Magne Furuholmen
Encyclopedia
Magne 'Mags' Furuholmen (born 1 November 1962) is a Norwegian musician. He is best known as the guitarist and keyboardist of the pop
band A-ha
.
, including "Stay On These Roads", "Manhattan Skyline", and the band's first and biggest hit "Take On Me
". When A-ha went on hiatus in 1994, Furuholmen began working on other music projects. The band reconvened in 2000, though announced they would split in 2010.
. Their work has been used on film soundtracks such as Ti Kniver I Hjertet (1994), "Hotel Oslo" (1997) which also featured vocals by Anneli Drecker
, 1732 Høtten (1998) where the album Hermetic is featured.
Furuholmen also recorded "Past Perfect Future Tense" in 2004, with appearances from Guy Berryman
and Will Champion
of Coldplay
, and from Andy Dunlop
of the Scottish band Travis
.
In 2008 Furuholmen collaborated with Coldplay
bassist Guy Berryman
and Mew
vocalist Jonas Bjerre
under the band name of Apparatjik
for the theme to the BBC2 series, Amazon
. The theme was made available (along with exclusive tracks from various other artists) on the Survival International
charity album, Songs for Survival
.
In 2010 Apparatjik
released their first album We Are Here
, a digital album also available physically via their website.
Furuholmen is also an artist, working with glass, paint, etching and woodcuts. His art has been displayed at The Henie Onstad Kunstsenter in Oslo, and he has also shown his work at The London Art Fair. In 2001, Furuholmen was commissioned to design an official Norwegian postage stamp
.
Magne announced on Jo Wileys show on BBC Radio 2 in October 2010 that he intends to work with his friends in MEW and Coldplay after retiring from A-ha in December. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00vc5hn/Radio_2_In_Concert_aha/
describes Furuholmen thus: "Mags is impulsive. Dashes around. Throughout the years, I've often wondered: Is he a complete fool or a genius? Does he have talent or doesn't he? He can say things which are really dumb, but then he'll suddenly switch on, put things in their place and come up with the idea that we've all been fumbling for. I think he's both a fool and a genius. There has, at times, been a tough competitive relationship between us, which has been a driving force for us both. I have always had great respect for him and believe in him as an artist and musician."
Morten Harket
describes Furuholmen as "...ingeniously childish and childishly ingenious. He is talented, spontaneous and impulsive. He does everything recklessly and with so much energy. In contrast to Pål, Mags is totally disorganised and has no self-discipline at all. Of the three of us, he is the one who really knows how to live life to the full. Everything happens around Mags. Personally, I've learned an awful lot from being around him."
, Oslo
(along with A-ha
colleague and co-writer Paul Waaktaar-Savoy
). He has one sister, Line, and two half brothers, Thorstein and Trygve Christian. His father, a jazz
musician who played trumpet
with Bent Sølves Orkester, was killed in an aeroplane crash over Drammen
, south of Oslo
in 1967, when Magne was just five. Remarkably, this very accident was witnessed by a nine year old Morten Harket, thirteen years before the two were to meet for the first time.
Furuholmen married Heidi Rydjord, his high school sweetheart, on 8 August 1992, in the garden of their Nesøya
home. They have two sons, Thomas Vincent (born 20 April 1990) and Filip Clemens (born 2 October 1993).
Furuholmen has also revealed in an interview published by Norway's third largest newspaper Dagbladet (in its additional magazine Magasinet) that he is suffering from a heart disease. The news was picked up the same day by the electronic music magazine Side-Line.
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
band A-ha
A-ha
A-ha were a Norwegian pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. The band was founded by Morten Harket , Magne Furuholmen , and Pål Waaktaar...
.
A-ha
Furuholmen has been the keyboardist with A-ha since their formation in 1982, though he also plays guitar. He has co-written many of the band's hits with Paul Waaktaar-SavoyPaul Waaktaar-Savoy
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy is a Norwegian musician and songwriter. He is best known for his work as guitarist in the Norwegian pop band A-ha...
