Per Zanussi (born 1977) is an Italian–Norwegian jazz musician (

upright bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

) and composer, known from several bands and releases such as with

Hamid Drake Hamid Drake (born August 3, 1955) is an American jazz drummer and percussionist. By the close of the 1990s, Hamid Drake was widely regarded as one of the best percussionists in jazz and improvised music. Incorporating Afro-Cuban, Indian, and Af ...

Louis Moholo Louis Tebogo Moholo (10 March 1940 – 13 June 2025) was a South African jazz drummer. He was a member of several notable bands, including The Blue Notes, the Brotherhood of Breath and Assagai. Biography Born in Cape Town, Moholo formed The ...

, Paal Nilssen-Love,

Bobby Bradford Bobby Lee Bradford (born July 19, 1934) is an American jazz trumpeter, cornetist, bandleader, and composer. In addition to his solo work, Bradford is noted for his work with John Carter, Vinny Golia and Ornette Coleman. In October 2009, Brad ...

Sabir Mateen Sabir Mateen (born April 16, 1951) is an American musician and composer from Philadelphia. His musical style is primarily avant-garde jazz. He plays tenor and alto saxophone, B♭ and alto clarinet, and flute. As a young man, Mateen was origi ...

, Franklin Kiermyer,

Stephen O'Malley Stephen O'Malley (sometimes referred to as SOMA; born July 15, 1974) is an American guitarist, producer, composer, and visual artist from Seattle, Washington, who has conceptualized and participated in numerous drone metal, doom metal, and expe ...

Axel Dörner Axel Dörner (born 26 April 1964 in Cologne, Germany) is a German trumpeter, pianist, and composer. Biography Dörner studied piano in the Dutch town Arnhem (1988–89) and at the Cologne University of Music, Music Academy in Cologne (1989– ...

Petter Wettre Petter Wettre (born 11 August 1967) is a Norwegian jazz musician (saxophone) and composer, known from a number of album recordings, accompanied by receiving the Spellemannprisen two times. Career Wettre was born and raised in Sandefjord. H ...

Fred Lonberg-Holm Fred Lonberg-Holm (born 1 October 1962) is an American cellist based in Chicago. He moved from New York City to Chicago in 1995. He refers to himself as the anti-cellist. Lonberg-Holm is most identified with playing free improvisation and free j ...

Bugge Wesseltoft Jens Christian Bugge Wesseltoft (born 1 February 1964) is a Norwegian jazz pianist, composer, and producer, son of jazz guitarist Erik Wesseltoft. Career In 1989, Wesseltoft collaborated with the Knut Riisnæs Quartet and was soon after ...

Mats Gustafsson Mats Olof Gustafsson (born 29 October 1964) is a Swedish free jazz saxophone player. Career Gustafsson came to the attention of lovers of improvised music as part of a duo with Christian Munthe (started in 1986), as member of Gunter Chris ...

Kjetil Møster Kjetil Traavik Møster (born 17 June 1976) is a Norwegian jazz musician ( tenor and soprano saxophones, clarinet and bass clarinet) and composer, known from bands like The Core, Ultralyd, Brat, Zanussi 5, and performance with Chick Corea at Mol ...

Kevin Norton Kevin Norton (born January 21, 1956) is an American percussionist and composer active in the New York City jazz and contemporary music scenes. He has performed and recorded with a diverse group of musicians, including Anthony Braxton, Paul Dunmal ...

Ivar Grydeland Ivar Grydeland (born 1 October 1976) is a Norwegian jazz musician (guitar) and composer raised in Kongsberg. Career Grydeland was born in Trondheim, Norway, and studied jazz guitar at the Norwegian Academy of Music (1996–2000, and 2001–2 ...

, Ernesto Rodrigues,

Tetuzi Akiyama Tetuzi Akiyama (Akiyama Tetsuji) (born 1964) is a Japanese guitarist, violinist, and instrument-maker. Akiyama formed the improvisation group Madhar in 1987, and the classical ensemble Hikyo String Quintet in 1994 (which also included Taku Sugi ...

, and Håvard Wiik.

Career

Zanussi was born in

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

and was educated on the Jazz program at Trondheim Musikkonservatorium and at

Norges Musikkhøgskole The Norwegian Academy of Music (Norwegian: ''Norges musikkhøgskole'', NMH) is a university-level music conservatory located in Oslo, Norway, in the neighbourhood of Majorstuen, Frogner. It is the largest music academy in Norway and offers the c ...

. He was one of the initiators of the band Wibutee from

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

(1996–2004), with

Håkon Kornstad Håkon Games Kornstad (born 5 April 1977 in Oslo, Norway) is a Norwegian jazz musician (tenor saxophone, bass saxophone, flute and live looping) and classically trained singer (tenor), known from bands such as Wibutee and Kornstad Trio, and co ...

and Wetle Holte. Since 2001 he has led the "Zanussi Five" with saxophone lineup

Rolf-Erik Nystrøm Rolf-Erik Nystrøm (born 23 April 1975) is a Norwegian saxophonist and composer in the field of contemporary music. Career Nystrøm has a diploma of music from the Norwegian Academy of Music and is now a lecturer in the art of improvisation ba ...

and

Eirik Hegdal Eirik Hegdal (born 3 October 1973 in Gjøvik, Norway) is a Norwegians, Norwegian Jazz musician (saxophone), composer, arranger and music teacher, known from the band Dingobats (1995-2005) and as leader of Trondheim Jazz Orchestra (from 2002). Ca ...

