Radka Toneff

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Radka Toneff live in Bergen in 1982

Ellen Radka Toneff (born June 25, 1952 in Oslo ; † October 21, 1982 there ) was a Norwegian jazz singer. In her short career she had achieved an exceptional position as a vocalist in the Norwegian jazz scene. Her singing style was characterized by an emotionally expressive voice with little vibrato .

biography

As the daughter of the Bulgarian folk singer Toni Toneff, Radka's musical career was more or less mapped out, especially since her mother Lilly-Ann Drivenes, a Norwegian, also played the piano. At the request of her father, she started taking piano lessons at the age of six. Radka Toneff came to singing through rock and rhythm & blues as early as the 1960s. After finishing school, she studied at the Music Conservatory in Oslo from 1971 to 1975. At this time, her interest in jazz was aroused after she met the brothers Erik and Jon Balke and performed with them in the rock jazz band Unis . In 1974 she founded the Radka Toneff Quintet with bassist Arild Andersen and guitarist Jon Eberson , with whom she released the albums Winter Poem (1977) and It Dont't Come Easy (1979). The success of the two albums as well as TV and festival appearances made Radka Toneff well known. For the album Winter Poem in 1977 she was awarded the Norwegian Spellemann Prize in the category "Best Singer" . In 1979 she met the American pianist Steve Dobrogosz , who lived in Sweden , in Stockholm , with whom she worked closely from now on. In the early 80s Radka Toneff took part twice in the Melodi Grand Prix , the Norwegian preliminary decision for the Eurovision Song Contest . In 1980 she reached eighth place with the song Parking by Ole Paus . In 1981 she was - together with Gudny Aspaas , Inger Lise Rypdal and Sidsel Endresen - member of the group Darlings , which also reached eighth place with the song Født på ny . In 1982 she released her best-known album Fairytales with Steve Dobrogosz on the Odin Records label . This was to be her last studio recording. In October 1982, the singer, who was only 30 years old , was found dead on the Bygdøy peninsula , a district of Oslo. Various print media speculated on suicide, which her close circle of friends, however, contradicted.

Afterlife and remembrance

Despite her short musical career, Radka Toneff has had an immense influence on the Norwegian jazz scene. Shortly after her death in 1982, she was awarded the nationally known Buddy Prize by the Norwegian Jazz Federation . In 1993 a fund was set up in her memory to finance the award of the Radka Toneff Minnepris , which is awarded to artists whose work was created in the spirit of Radka Toneff. The first prize winner in 1993 was Sidsel Endresen.

In 1992 an album was released posthumously with the live recording of a concert from 1981 in Hamburg together with Steve Dobrogosz, Arild Andersen and Alex Riel , which also won the Spellemann Prize in 1993 in the "Jazz" category.

In memory of Radka Toneff, the Norwegian poet Jan Erik Vold released the CD Blåmann! In 1988 . Blåmann! the poem Der bjørketreet stod . A sonnet in the volume of poetry 40 Sonnets by the Scottish author and jazz musician Don Paterson is also dedicated to her and bears her name.

Discography

With the Radka Toneff Quintet:

  • 1977: Winter Poem
  • 1979: It Don't Come Easy

With Steve Dobrogosz:

  • 1982: Fairytales

With Steve Dobrogosz, Arild Andersen and Alex Riel:

  • 1992: Live in Hamburg

Compilation:

  • 2003: Some Time Ago - A Collection Of Her Finest Moments
  • 2008: Butterfly

As a guest musician:

literature

  • Marta Breen: Radka Toneff. Hennes korte liv and store stemme . Kagge Forlag, Oslo 2008, ISBN 978-82-489-0755-8 (Norwegian).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Norway 1980. In: esc history. Retrieved July 17, 2017 (English).
  2. ↑ Melodi Grand Prix 1981 The moderator names the members of the group Darlings in his announcement . Radka Toneff can be seen as the second singer from the right. (Norwegian)
  3. ↑ Norway 1981. In: esc history. Retrieved July 17, 2017 (English).
  4. ^ In Memory of Radka Toneff. In: Poetry International Web. Retrieved July 18, 2017 .
  5. ↑ Jan Erik Vold Og Chet Baker - Blåmann! Blåmann! In: Discogs. Retrieved July 18, 2017 .
  6. ↑ Don Paterson: 40 Sonnets . Faber & Faber, 2015, ISBN 978-0-571-31089-0 (English).
personal data
SURNAME Toneff, Radka
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Toneff, Ellen Radka (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Norwegian jazz singer
DATE OF BIRTH June 25, 1952
PLACE OF BIRTH Oslo
DATE OF DEATH October 21, 1982
Place of death Oslo