Julia Hülsmann

Jazz pianist, composer, and vocalist Julia Hülsmann creates an intelligent brand of poetic, airy, artful, jazz that balances the Nordic tradition with folk, pop, and contemporary classical. Her primary trio with bassist Marc Muellbauer and drummer Rainer Winch (eventually replaced by Heinrich Köbberling) issued Trio in 2003 and Scattering Poems, with vocalist Rebekka Bakken, the same year. Hülsmann signed with ECM in 2008; they released The End of a Summer. She also co-led the Fasil quintet with guitarist Marc Sinan. Since 2013, she has periodically worked with a quartet that includes Berlin-based saxophonist Uli Kempendorff on albums such as Full View and 2014's globally acclaimed A Clear Midnight: Kurt Weill and America. She returned to the trio format on 2016's Sooner and Later. With the quartet she released 2019's Not Far from Here , 2022's The Next Door, and 2025's Under the Surface.