, and percussionist

Per Oddvar Johansen Per Oddvar Johansen (born 1 March 1968) is a Norwegian Jazz musician (drummer), most recognized for his work with Trygve Seim, Christian Wallumrød, The Source, Solveig Slettahjell and Vigleik Storaas, but has also been awarded the Spellemann ...

, a project that has produced three albums. He also contributes to the "MZN3" with Kjetil Møster and Kjell Nordeson, the "Trespass Trio" with Martin Kuchen and Raymond Strid, the Jazzmob and the "Crimetime Orchestra".

Discography

Solo albums

With Zanussi Five * 2004: ''Zanussi Five'' (Moserobie Prod) * 2007: ''Alborado'' (Moserobie Prod) * 2010: ''Ghost Dance'' (Moserobie Prod) * 2014: ''Live in Coimbra'' ( Clean Feed) With Trondheim Jazz Orchestra * 2011: ''Morning Songs'' (MNJ)

Collaborations

With Wunderkammer * 1999: ''Wunderkammer'' (Plateselskapet Skarv) * 2002: ''Today I Cannot Hear Music'' (HoneyMilk) With

* 2002: ''Household Name'' (Household) * 2004: ''Hallmark Moments'' (Household) With Wibutee * 2004: ''Playmachine'' ( Jazzland) With Frode Gjerstad * 2005: ''Born to Collapse'' (Circulasione Totale), including Anders Hana and

Morten Olsen Morten Per Olsen (; born 14 August 1949) is a Danish former Association football, football manager and former player. He was the head coach of the Denmark national football team, Denmark national team for 15 years from 2000 until 2015, guiding ...

With the trio 'MZN3' including

and Kjell Nordeson * 2005: ''MZN3'' (

Jazzaway Jazzaway is a Norwegian record label founded by saxophonist Jon Klette in Oslo, Norway. He is also the main composer/leader in the band Jazzmob. Their CD ''Pathfinder'' (2003) was the first release from the label. The label includes artists ...

) With Jazzmob * 2005: ''Infernal Machine'' (Jazzaway) * 2006: ''Flashback'' (Jazzaway), from

Moldejazz Molde International Jazz Festival (MIJF) or Moldejazz (established 1961 in Molde Municipality) takes place annually in July, and is known as one of the oldest jazz festivals in Europe. It was initiated by the local Storyville Jazz Club. Since 1 ...

With Jon Eberson Trio * 2006: ''Bring It On'' (Jazzaway) With Martin Küchen Trio * 2007: ''Live at Glenn Miller Café'' ( Ayler) With Trespass Trio * 2009: ''...Was There to Illuminate the Sight Sky...'' ( Clean Feed) * 2012: ''Bruder Beda'' (Clean Feed) * 2013: ''Human Encore'' (Clean Feed), including with

Joe McPhee Joe McPhee (born November 3, 1939) is an American jazz multi-instrumentalist who plays the tenor, alto, and soprano saxophone, the trumpet, the flugelhorn and the valve trombone. Although born in Miami, Florida, McPhee grew up in Poughkeepsie, ...

With

Marilyn Crispell Marilyn Crispell (born March 30, 1947) is an American jazz pianist and composer. Scott Yanow described her as "a powerful player... who has her own way of using space... She is near the top of her field." Jon Pareles of ''The New York Times'' ...

* 2009: '' Collaborations'' (

Leo Leo is the Latin word for lion. It most often refers to: * Leo (constellation), a constellation of stars in the night sky * Leo (astrology), an astrological sign of the zodiac * Leo (given name), a given name in several languages, usually mas ...

) With Circulasione Totale Orchestra * 2009: ''Bandwidth'' (

Rune Grammofon Rune Grammofon is a Norwegian record label founded in 1998 by Rune Kristoffersen. Rune Grammofon's reputation for lovingly issued experimental electronic music, jazz, and improvised music by Norwegian artists has grown over the years with its a ...

) * 2011: ''PhilaOslo'' (Circulasione Totale) With Crimetime Orchestra * 2009: ''Atomic Symphony'' (Jazzaway), featuring

Sonny Simmons Huey "Sonny" Simmons (August 4, 1933 – April 6, 2021) was an American jazz musician. Biography Simmons was born on August 4, 1933, in Sicily Island, Louisiana. He grew up in Oakland, California, where he began playing the English horn. (Along ...

and KORK With Jørn Øien Trio * 2010: ''Digging in the Dark'' (Bolage) With S/S Motsol * 2011: ''Parallel Pleasures'' (Creative Sources) With Mette Henriette * 2015: ''Mette Henriette'' (

ECM ECM may refer to the following: Economics and commerce * Engineering change management * Equity capital markets * Error correction model, an econometric model * European Common Market Mathematics * Lenstra's Elliptic curve method for factor ...

)

References

External links

* 1977 births Living people Norwegian University of Science and Technology alumni Jazz musicians from Oslo Norwegian jazz composers Norwegian jazz upright-bassists Male double-bassists Italian jazz double-bassists Household Records artists 21st-century double-bassists 21st-century Norwegian male musicians Petter Wettre Quartet members Trondheim Jazz Orchestra members Wibutee members {{Norway-musician-stub