Hans Peter Neergård Til Deg

Hans Peter Neergård (born 1957) grew up in Vatne, a small village on the west coast of Norway. His parents were very active in music, and they were always singing and playing in the house. Hans Peter started playing the piano as soon as he was tall enough to reach the keys, and made his own small melodies from an early age. He often tried to recreate the music he heard on radio, but also received classical piano training. He learned the foundational piano technique these years, but never enjoyed playing by scores. It was more fun to play freely, to play what you heard, or learn the music by ear. Hans Peter also picked up the saxophone, first through the local marching band, but later at several jazz seminars at Molde, a small city known for its jazz festivals. He soon understood that reading scores was important even in jazz music, it helped the musicians communicate. One of the first songs Hans Peter put down on paper was from this period: «Kaktus» from ’78.

Later Hans Peter Neergård composed more music and wrote more scores. His compositions are often related to jazz, both rhythmically and harmonically, but can also be traced back to Nordic folk music. He composed for piano, saxophone quartet and orchestras, and many of the songs were performed by local bands and musicians. Six of the songs on this LP were released in the score book «My rhythmic piano», self-released by Hans Peter in 1997. In addition to releasing written scores, Neergård often dreamt about putting some of his music on a record to allow more people to hear it. He’s had his music scores on the shelves for years, but in January 2022 he gathered the courage to record 12 of his own songs in the local studio on a Steinway grand piano. He later recorded saxophone parts to the same melodies. The result can be heard here: Til deg (For You) by Hans Peter Neergård.