Den förste valsen

Music created across the globe in Corona times

Late March 2020. Around the globe most of us were in lockdown due to the Covid 19 pandemic. For musicians worldwide the feeling of isolation and not having anyone to play music with, or for, started to be noticeable.

One morning Swedish guitarist Peter Rousu saw a video on Facebook with his friend saxophonist Hanna Wiskari Griffiths, based in New Zealand since a few years back. She was playing a waltz, "Den förste valsen", recorded in her living room in Auckland. 

Knowing the time difference, Peter made a call that by the time she woke up on the other side of the globe he was going to surprise her with an addition to her recording. He added guitar, bass and a friendly wave to her from his kitchen in Vikarbyn.

His experiment turned out to be a success and the combined video was shared lots on the internet. Inspired by this very spontaneous collaboration, Peter and Hanna decided to make a real recording to share on Spotify and other platforms. A few weeks followed with recordings bounced back and forward across the globe. Hanna also asked her friend Hanako Clulow, a Japanese illustrator based in New Zealand, if she could create something for the cover art.

Hope you will enjoy this collaboration, created across the planet during a time which none of us will ever forget!