Benjamin Koppel

Born in 1974 into a family of musicians based in Copenhagen, Danish saxophonist and composer Benjamin Koppel belongs to a lineage that links the composer Herman D. Koppel to his father Anders Koppel. Active on the jazz scene since the early 1990s, Benjamin Koppel first developed his musical language on the alto saxophone in Danish groups before expanding his activity to European and North American stages. His work moves between contemporary jazz, structured melodic writing and forms close to chamber music, with a marked taste for themed projects and cycles of pieces. In the studio as on stage, he alternates trios, quartets, large ensembles and occasional collaborations with musicians from American jazz, the Scandinavian scene and classical music. The creation of his label Cowbell Music has allowed him to document a dense catalogue of personal projects, short-lived formations and international encounters. Alongside his activities as leader and sideman, Benjamin Koppel composes for theatre, film and television, extending in these contexts his interest in musical narration and the intersections between improvisation and written composition.