Results for "nordic jazz"

Teemu Kekkonen

Born: January 6, 1992

Finnish jazz pianist & composer Teemu Kekkonen is a rising star in the European scene. 

Thoughtfully crafted compositions, cinematic harmonies, captivating grooves and familiar melodies are the cornerstones of his music. As a musician Teemu is oriented towards a narrative style and strives to create musical adventures which evoke emotions and diverse moods. As the basis for his improvisations Teemu uses the thematic material of the piece at hand, sometimes transforming it to raw and rugged cacophony, at times to a calm and collected contemplation.

Following the release of his 2021 four-track EP “Trio Live at Bimhuis”, Teemu self-releases his debut album Here/There on September 16th 2022 with compatriots Mikael Saastamoinen (bass) and Roope Kantonen (drums). Behind the seven original pieces and the one cover tune are real-life stories from the past ten years. 

Alex Jønsson

Born: March 19, 1985

Alex Jønsson is an award-winning Danish guitarist, composer and improviser.

He has been greatly recognized for his Nordic and melancholic expression – both as a composer and a

soloist - and has toured in most of Europe as well as in India.

Most people will know him from orchestras like I Think You’re Awesome, Mirja Klippel and Bagland.

Yet, in recent years, as a composer and a bandleader, Alex Jønsson has raised his profile as one of the most interesting jazz guitarists on the modern scene.

He has released four albums as a leader, played on a number of significant releases and has been nominated for a Danish Music Award Jazz no less than nine times!

Richard Andersson

Born: October 4, 1982

Richard Andersson (b. Oct. 1982) is a Danish/Faroese/Icelandic bass player and composer based in Copenhagen where he is known as “one of the most interesting characters of the Danish jazz scene” (Ivan Rod/Gaffa Music Magazine.). Andersson grew up in a musical family but never showed much interest in music until the age of 14 when his life was turned upside down after a fireworks accident that cost him his sight. Now, around 20 years later, Richard Andersson has gained great recognition for his work as a composer and bass player in the modern jazz field. He has released several albums as a bandleader with Danish and international musicians such as Oskar Gudjonsson (IS), Rudi Mahall (DE), Kasper Tranberg (DK), Jerry Bergonzi (US), Ra-Kalam Bob Moses (US), Tony Malaby (US) and Bill McHenry (US). Also Andersson can be found in collaborations with musicians such as Jeff “Tain” Watts (US), Tomas Franck (S), Kresten Osgood (DK), Henrik Walsdorff (DE), , Sigurdur Flossason (IS) … Education: Diploma Degree

Pernille Bevort

Born: April 13, 1966

Pernille Bévort
 - Tenor, soprano and alto saxophone, flutes, clarinets, band leader and composer. 

Danish saxophone player Pernille Bévort has always been a unique person on the Danish jazz scene.
She sets her own marks and stands proudly for her musical conviction. She is known for her intense and creative saxophone playing with everything from duos and trios to big bands. In her music you constantly sense a clear and distinct direction; beautiful sonic timbres, exciting rhythmic and melodic progress and – above all – excellent solos.

Pernille Bévort is a graduate of the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen, Denmark (1989-1993). After completing her degree, she has become increasingly in-demand as a member of various jazz ensembles in Denmark and Sweden.Apart from working with small ensembles, Bévort has performed with several professional Big Bands in Denmark during the last decades: The Ernie Wilkins Almost Big Band, Kroner's New Music Orchestra, The Danish Radio Big Band and the Aarhus Jazz Orchestra (Klüver's Big Band) among others.
As a member of The Ernie Wilkins Almost Big Band and as a frequent substitute with other professional big bands, she has performed with many international artists.
Among these are: Randy Brecker, Tony Coe, Putte Wickman, Tim Hagans, John Scofield and Richard Bona.Since 2015 Pernille has been a regular member of the Swedish Monday Night Big Band in Malmö and from 2016 she has been playing several projects with another Swedish Big Band: the Bohuslän Big Band in Gothenburg. (One of the tours with BBB was in oct. 2017 with Maria Schneider).
She is also part of the new Danish 13-piece ensemble MALUBA with Marilyn Mazur, Fredrik Lundin and Kasper Bai as the 3 co-leaders and composers. This group had its debut during the Jazz festival in Copenhagen 2017.Since 1995 she has been leader of several diverse ensembles.
At present these include her trio, Bévort 3, and the septet Radio Bévort.

