Nils Petter Molvær

Norwegian trumpeter Nils Petter Molvær is a major figure in contemporary jazz and improvised music, translating his aerated, almost ethereal tone to the contemplative soundscapes of Nordic tradition. His meditative aesthetic has helped introduce the world to the rich variety of Norwegian jazz. Molvær was born on the island of Sula in 1960. He attended the prestigious Trondheim Music Conservatory, where he joined the influential band Masqualero, which featured drummer Jon Christensen and double bassist Arild Andersen. The group made several recordings for ECM, and in 1997 Molvær released his first solo record for the label, Khmer, where his growing interest in electronic and ambient changed his direction. He began plying ambient washes and drum ’n’ bass rhythms with his atmospheric, dreamy trumpet improvisations, which were often bathed in aqueous reverb, paving the way for younger trumpeters like Arve Henriksen and Mathias Eick. Molvær has explored this in shifting collaborations in subsequent decades, expanding his circle to include musicians as disparate as the legendary reggae rhythm section of Sly & Robbie, electronic producer Moritz Von Oswald, and jazz drummer Manu Katché, in addition to making more than a dozen solo recordings.