, including "Stay On These Roads", "Manhattan Skyline", and the band's first and biggest hit "Take On Me
Take on Me
"Take on Me" is a song by the Norwegian pop band A-ha. Written by the band members, the song was produced by Alan Tarney for the group's first studio album Hunting High and Low, released in 1985...
". When A-ha went on hiatus in 1994, Furuholmen began working on other music projects. The band reconvened in 2000, though announced they would split in 2010.
Solo projects and other works
Furuholmen's projects outside of A-ha include Timbersound, formed in 1994 with Kjetil Bjerkestrand, and later, Swedish singer, Freddie WadlingFreddie Wadling
Freddie Wadling is a Swedish singer, actor and opera writer, whose over 30-year musical career spans from punk to classical ballads...
. Their work has been used on film soundtracks such as Ti Kniver I Hjertet (1994), "Hotel Oslo" (1997) which also featured vocals by Anneli Drecker
Anneli Drecker
Anneli Marian Drecker is a German-Norwegian singer and actress from the city of Tromsø. She is the vocalist for the seminal dream pop band Bel Canto. In the fall of 2006 Bel Canto celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the first album with several concerts...
, 1732 Høtten (1998) where the album Hermetic is featured.
Furuholmen also recorded "Past Perfect Future Tense" in 2004, with appearances from Guy Berryman
Guy Berryman
Guy Rupert Berryman is a Scottish musician known as the bassist for the groups Coldplay and Apparatjik. Berryman is left-handed but chooses to play the bass right-handed.-Coldplay:...
and Will Champion
Will Champion
William "Will" Champion is an English musician and the drummer of rock band Coldplay.-Early life:William Champion was born in Southampton, Hampshire, England, and was brought up in Highfield, Southampton, where his father, Timothy Champion, is a professor of archaeology...
of Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
, and from Andy Dunlop
Andy Dunlop
Andy Dunlop is a Scottish musician, who is currently the lead guitarist of Scottish indie band, Travis.-Biography:...
of the Scottish band Travis
Travis (band)
Travis are a post-Britpop band from Glasgow, Scotland, comprising Fran Healy , Dougie Payne , Andy Dunlop and Neil Primrose...
.
In 2008 Furuholmen collaborated with Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
bassist Guy Berryman
Guy Berryman
Guy Rupert Berryman is a Scottish musician known as the bassist for the groups Coldplay and Apparatjik. Berryman is left-handed but chooses to play the bass right-handed.-Coldplay:...
and Mew
Mew (band)
Mew is a Danish alternative music band consisting of Jonas Bjerre, Bo Madsen, and Silas Utke Graae Jørgensen. Bassist Johan Wohlert was also a founding member of the band, but left in 2006...
vocalist Jonas Bjerre
Jonas Bjerre
Jonas Bjerre Terkelsbøl is the lead singer and guitarist of Danish rock-trio Mew. Jonas Bjerre is also a visual artist and creates animated videos for Mew's live shows....
under the band name of Apparatjik
Apparatjik
Apparatjik is a group formed in 2008. The band is a supergroup that consists of bassist Guy Berryman from Coldplay, guitarist/keyboardist Magne Furuholmen from A-ha, singer/guitarist Jonas Bjerre of Mew and producer Martin Terefe. The band's name literal translation is "agent of the apparatus"...
for the theme to the BBC2 series, Amazon
Amazon (2008 TV series)
Amazon is a BBC documentary television series co-produced by the Endeavour Productions and Indus Films, and hosted by Bruce Parry.-Show content:...
. The theme was made available (along with exclusive tracks from various other artists) on the Survival International
Survival International
Survival International is a human rights organisation formed in 1969 that campaigns for the rights of indigenous tribal peoples and uncontacted peoples, seeking to help them to determine their own future. Their campaigns generally focus on tribal peoples' fight to keep their ancestral lands,...
charity album, Songs for Survival
Songs for Survival
Bruce Parry Presents Amazon - Tribe - Songs for Survival is a double album released by Kensaltown Records in support of a tribal peoples charity.-Background:...
.
