Bjørn Alterhaug (born 3 June 1945) is a Norwegian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

bassist, arranger, composer and professor of music

Store Norske Leksikon The ''Great Norwegian Encyclopedia'' (, abbreviated ''SNL'') is a Norwegian-language online encyclopedia. It has several subdivisions, including the Norsk biografisk leksikon. The online encyclopedia is among the most-read Norwegian publishe ...

(in Norwegian) at the Department of Music in the University of Trondheim since 1972.

Career

Alterhaug was born in

Mo i Rana (Norwegian language, Norwegian; ) or (and unofficially , ) is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city, and the administrative centre of Rana Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the Helgeland region of Nordland, just sou ...

, Norway. He is one of the grand masters among European bassplayers and has been leading an international career in jazz since the late 1960s. He has played and worked with a great number of international greats such as

Lee Konitz Leon "Lee" Konitz (October 13, 1927 – April 15, 2020) was an American jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist and composer. He performed successfully in a wide range of jazz styles, including bebop, cool jazz, and avant-garde jazz. Konitz's ass ...

Warne Marsh Warne Marion Marsh (October 26, 1927 – December 18, 1987) was an American tenor saxophonist. Born in Los Angeles, his playing first came to prominence in the 1950s as a protégé of pianist Lennie Tristano and earned attention in the 1970s as ...

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

, Thorgeir Stubø,

Joe Henderson Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and very occasional flute player. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day an ...

Lucky Thompson Eli "Lucky" Thompson (June 16, 1924 – July 30, 2005) was an American jazz tenor and soprano saxophonist whose playing combined elements of swing and bebop. Although John Coltrane usually receives the most credit for bringing the soprano sa ...

Sheila Jordan Sheila Jordan (born Sheila Jeanette Dawson; November 18, 1928) is an American jazz singer and songwriter. She has recorded as a session musician with an array of critically acclaimed artists in addition to recording her own albums. Jordan pionee ...

Vigleik Storaas Vigleik Storaas (born 2 February 1963) is a Norwegian jazz pianist and composer, and the younger brother of composer and bassist Gaute Storaas. He is known from a series of album releases and collaborations with jazz musicians such as Norma Wins ...

Karin Krog Karin Krog (born 15 May 1937) is a Norwegian Vocal jazz, jazz singer. Life and career Krog began singing jazz as a teenager and attracted attention while performing in jam sessions in Oslo. In 1955, she was hired by the pianist Kjell Karlsen ...

John Surman John Douglas Surman (born 30 August 1944) is an English jazz saxophone, Clarinet family, clarinet, and synthesizer player, and composer of free jazz and modal jazz, often using themes from folk music. He has composed and performed music for danc ...

Ben Webster Benjamin Francis Webster (March 27, 1909 – September 20, 1973) was an American jazz tenor Saxophone, saxophonist. He performed in the United States and Europe and made many recordings with Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, Johnny Hodges, a ...

and

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American Swing music, swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948� ...

. He continues to lead his post as a professor at the Institute of Music at

Norges Teknisk-Naturvitenskapelige Universitet The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU; ) is a public university, public research university in Norway and the largest in terms of enrollment. The university's headquarters is located in Trondheim (city), Trondheim, with region ...

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 ...

, Norway and has taught on the Jazz programme there since the start in 1979.

Honors

*''Buddyprisen'' 1975 *

Rana Municipality or is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Mo i Rana, which houses the National Library of Norway. Other population centers in R ...

Culture Prize 1975 *This year's jazz musicians in Norway 1975 . *

Spellemannprisen The Spellemannprisen (also referred to as the Norwegian Grammy Awards) is a Norwegian music award ceremony presented by International Federation of the Phonographic Industry#Local associations, IFPI Norge and :no:FONO, FONO. It was first awarded i ...

1980 in the class jazz for the album ''Moments'' (1979) *

Gammleng-prisen The Gammleng Award () is a Norwegian culture award created by ''The Fund for Performing Artists'' in 1982, 25 years after the fund was established in 1957. The award's official name is the ''Rolf Gammleng award to performing artists'' (). It's awa ...

1989 *

Sør-Trøndelag Sør-Trøndelag (; ) was a Counties of Norway, county comprising the southern portion of the present-day Trøndelag county in Norway. It bordered the old Nord-Trøndelag () county as well as the counties of Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, and Hedmark. ...

