Swedish double bassist Lars Danielsson is a legend of Nordic jazz.
His love for music, according to the musician, began in his early childhood. There was a piano at home, and he would always play it. For his fourth birthday, he received a guitar from his mother – right during the party, he took it, locked himself in the kitchen, and sat there playing all night.
The musician began studying classical cello at the conservatory in Gothenburg, his hometown. However, in 1958, he heard the Danish double bass legend Nils-Henning Ǿrsted Pedersen and decided to take up jazz and the double bass. However, he did not abandon his cello studies – he integrated them into his current work. The musician always includes the cello in his repertoire, and his double bass playing is somewhat more melodic, softer, and more lyrical than others’.
Danielsson became highly sought after internationally as an accompanying musician, working with many music stars. However, the accompanying role was not enough for Danielsson – he always had a flair for composition. Now, the musician is one of the relatively few double bassists who have become significant bandleaders. He formed his own all-star quartet, featuring American saxophonist David Liebman (who previously played with Miles Davis), Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson, and Norwegian drummer Jon Christensen. Four of the quartet’s albums, released under Danielsson’s name, and six more albums with guests solidified his reputation as one of Europe’s best jazz musicians, receiving not only enthusiastic reviews but also numerous awards.
In a way, in 2012, Danielsson found the essence of his various forms of expression and a fitting name for this quintessence: “Liberetto”. This album struck a new balance between jazz, classical music, pop music, and European folk music, thus opening up a new dimension in the use of compositional processes and dramaturgy in jazz. He also performed “Liberetto” at Paliesius Manor with pianist Grégory Privat in 2024.
“Music is universal, it has no boundaries, in music everyone can be united. That is the message I want to convey. I want to send a cozy feeling from my heart to the hearts of the listeners – to me, that is the most important thing,” the musician said before his 2024 concert.
On August 22, Lars Danielsson returns to the manor with a solo program!
Read more: 08.22 | LARS DANIELSSON SOLO