In 2010 Apparatjik
Apparatjik
Apparatjik is a group formed in 2008. The band is a supergroup that consists of bassist Guy Berryman from Coldplay, guitarist/keyboardist Magne Furuholmen from A-ha, singer/guitarist Jonas Bjerre of Mew and producer Martin Terefe. The band's name literal translation is "agent of the apparatus"...
released their first album We Are Here
We Are Here (Apparatjik album)
"We Are Here" is the debut studio album by rock supergroup Apparatjik and was released first on February 1, 2010 for digital download via their official website...
, a digital album also available physically via their website.
Furuholmen is also an artist, working with glass, paint, etching and woodcuts. His art has been displayed at The Henie Onstad Kunstsenter in Oslo, and he has also shown his work at The London Art Fair. In 2001, Furuholmen was commissioned to design an official Norwegian postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
.
Magne announced on Jo Wileys show on BBC Radio 2 in October 2010 that he intends to work with his friends in MEW and Coldplay after retiring from A-ha in December. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00vc5hn/Radio_2_In_Concert_aha/
Descriptions by the rest of A-ha
Paul Waaktaar-SavoyPaul Waaktaar-Savoy
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy is a Norwegian musician and songwriter. He is best known for his work as guitarist in the Norwegian pop band A-ha...
describes Furuholmen thus: "Mags is impulsive. Dashes around. Throughout the years, I've often wondered: Is he a complete fool or a genius? Does he have talent or doesn't he? He can say things which are really dumb, but then he'll suddenly switch on, put things in their place and come up with the idea that we've all been fumbling for. I think he's both a fool and a genius. There has, at times, been a tough competitive relationship between us, which has been a driving force for us both. I have always had great respect for him and believe in him as an artist and musician."
Morten Harket
Morten Harket
Morten Harket is a Norwegian musician, best known as the lead singer of the Norwegian synthpop/rock band A-ha, which released nine studio albums and topped the charts in several countries after their breakthrough hit "Take on Me" in 1985. A-ha disbanded in 2010. Harket has also released four solo...
describes Furuholmen as "...ingeniously childish and childishly ingenious. He is talented, spontaneous and impulsive. He does everything recklessly and with so much energy. In contrast to Pål, Mags is totally disorganised and has no self-discipline at all. Of the three of us, he is the one who really knows how to live life to the full. Everything happens around Mags. Personally, I've learned an awful lot from being around him."
Personal life
Furuholmen's father is Kåre and mother is Annelise. He grew up in ManglerudManglerud
Manglerud was a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway up to January 1, 2004, when it became part of the borough of Østensjø. Manglerud was built in the 1960s as a suburb to Oslo, connected by the Oslo T-bane metro system.-Floorball:...
, Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
(along with A-ha
A-ha
A-ha were a Norwegian pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. The band was founded by Morten Harket , Magne Furuholmen , and Pål Waaktaar...
colleague and co-writer Paul Waaktaar-Savoy
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy is a Norwegian musician and songwriter. He is best known for his work as guitarist in the Norwegian pop band A-ha...
). He has one sister, Line, and two half brothers, Thorstein and Trygve Christian. His father, a jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
musician who played trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
with Bent Sølves Orkester, was killed in an aeroplane crash over Drammen
Drammen
Drammen is a city in Buskerud County, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the eastern and most populated part of Norway.-Location:...
, south of Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
in 1967, when Magne was just five. Remarkably, this very accident was witnessed by a nine year old Morten Harket, thirteen years before the two were to meet for the first time.
Furuholmen married Heidi Rydjord, his high school sweetheart, on 8 August 1992, in the garden of their Nesøya
Nesøya
Nesøya is a small island in the municipality Asker, Norway. It is linked to the mainland via a bridge.The island is known for having a number of celebrities and members of the Norwegian financial elite among its residents....
home. They have two sons, Thomas Vincent (born 20 April 1990) and Filip Clemens (born 2 October 1993).
Furuholmen has also revealed in an interview published by Norway's third largest newspaper Dagbladet (in its additional magazine Magasinet) that he is suffering from a heart disease. The news was picked up the same day by the electronic music magazine Side-Line.