County Culture Prize, together with John Pål Inderberg 2011

Bibliography (in selection)

*''Good morning, Duke'' (1999) *''A song - not too happy'' (1999) *''Bass means love'' (2004) *''A ballad'' (2004) *''Improvisation on a triple theme: creativity, jazz improvisation and communication'' (2004) *''Old Louis'' (2005) *''Moments'' (2005) *''Long ago'' (2005) *''Snake talk'' (2005) *''At the waters edge'' (2005) *''January morning'' (2005) *''Ballad to an old bass'' (2005) *''Maybe'' (2005) *''Epitaph'' (2005) *''Hymn to grotesque beauty'' (2005) *''Bluza 33'' (2006) *''Mellom panikk og kjedsomhet'' (2006) *''Improvisation, action learning and action research'' (2007) *''Beep'' (2008) *''Kyrie'' (2009) *''Songlines'' (2009) *''Kyrie'' (2009) *''Bird lovers'' (2009) *''Shailén'' (2009) *''Message from a sad dolphin'' (2009) *''Christmas song for children of Thelonious Monk'' (2010)

Discography

Solo albums

*''Moments'' - (

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

) *''A Ballad'' - (

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

) *''Some Other Time'', with Bjørn Johansen,

Frode Thingnæs Frode Thingnæs (20 March 1940 – 15 November 2012) was a Norwegian jazz composer, arranger, conductor and trombone player who formed the Frode Thingnæs Quintet in 1960. Career Thingnæs was introduced to music at eight years old, when he st ...

, Laila Dalseth, Ole Jacob Hansen and Egil Kapstad - (

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

) *''Constellations'' - (

) *''Steps Toward's a Dream'', with

, John Pål Inderberg and Erling Aksdal Jr. - (

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

) ;With Bjørn Alterhaug Quintet *''Songlines'' ( Ponca Jazz Records) - (

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

) *''Innocent Play'' (Ponca Jazz Records) - (

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

)

Collaborations

*''Østerdalsmusikk'', with Various Artists - (

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

) *''Selena'', with

Ketil Bjørnstad Ketil Bjørnstad (born 25 April 1952) is a pianist, composer and author. Initially trained as a classical pianist, Bjørnstad discovered jazz at an early age and has embraced the emergence of "European jazz". Store Norske Leksikon (in Norwegian ...

- (

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

) *''Til jorden'', with Rolf Jacobsen and Egil Kapstad - (

) *''Snjóuglan'', with ''Snjóuglan'' - (

) *''Frency only'', with

Åge Aleksandersen Åge Aleksandersen (born 21 March 1949) is a Norwegian singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is one of his country's best known musicians. Some of his most well known songs are "Lys og varme" ("Light and Warmth"), "Fire pils og en pizza" ("Four B ...

and Sambandet - (

) *''Friends'', with Kapstad- Johansens Quartet - (

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

) *''Notice'', with Thorgeir Stubø - (

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

) *''Drøbak kassetten 1981'', with Various Artists - (

) *''Live at Jazz Alive'', with Thorgeir Stubø - (

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

) *''Norsk Jazz 1960-1980'', with Various Artists - (

) *''Veintetid'', with

Tove Karoline Knutsen Tove Karoline Knutsen (born 14 January 1951 in Torsken) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. She was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Troms in 2005. She graduated as cand.philol. in 1982, and spent large parts of her caree ...

- (

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

) *''Epilog'', with Egil Kapstad - (

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

) *''For a Small Planet'', with Trondheim Kammerkor - (

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

) *''For the Time Being'', with

- (

1988 1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the Internet—it was the year of the first well-known computer virus, the Morris worm, 1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United State ...

) *''Fuglar'', with Noble Noise - (

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

) *''Blackbird'', with Siri's Svale Band - (

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

) *''The Jazz Sampler Vol. 2'', with Various Artists - (

) *''New Church Music from Nidaros Cathedral'', with Various Artists - (

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

) *''Remembrance'', with Egil Kapstad Trio - (

) *''Norske bilder ''- (

) *''Pot's On'', with Asmund Bjørken Sextet feat.

Jan Erik Kongshaug Jan Erik Kongshaug (4 July 1944 – 5 November 2019) was a Norwegian sound engineer, jazz guitarist, and composer. Career Kongshaug was born in Trondheim, the son of guitarist John Kongshaug. Store Norske Leksikon (in Norwegian) During his ch ...