Four years in a row (2020-2023) Pernille has been nominated for a Danish Music Awards Jazz within different categories (Composer of the Year, Album of the Year, Cross-aesthetic Album of the Year).
 

Susanna Aleksandra

Born: September 21, 1989

Susanna Aleksandra is an Estonian jazz singer, lyricist and composer currently based in Los Angeles. Passionate for languages, she effortlessly plays with words and melodies, navigating through traditional, modern and Latin Jazz. A natural storyteller, the charismatic singer holds the listener spellbound, making jazz approachable not only for jazz lovers. Susanna’s other passion besides music is languages. She holds a degree in French language and literature and is a fluent speaker of 6 languages.

Paolo Russo bandoneon

Born: September 17, 1969

PAOLO RUSSO - pianist, bandoneonist and composer Welcome to Paolo Russo’s unique music universe: a journey across Italian flavours, classical tones, Nordic landscapes, free improvisations, with a distant echo of Argentinean tango. Born in Pescara (Italy) in 1969, he lives in Copenhagen (Denmark) since 1996. He started his studies with the cembalist Chiara Tiboni and graduated at “Conservatorio L. D’Annunzio” in Pescara, in 1993 (teacher: Rachele Marchegiani). In 2002, he graduated at the prestigious Rytmisk Musikkonservatorium in Copenhagen. During the past 21 years, he developed a very intense music activity, with performances all around Europe, as well as Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Japan, Faroe Islands, Thailand, Tanzania, Mozambique, Algeria, Russia, USA, Greenland and Cuba

Jakob Sørensen

Born: July 2, 1988

The Copenhagen based trumpeter Jakob Sørensen released the renowned debut album Bagland in 2015 and the follow up NOMAD back in 2016 with his own quintet playing his own compositions which really sat course for his future sound and career. In 2019 the third album Cirkel was released. Jakob’s work as a composer has been performed from duos to Big Band’s. Jakob has been touring all over Europe and with his own group in Sweden, Germany and Denmark. His style of playing has been compared to the playing of the ECM artist Nils Petter Molvær.


William Soovik

Born: April 16, 1989

I was born in 1989, in a city south of Gothenburg called Mölndal. My father has been a professional musician during my whole life, and he inspired me to play music when I was young. I've seen photos of myself, as a small child, hitting my mothers pots and pans with wooden spoons in the kitchen, but it wasn't until my father showed me a video tape of the legendary jazz-drummer Buddy Rich that I knew I wanted to play the drums. Despite my fascination with the drums, I was very ambivalent when I was about start taking music lessons and got to choose what instrument to play. I struggled, for quite some time, deciding between the saxophone and the drums. At last, I choose the drums, and I've had a sort of turbulent relationship with all kinds of percussion instruments ever since.

Hvalfugl

When Danish trio Hvalfugl takes the stage they weave together a distinct expression combining strong melodies, sonic ambience and a powerful musical presence. Acclaimed with the Danish Music Award Jazz “Live Act Of The Year” 2025. 

The trio has impressed audiences and critics alike with their compelling instrumental music since they released their debut album By in 2017. The album received great reviews, in Denmark as well as internationally, and the three gifted musicians have spent their time expanding and enriching their ethereal expression on more subsequent albums  – Som En Faldskærm (2019), Øjeblikke Vi Husker (2020) and their latest dobbelt LP Bag Vore Øjne Strømmer Drømme Sagte Forbi (2025).

Kristoffer Vejslev

Born: October 21, 1993

Kristoffer Dyssegaard Vejslev

Kristoffer Dyssegaard Vejslev is a Danish guitarist and composer currently based in Copenhagen. In 2019, he graduated from the Conservatory of Amsterdam (CvA), where he studied with prominent names such as Jesse Van Ruller, Reinier Baas, and Peter Bernstein, while also receiving private lessons from Jakob Bro. His playing style blends the international jazz influences he absorbed at the conservatory with a Nordic sensibility shaped by his Copenhagen upbringing.

As a third-generation composer, Kristoffer is deeply influenced by his father, Jakob Vejslev, and his grandfather, Tony Vejslev, both renowned for their melodies set to Danish poetry. This legacy is reflected in his lyrical approach to composition and guitar playing, as noted by Politiken, which described him as "a versatile guitarist who weaves together many threads both in his playing and his compositions."