With A-ha
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Hunting High and Low Hunting High and Low Hunting High and Low is the debut album by Norwegian new wave band A-ha. Released on 1 June 1985 through Warner Bros. Records, the album was a huge commercial success selling more than 10 million units worldwide, peaking at #15 in the United States Billboard 200 and reaching high positions on... |
Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies... |
| 1986 | Scoundrel Days Scoundrel Days Scoundrel Days is the second full-length album by the new wave pop/rock band A-ha. It was released on 6 October 1986 through Warner Bros. Records... |
|
| 1988 | Stay on These Roads Stay on These Roads Stay on These Roads is the third full-length album by the rock band A-ha. It was released on 3 May 1988 through Warner Bros. Records.-Recording:... |
|
| 1990 | East of the Sun, West of the Moon East of the Sun, West of the Moon East of the Sun, West of the Moon is the fourth album, released in 1990 by Norwegian band A-ha. It was seen by many as a departure from their old radio friendly sound to a darker, moodier tone, and is named after a Norwegian fairy tale... |
|
| 1993 | Memorial Beach Memorial Beach Memorial Beach is the fifth album by Norwegian band A-ha, released in 1993.The album was recorded primarily at Prince’s Paisley Park studios outside Minneapolis in the U.S. Featured among the tracks is “Angel in the Snow,” a song Paul wrote for his bride, Lauren Savoy, as a wedding gift, and the... |
|
| 2000 | Minor Earth Major Sky Minor Earth Major Sky Minor Earth | Major Sky is the sixth album by Norwegian band a-ha, released in 2000. It sold 2 million copies worldwide.-Track listing:# Minor Earth Major Sky – 5:25 # Little Black Heart – 4:35... |
|
| 2002 | Lifelines Lifelines Lifelines is the seventh album released in 2002 by the Norwegian band A-ha. This album entered to top 10 album charts in 9 countries and 4 of those in top, selling over 1.5 million copies.... |
|
| 2005 | Analogue Analogue (album) Analogue is the eighth studio album by the Norwegian band A-ha, released in 2005.-Track listing:#"Celice" – 3:41#"Don't Do Me Any Favours" – 3:51... |
Universal Music Group Universal Music Group Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations... |
| 2009 | Foot of the Mountain Foot of the Mountain Foot of the Mountain is the ninth and final studio album by the Norwegian pop band A-ha. It was released on 19 June 2009 and reached #1 on the German Album Chart and #2 on the Norwegian Album Chart... |
Solo
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Past Perfect Future Tense Past Perfect Future Tense Past Perfect Future Tense is the 1st solo album of Norwegian band a-ha's Magne Furuholmen as Magne F. Magne worked in this album with Coldplay members, Will Champion and Guy Berryman.- Track listing :# "Obsolete" - 3:47# "All the Time" - 4:22... |
Passionfruit |
| 2008 | A Dot of Black in the Blue of Your Bliss A Dot of Black In The Blue Of Your Bliss A Dot Of Black In The Blue Of Your Bliss is the 2nd solo album of Norwegian band a-ha's Magne Furuholmen as Magne F.This album was released as a 300 copies limited 6 track vinyl EP in February 2008 and then as a regular CD in May 2008.... |
Genepool |
With Apparatjik
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | We Are Here We Are Here (Apparatjik album) "We Are Here" is the debut studio album by rock supergroup Apparatjik and was released first on February 1, 2010 for digital download via their official website... |
Meta Merge Un Recordings |
A-ha singles written or co-written by Furuholmen
- Take On Me
- Love Is Reason
- Cry Wolf
- Maybe, Maybe
- Manhattan Skyline
- Stay On These Roads
- Touchy!
- You Are The One
- I Call Your Name
- Early Morning
- Move to Memphis
- Shapes That Go Together
- Minor Earth, Major Sky
- I Wish I Cared
- Forever Not Yours
- Lifelines
- Celice
- Birthright
- Analogue (All I Want)
- Cosy Prisons
- Foot Of The Mountain