Photo by Helge Brekke
Kjetil
Mulelid
Trio
If we are to believe The Wire, French Ethereal, and major Norwegian publications like DNand Morgenbladet, the Kjetil Mulelid Trio is hailed as "the finest contemporary jazz," "one of Europe’s premier piano trios," and a group "shaping the elite of modern piano trios." Upon the release of their latest album in February 2025, All About Jazzdescribed their sound as "simply beautiful and beautifully simple," while Jazz Journalcalled the trio "one of the finest post-Bley/Jarrett piano trios at work today." Following the release of their third album The Dutch Written in Music declaring the trio as"one hell of a good piano trio," and the leading British jazz magazine Jazzwise lauded the trio, writing that it "impresses once again."
Since their debut in 2017, the Kjetil Mulelid Trio has solidified its place as one of Norway's premier piano trios, captivating audiences across the globe and earning widespread international acclaim. They have played to sold-out crowds at festivals like the Vancouver and Ottawa Jazz Festivals, as well as at renowned jazz clubs such as Unterfahrt in Munich, PizzaExpress in London, HCP in Lisbon, and B-flat in Tokyo.
Indeed, this piano trio consists of some of Norway's most exciting young jazz musicians, whose members are heavily involved in projects such as Norwegian "Spellemann" winners ‘Morgonrode’ and nominee ‘Wako’ among other projects from the creative milieu in Norway. In the trio though, the focus is pared back to the classic acoustic piano trio featuring, predominantly, Mulelid’s beguiling compositions expertly balancing energetic, rhythmically complex and harmonically rich music with beautiful evocative melodies. While the trio incorporates that sense of calm, unhurried yet constantly unfolding sound world which is distinctively Scandinavian, Mulelid, in concert with bassist Rune Nergaard and drummer Andreas Winther, effortlessly conjure additional layers, tones and textures, based upon group improvisations, and informed, in large part, by each others diverse musical experiences.
Kjetil A Mulelid - piano
Andreas Winther - drums
Rune Nergaard - double bass
"Magical" -The Wire
"Impressive” - Jazzwise
"One of Europe’s premier piano trios" -The Jazz Man
“Some of the most captivating music I’ve heard in quite some while” - Jazz Journal
“The pace, mood control, the lyricism of the tone control and this always present sense of spirituality is almost like a Holy Trinity in the Bible. Perfection you can Feel, even if it goes beyond your imagination or descriptive capabilities” - G Point Audio
“However, while Kjetil Mulelid’s piano plays a starring role, and he plays with a maturity beyond his years, his rhythm section adds layers of magical music as well as textures and tones.” - Dereksmusicblog
.jpeg?etag=%2228558a-65780d84%22&sourceContentType=image%2Fjpeg&quality=85 "Kjetil Mulelid Trio 5 (photo by Maya Skonseng)")
.jpeg?etag=%22362049-65780d96%22&sourceContentType=image%2Fjpeg&ignoreAspectRatio&resize=2500,1575&quality=85 "Kjetil Mulelid Trio (photo by Maya Skonseng)")
.jpg?etag=%2237471-5941d96a%22&sourceContentType=image%2Fjpeg&quality=85 "TRIO 2016 (photo, Natalie Sandtorv)")
We have released three albums on Rune Grammofon (2017 / 2019 / 2022), and on album on Grappa (2025). All of them heavily praised by the international jazz press. Read more about the releases here:
- Who Do You Love the Most? (rune grammofon 2022)
- What You Thought Was Home (rune grammofon 2019)
- Not Nearly Enough To Buy a House (rune grammofon 2017)
P R E S S
"Best of the year" - Jez Nelson, Jazz FM (UK)
"Impressing” - Lars Mossefinn, Dag og Tid (NO)
"One hell of a piano trio record" - Written in Music (NE)
"One of Europe’s premier piano trios" - The Jazz Man (UK)
"The performances are perfect in every respect" - Adam Baruch (IL)
"Possibly one of our favorite jazz bands for a few years" - Etherreal (FR)
"The elite division in modern piano trio jazz" - Dagens Næringsliv (NO)
"A collection of interesting, and very beautiful tunes" - Audun Vinger (NO)
"A feeling of great balance pervades the whole album" - Off Topic Magazine (IT)
“Another Norwegian piano trio sounding absolute amazing” - SoulandJazz (UK)
"A beautiful discovery: a trio with great melodic charm" - Claude Loxhay, Jazzhalo (BE)
“Some of the most captivating music I’ve heard in quite some while” - Jazz Journal (UK)
"They mixes together sparse zen-funk and folk song-based vernaculars" - Jazzwise (UK)
“The feeling of inspired freedom in between a great melodic framework.” - Vårt Land (NO)
"So damn well played, and so well-tempered that you'll want to sit down" - Jazz i Norge(NO)
“Unbelievable that the musicians in the trio are all between 25 and 30" - Written in Music (NL)
“This is music that breathes a pastoral atmosphere (...)played with elegance” - Vital Weekly (NE)
“The interplay of this trio, as well as the touching melodies testify to great mastery” - Plattentests (DE)
"It took me several listens to fully realise just how magical this album is" - Andy Hamilton, The Wire (UK)
“Sound as if they could improvise freely together as easily as playing compositions.” - All About Jazz (INT)
"Mulelid and his two equally young colleagues reveals timeless quality" - Volkmar Mantei, Baby Blaue (DE)
”Rune Grammofon puts the list high and Kjetil Mulelid Trio is far away to tear - very far.” Tor Hammerø, (NO)
"This trio is really speaking with its own voice and they left me with huge hunger for more." - G point audio (UK)
“A great album, and further testament to Norway's thriving musical culture” - International Piano Magazine (UK)
“Kjetil Mulelid Trio is probably one of the most interesting acoustic jazz trios in Norway these days” - Stemmegaffel (NO)
"Free improvisation and perfectly interlocked compositions give the proverbial handle every second" - Musikreviews (DE)
“The Kjetil Mulelid Trio plays lyrical, ballad-oriented jazz, and they’re not afraid to play pretty.” - The Absolute Sound (US)
“They sound like an incredible good constellation. The trio has huge potentials ahead of them in the future!” - Ivan Rod (DK)
“Mulelid's playing is magical. Subtle, playful and then powerful, he sets out his melody lines. Impressive” - Dick Hovenga (NE)
"As pretty and elegant as something Bill Evans trio might have performed at the Village Vanguard” -Ron Schepper, Textura (CA)
"The sound of harmonic sounds in wood that spreads around as the very definition of the concept of quality time" - Morgenbladet (NO)
"We must commend this outstanding trio for its original exploration of the possibilities of the trio" - Fritz Balwit, Audiophile Audition (US)
“This trio may not found yet a solid, concrete home but in their own special way have created a true musical haven.” - Eyal Hareuveni (IL)
"Wealth of motifs, exchanges and great interaction art without the maximumistical deviation of the tasteful." - Olav Opsvik, Jazznytt (NO)
“Maybe I'm just easy these days, but this album is so gorgeous and beautiful that it's difficult to critisies it." - Maren Ørstavik, Jazznytt (NO)
%20-%20KMT.jpg?etag=%22115f9-5a9417a3%22&sourceContentType=image%2Fjpeg&quality=85 "Jazzwise (UK) - KMT")
