Birth name Ellen Radka Toneff Name Radka Toneff Role Singer | Occupation(s) Musician, composer Instruments Vocals | |
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Born 25 June 1952Furnes, Norway ( 1952-06-25 ) Albums Fairytales (feat Steve Dobrogosz), Live in Hamburg, Some Time Ago (A Collectio, Winter Poem, It Don't Come Easy Similar People | ||
Radka toneff do i move you live
Ellen Radka Toneff (25 June 1952 – 21 October 1982) was a Norwegian jazz singer, daughter of the Bulgarian folk singer, pilot and radio technician Toni Toneff, she was born in Oslo and grew up in Lambertseter and Kolbotn. She is still considered one of Norway's greatest jazz singers.
Contents
- Radka toneff do i move you live
- Radka toneff the moon s a harsh mistress
- Career
- Honors
- Solo albums
- Collaborative works
- References
Radka toneff the moon s a harsh mistress
Career
Toneff holds a very special position in the Norwegian jazz history. With her moderate, but intense expression and her discerning musicianship, she made a deep impression on many people. Her highly personal and original qualities, where she combined influences from her father's musical heritage in Bulgaria with a range of influences from, among others, jazz and rock, led her to become a beacon for singers both in Norway and internationally.
She studied music at Oslo Musikkonservatorium (1971–75), combined with playing in the jazz rock band «Unis». She also had her own Radka Toneff Quintet (1975–80), with changing lineup. including musicians like Arild Andersen, Jon Balke, Jon Eberson and Jon Christensen, among others. From 1979 she cooperated with Steve Dobrogosz. In 1980 she participated in the Norwegian national final of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song Parken by Ole Paus.
Toneff was awarded the Spellemannsprisen 1977 in the category best vocal for the album Winter Poem, and she posthumously received the Norwegian Jazz Association's Buddypris in 1982. The Radka Toneff Memorial Award is based on a fund created with royalties from the albums Fairytales and Live in Hamburg.
She lived with bassist Arild Andersen for some years, though she was involved with jazz drummer Audun Kleive at the time of her death. A biography of Toneff was published in 2008.
Toneff had roots in Bulgaria, she grew up on Lambertseter and Kolbotn in Oslo, and left deep traces in Norwegian jazz. In a poll of Norwegian musicians conducted by the newspaper Morgenbladet in November 2011, her 1982 album Fairytales was voted the best Norwegian album of all time. Her life flame burned short and intense, she left the world by her own hand at a young age, and was found dead in the woods of Bygdøy, with an overdose of sleeping pills in her blood, the autumn of 1982.