlight what's really essential to BE a professional musician.


GW: "When I do clinics, I usually divide them into a couple of sections, somewhat depending on the level of the participants."

--1. I talk a lot about the importance of taking ..every working situation seriously.. - if you accept an assignment, then you owe it to everyone involved to do your absolutely best and to be well prepared and stay away from mind-altering substances. I usually give examples from my own experiences, like when I blew some great opportunities because I didn't treat the situation right. I also talk about the ..randomness.. of how someone gets a job and how you never know what can come out of any given situation. Those two obviously relate to eachother!

--2. I may go into detail about ..how to play like an arranger.. - how what you do interacts with the other players (incredibly important in the studio, when you sometimes have to make choices immediately). I also talk about ..how to develop a guitar-part.. over the length of a song, etc.

--3. I can talk to some extent about ..soloing... How does a player think, and how do you try to build a solo, whether it's just 8 bars or extended over many choruses and why.

--4. I tell a few stories from my experiences and a little about my history as a player.

--5. I work with ..individuals.. as well as ..groups.. and always have suggestions that hopefully make it easier for them to continue a dialogue about what and how they are approaching their music. Remember - we are all learning, hopefully for as long as we can! Some people may be quicker or slower, and someone might have been at it longer, but nobody will ever know it all. To keep an open mind is essential, no matter how experienced or gifted.

I generally don't spend much time on guitar technique, maybe because there are so many players who are much faster than me, and my technique may be a little unorthodox and very personal.

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