Umiak

Eva-Maria Karbacher, Saxophone
Christian Moser, Oud
Alfred Zimmerlin, Violoncello

The story of UMIAK began in 2019, when Eva-Maria Karbacher (saxophone) and Christian Moser (oud) set out to explore sounds together. In 2021, they invited cellist Alfred Zimmerlin to join them for performances of a dance project – which all three liked so much that UMIAK has been a “working band” ever since, improvising fine chamber music in concerts.
The trio’s playing is characterised by alert interaction and a high sensitivity for sound shaping. UMIAK’s music is as much about textural interplay and homogeneity of sound as it is about allowing for breaks, absurdities and the conciseness of individuality.
The three musicians transcend their different musical backgrounds and experiences into an idiosyncratic, collective sound that they reinvent with each performance.

Eva-Maria Karbacher, born in Zurich in 1992, is a saxophonist and improviser who works in the border areas between free improvisation, contemporary music and jazz. Her music explores the different sound possibilities of the saxophone and combines them with melodic elements. Improvisation and a curiosity for new sounds form the core of her musical work.
Eva-Maria Karbacher has performed throughout Europe (AUT, BEL, CH, DE, DNK, ESP, FR, GR, RUS) as a solo improviser as well as in various formations and ensembles. She currently plays in the Duo Karbacher-Vryzas (with Dimos Vryzas, violin), the Trio UMIAK (with Alfred Zimmerlin, cello and Christian Moser, oud), the Duo Interrupted Lava (with Lara Süß, voice), the Duo Around the Corner (with Victor Barceló, percussion) and the Unorthodoxjukebox Orchestra.
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Christian Moser (1980) is an oud player and improviser with an interest in cultural diversity and creative difference. After studying the violin, he discovered the oud at the age of 18 and studied between 2005 and 2010 at the I.T.Ü. Conservatory of Turkish Music in Istanbul. In 2020 he graduated with a Master of Art in specialised performance / free improvisation. Christian lives and works in Basel and is active in various ensembles throughout Europe, composes music for film and dance and curates concert series for experimental music (FIM Basel). He has received several awards/residencies and is currently working on various projects, including UMIAK (Alfred Zimmerlin, Eva-Maria Karbacher), Grüm (Thomas Rohrer, Lara Süss, Jacek Chmiel), Sere Serpe (Gizem Simsek, Lucio Morelli) and Minimal Atmos Oud Bass Duo (Thomas Jeker).
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Alfred Zimmerlin (*1955) is a composer and improviser (cello). Zimmerlin studied musicology, ethnomusicology and composition. He maintains a busy international concert schedule with the Kimmig-Studer-Zimmerlin trio, the electro band Zimmerlin Stoffner Meier, the UMIAK trio (with Eva-Maria Karbacher and Christian Moser) and numerous other formations. For 36 years he worked in the innovative composers’ collective and improvisation trio KARL ein KARL.
As a composer, Zimmerlin has created an extensive oeuvre of piano pieces, chamber music with or without electronics, vocal music, orchestral music and music theatre works. His diverse activities are documented on numerous recordings. Among other honours, he received the Canton of Zurich Culture Prize in 2014 and the Swiss Music Prize in 2016. From 2010 to 2022, he was Professor of Free Improvisation at the FHNW Academy of Music – Music Academy Basel / Sonic Space Basel.
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Matija Schellander

Matija Schellander enters the stage equipped with a drum machine and sampler and embarks on an in-the-moment sound journey. The performance is rooted in abstraction and explores tones, textures and rhythmic fragments without resorting to traditional melodies or conventional song structures.
While beats and samples are combined in real time, the music evolves unpredictably – moving from wide, open passages to dense, multi-layered sound structures. Each sound is selected and inserted spontaneously, creating a dynamic soundscape. Rhythmic patterns emerge and disappear again, sometimes implied, sometimes free-floating, forming a sound world that is both fleeting and characterized by its own timelessness.
This music is a constantly evolving exploration in which each sound stands alone and yet is connected to the others, immersing the listener in a deep, reflective listening experience.

Matija Schellander betritt die Bühne, ausgestattet mit Drum-Machine und Sampler, und begibt sich auf eine im Moment entstehende Klangreise. Die Performance ist in der Abstraktion verwurzelt und erforscht Töne, Texturen und rhythmische Fragmente, ohne auf traditionelle Melodien oder konventionelle Songstrukturen zurückzugreifen.
Während Beats und Samples in Echtzeit kombiniert, entwickelt sich die Musik unvorhersehbar – sie bewegt sich von weiten, offenen Passagen hin zu dichten, vielschichtigen Klangstrukturen. Jeder Klang wird spontan ausgewählt und eingefügt, wodurch eine dynamische Klanglandschaft entsteht. Rhythmische Muster tauchen auf und verschwinden wieder, teils angedeutet, teils frei schwebend, und formen eine Klangwelt, die sowohl flüchtig als auch von einer eigenen Zeitlosigkeit geprägt ist.
Diese Musik ist eine sich ständig weiterentwickelnde Erkundung, in der jeder Klang für sich steht und doch mit den anderen verbunden ist und in ein tiefes, reflektierendes Hörerlebnis eintauchen lässt.

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