Samo Salamon

Electric guitarist Samo Salamon is a native of Slovenia, one of few jazz musicians to hail from that country in southern Central Europe. Born September 10, 1978, he began studying classical guitar in his hometown of Maribor, and started with jazz studies at the jazz conservatory in Klagenfurt. During the winter of 2000 he took lessons in North America with clearly his biggest influence, John Scofield. He has also studied with Rudy Linka, Tim Brady, and Andrea Allione. In addition to Scofield, his biggest early influences were Bill Frisell, Pat Metheny, John Abercrombie, Ornette Coleman, and Steve Lacy, as well as poets Langston Hughes and Robert Creeley and composers Béla Bartók, Olivier Messiaen, and Witold Lutoslawski. The next four years saw Salamon honing his craft with the Ansasa Trio. Asserting himself as a leader from then on, he formed a quartet with Achille Succi, Salvatore Maiore, and Zlatko Kaucic, playing all over Europe. Traveling to the U.S. in 2004 on his second trip stateside, he connected with Tony Malaby, Mark Helias, Tom Rainey, Josh Roseman, and Gerald Cleaver. American saxophonist Dave Binney and trumpeter Kyle Gregory joined Salamon's band, expanded to a sextet, as did Paolino Dalla Porta. Other prominent jazz players with whom he has shared the bandstand or recording studio include Paul McCandless, Mark Turner, Drew Gress, Julian Arguelles, Donny McCaslin, John Hebert, Tyshawn Sorey, Karriem Riggins, Fareed Haque, Roberto Dani, Michel Godard, Joris Teepe, and many fellow Slovenians. Salamon is also inspired by contemporary peers Ben Monder, Greg Osby and Steve Coleman. He leads different small- to mid-sized combos, is a member of the Mamasaal Quartet and the SGR Trio, and has recorded for the Fresh Sound/New Talent and Splasc(h) labels. ~ Michael G. Nastos, Rovi