- (

) *''A Woman's Intuition'', with Laila Dalseth - (

) *''Min vemods fryd'', with Jan Henrik Henriksen - (

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

) *''Jazz Out of Norway'', with Various Artists - (

) *''Plays Norwegian Music'', with Arctic Guitar Trio - (

) *''Gemini'' - (

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

) *''Notice/Live at Jazz Alive'', with Thorgeir Stubø - (

) *''Necessarily So...'', with Siri's Svale Band - (

) *''Over at Ola's'', with Kevin Dean Quintet - (

) *''Norsk tonekunst i kontraster'', with Embla - (

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

) *''Night Birds'', with

Totti Bergh Theodor Christian Frølich Bergh known as Totti Bergh (5 December 1935 – 4 January 2012) was a Norwegians, Norwegian jazz musician (saxophone), the younger brother of the jazz journalist Johannes (Johs.) Bergh (1932–2001). He was married to ...

- (

) *''Gemini and Taurus'' - (

) *''Round Chet's Midnight'', with Hilde Hefte - (

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

) *''Oslo Jazz Circle 50 år'' - (

) *''Double Circle'', with Ivar Antonsen - (

) *''One of a Kind'', with Laila Dalseth - (

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

) *''Man, Woman and Child'', with

Tore Johansen Tore Johansen (born 23 December 1977) is a Norwegian jazz trumpeter and the younger brother of drummer Roger Johansen. He has worked with Chick Corea, Karin Krog, Kenny Wheeler, Steve Swallow, Lars Jansson, Hal Galper, Siri Gellein, and Jan Gunn ...

- (

) *''Early Years'', with

- (

) *''First Song'', with Bodil Niska - (

) *''Pictures'', with

Equilibrium Equilibrium may refer to: Film and television * ''Equilibrium'' (film), a 2002 science fiction film * '' The Story of Three Loves'', also known as ''Equilibrium'', a 1953 romantic anthology film * "Equilibrium" (''seaQuest 2032'') * ''Equilibr ...

- (

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

) *''Playsong'' - (

) *''Distant Reports'' - (

) *''Advenio'', with Vokal Nord - (

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

) *''Hildes Bossahefte'', with Hilde Hefte - (

) *''Bjørn Johansen in Memoriam'', with Various Artists - (

) *''Wolfvoices'', with Maiken Mathisen Schau - (

) *''The Next Step'', with

Jon Larsen Jon Larsen (born 7 January 1959) is a gypsy jazz guitarist, record producer, painter, and amateur scientific researcher. He is the founder of the group Hot Club de Norvège. In 2007 he received the Buddy Award for his lifelong contribution to ...

- (

) *''Foot Prints'' - (

) *''Wistful'', with Hallgeir Pedersen Trio - (

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

) *''Django Festival 3'', with Various Artists - (

) *''Blue'', with Bodil Niska - (

) *''Jazz Collection 1'', with Various Artists - (

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

) *''Like That'', with

and

- (

) *''Sval draum'', with John Pål Inderberg - (

) *''Bluero'', with Hallgeir Pedersen Trio - (

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

) *''My Funny Valentine'', with

- (

) *''On the Corner'', with Hilde Hefte - (

) *''Jazzsnadder'', with Various Artists - (

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

) *''Live in Oslo'', with

and John Pål Inderberg - (

) *''An Evening in Prague'', with Hilde Hefte and

The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

- (

) *''Oslo Calling'', with

- (

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

) *''Veckan 44'', with Norsk/Svensk Cool Sextet - (

) *''Arctic Bird'', with Kjell Bartholsen - (

) *''A Portrait of Jon Larsen'', with

- (

) *''Åge-boks 1'', with

- (

) *''Black is the Color of My True Love's Hair'', with Various Artists - (

) *''Q'' (2009), with Henning Gravrok - (

) *''Flight'' - (

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

) *''Piano Pals'' ( Ponca Jazz Records), with Oddbjørn Blindheim Trio - (

)

References

External links

*
Bjørn Alterhaug Biografi - ''Norsk Musikkinformasjon'' MIC-noBjørn Alterhaugs label
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alterhaug, Bjorn 1945 births Living people Musicians from Mo i Rana 20th-century Norwegian upright-bassists 21st-century Norwegian upright-bassists Norwegian jazz upright-bassists Norwegian male double-bassists Norwegian jazz composers Norwegian male jazz composers Spellemannprisen winners Ponca Jazz Records artists Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters 20th-century Norwegian male musicians 21st-century Norwegian male musicians Siri's Svale Band members