The musician
About Lage
Guitarist. Composer. A voice in contemporary jazz.
Lage Lund is a Norwegian guitarist and composer. Winner of the 2005 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Guitar Competition, he studied at Berklee College of Music before becoming the first electric guitarist admitted to Juilliard. His work moves between original compositions, jazz standards and collective improvisation.
His recordings include Most Peculiar (Criss Cross Jazz, 2023), with Sullivan Fortner, Matt Brewer and Tyshawn Sorey; Ashes (J.M.I. Recordings), with Brewer and Sorey; and Terrible Animals (Criss Cross Jazz, 2019), with Fortner, Larry Grenadier and Sorey. He also co-leads The Fury with Mark Turner, Matt Brewer and Tyshawn Sorey. Their album Live In Brooklyn was released through Giant Step Arts in December 2024.
Lund produced Melissa Aldana's 12 Stars (Blue Note, 2022) and co-produced Echoes of the Inner Prophet (2024), playing guitar on both albums. With Will Vinson and Orlando le Fleming in OWL Trio, he recorded Life of the Party (Newvelle, 2020), featuring Kurt Elling.
Alongside his own groups, his work has included collaborations with David Sánchez, Maria Schneider, Mark Turner and Seamus Blake.
Download the biographySelected press
“Casually magnetic, channeling reticence into a whisper-quiet mystique.”Nate Chinen · The New York Times
“Terrible Animals sound like an irresistible and raucous foray into the beyond.”Dave Cantor · DownBeat
“Lund’s music on Ashes is hauntingly beautiful, filled with subtle harmonic shifts and dynamic interplay.”Mike Gates · UKVibe
“I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone play the instrument that well.”David Adler · All About Jazz
