Although Morten Halle is better-known as a sideman than a bandleader, having only recorded a clutch of albums under his own name, the alto saxophonist is a regular presence on the European jazz and new music scenes. Based in Oslo, Norway, Halle first appeared on the Scandinavian jazz scene in the late '70s as the leader of the group Oslo 13. Theoretically and compositionally similar to Belgium's Soft Verdict (led by Wim Mertens) or England's the Lost Jockey (led by Andrew Poppy), Oslo 13 was an ever-shifting collective that existed primarily to interpret Halle's own compositions, which were based in jazz but borrowed elements from minimalism and other forms of 20th century composition. Oslo 13's first release was 1982's Anti-Therapy, followed by 1987's Off Balance and a posthumous historical recording, Oslo 13 Live, in 1993. In partnership with Knut Vaernes and Helge Westbye, two other participants in the Scandinavian avant-jazz scene, Halle formed Curling Legs Records in 1987 as a new outlet for this willfully uncommercial, but not unappealing, music. Halle released his first album under his own name, Etterlatte Sanger, on Curling Legs in 1988, followed by two albums recorded with guitarist Jon Eberson, bassist Bjorn Kjellemyr, and percussionist Finn Sletten, Halle Eberson Sletten Kjellemyr and Halle Eberson Sletten Kjellemyr 2, in 1990 and 1992. Halle kept busy as a sideman throughout the '90s, appearing on albums such as 1995's Further by the Magnetic North Orchestra, a group led by his former Oslo 13 bandmate Jon Balke. Halle and Balke re-formed Oslo 13 under the slightly revised name 1300 Oslo for a series of concerts in 1999 and 2000. Two of these concerts were recorded and released as Live in the North on Curling Legs in 2001. ~ Stewart Mason