Hovedøen Social Club english

Hovedøen Social Club is an intriguing project put together by Sverre Indris Joner. This sextet plays popular Norwegian songs that are re-arranged and played as authentic Cuban Salsa.
OR
Hovedøen Social Club is an alternative and exciting musical research project known as Contrafactive music-history simulation: Recreating the music belonging to historic events that never took place!
(more about this science project below)

Either way the music is played by an all-star team that destiny has placed on the northern hemisphere to spread syncopated poly-rhythms throughout the nordic ice.

Albums

VIDEO

Musicians

Crew on live performances in Norway and the last two CDs Salsa til Folket and Slynger julen inn is:

Sverre indris Joner – is the bandleader, arranger and pianoplayer.  Or in contarfactive academic terms: the research-team´s leader who has taken on the daunting task to channel legendary cuban pianoplaer Peruchin´s spirit and to recreate the magic and inspiration from his time in a Norwegian environment.

Sergio Gonzalez from Havana, Cuba is the lead vocal. Also known from the band La Descarga.

Eduardo Cedeño from Bayamo, Cuba is the timbales-player, also known from the band La Descarga.

Ruben Pirela from Maracaibo, Venezuela is the conga-player. Background from the National Children's Orchestra of Venezuela under direction of Sir Simon Rattle among others.

Ole Marius Melhuus is the bassplayer. A much used freelance bassplayer in a array of bands and plays a lot in theatres in Oslo.

Erik Eilertsen is the trumpet-player. As a versatile musician he is used a lot in both classic and military orchestras and jazz/pop bands. Currently lead trumpet in Danish Radio Big Band.

On the 3 first records there has been the contrubution of several renowned musicians

Carlos Del Puerto – Bass.
Known from the legendary and innovative Cuban Latin Jazz band Irakere and Cubansimo.

Pepe Espinosa – Timbales.
Known from bands like Afro-Cuban All-Stars, Bamboleo, Klimax, Cubanismo, and many others. Plays on the 1. & 2. CD.

On trumpet the late trumpet-player Luis Alvaro Varona from the original line-up. (CD ¡Que viva Noruega!)
On 2. CD “¡Ay Caramba!” Harlem Curbelo,
on live-DVD/CD with KORK (including Clasicos a lo cubano) Jose Alberto Varona

here is a link to the norwegian homepage of Hovedøen Social Club

Contrafactive music-history-simulation - Fun(un)facts:

The research carried out in connection with Hovedøens CD releases has come across revolutionary facts that turns all knowledge about recent music history upside-down! What the audience in Norway believed was an orchestra consisting of Norwegians and Cubans making cuban versions of Norwegian oldies has thus proved to have a very different origin! Despite all the latest technological advances of navigation and surveillance technology, it has passed unnoticed to the world that there is a undiscovered island that goes by the name Norbania.

It is located in what has been called the Polar-Caribbean belt and has existed for over eighty years! This tiny island was discovered by chance by a group of researchers in the little-known field of counterfactual music-history-simulation. They have come back with a description of a society based entirely on the principles of peace, freedom and everything for free, and with a continuous dancing carnival-like celebration of National Day as a community-building cornerstone all year around. The governing form is described as syncopated absolutism and the government is controlled by the immensely beloved six-gang known as Hovedøen Social Club.
Despite an intense desire of islanders to remain unknown to the outside world scientists have successfully brought copies of the Norbanian flag and a recording of indigenous music – known as Salsa to the people!

All that might not be entirely true, but ouy must admit its a fascination idea!
And at least we have proved that its possible to fusion the norwegian and the cuban flag successfully…!

Another theory of how this music has surged is the story about one day as the country woke up, people found that Norway had detached from Europe and floated down to the Caribbean, and all our musical heritage had mysticly been infused by the african diaspora overnight...
Not a very likey scenario either, so feel free to pick the one you like the most.