Väsen is a Swedish folk music band from Uppsala, founded in 1989, consisting of Olov Johansson (nyckelharpa) and Mikael Marin (viola). Previous members include André Ferrari (percussion) and founding member Roger Tallroth (guitar), the latter of whom announced his departure from the band in 2020 to focus on new projects. they have released 22 albums, featured on others, and have toured every year also outside of Europe. Since 2002, however, performances outside Sweden have tended to not include André Ferrari, owing to his reluctance to tour internationally and the economic advantage of a trio. Since then, Väsen has released eight albums (Trio, Keyed Up, Live in Japan, Väsen Street, Mindset, Live på Gamla Bion, Brewed, & Rule of 3) in this “strings-only” format.
The band played on Nordman's debut album in 1994. On the Finnish group JPP's album String Tease, they were guest artists on two of the tracks.
They also regularly play with the American musicians Mike Marshall (mandolin) and Darol Anger (violin).
History
The band was founded in 1989.
Members
Olov Johansson (nyckelharpa) Mikael Marin (viola) André Ferrari (percussion; former) Roger Tallroth (guitar; former)
Discography Väsen, 1990 Vilda Väsen, 1992 Essence, 1994 Levande Väsen (Live), 1995 Spirit, 1997 (Compilation: 15 tracks from the first four albums, plus 5 new tracks) Världens Väsen (Whirled), 1997 Gront, 1999 Live at the Nordic Roots Festival, 2001 Trio, 2003 Keyed Up, 2004 Live in Japan, 2005 Linnaeus Väsen, 2007 Mike Marshall and Darol Anger with Väsen, 2007 Väsen Street, 2009 Mindset, 2013 Live på Gamla Bion (CD + DVD), 2014 Brewed, 2017 Rule of 3, 2019 Duo, 2021 Melliken, 2023 Väsen & Hawktail, 2024 Vågor, 2025
Featured performances Snarky Puppy Family Dinner – Volume 2, 2016 - “I Asked” feat. Becca Stevens (Track 1), “Be Still” feat. Becca Stevens (Track 9), “Shapons Vindaloo” (Track 11)
References
External links Official home page