Samo Šalamon (born 9 October 1978 in Maribor, Slovenia) is a Slovenian jazz composer, guitarist and interviewer. He has performed on over 35 albums and is credited with over 300 compositions.

Biography

Šalamon started playing guitar at the age of seven, studying classical guitar in Maribor until the age of fifteen. He later studied at the University of Ljubljana, earning a PhD in American poetry and translation. During his time at the university, he developed an interest in jazz and improvisation.

In 1999, Šalamon met jazz guitarist John Scofield, who became a collaborator and influence on his musical development. In the early 2000s, Šalamon began performing and recording with musicians from the New York jazz scene, including Tim Berne, David Binney, Josh Roseman, Tony Malaby, Mark Helias, Tom Rainey, Gerald Cleaver, Tyshawn Sorey, John Hebert, Donny McCaslin, and others. In 2003, he recorded Ornethology, his debut album, featuring a European quartet with Achille Succi, Salvatore Maiore, and Zlatko Kaučič. With this group, he performed at the Ljubljana Jazz Festival, Roma Jazz Festival, and Skopje Jazz Festival. The album Ornethology was included in The Penguin Guide to Jazz list of the 1001 Best Albums in the History of Jazz.

Šalamon performed extensively across Europe, collaborating with both European and American jazz musicians, including French tubist Michel Godard, American reed player Paul McCandless, saxophonists Achille Succi and Tony Malaby, drummer Roberto Dani, and pianist Stefano Battaglia. His work has incorporated elements of modern composition and improvisation. His projects have included duos with guitarist Hasse Poulsen and clarinetist Francois Houle, and a European sextet on the album The Colours Suite, featuring Julian Arguelles, Achille Succi, Roberto Dani, Pascal Niggenkemper, and Christian Lillinger. He also led a large improvisational orchestra with members such as Fredrik Ljungkvist, Luis Vicente, Albert Cirera, and Martin Küchen.

Šalamon has recorded for European jazz labels such as Clean Feed Records, Fresh Sound New Talent, Not Two Records, SteepleChase Records, and Splasc(h) Records. As a composer, he developed projects synthesizing contemporary jazz, classical music, and free improvisation.

In 2022, Šalamon recorded the album Dolphyology, a collection of Eric Dolphy's music played on solo acoustic guitar. The album features 28 compositions by Eric Dolphy, rearranged for acoustic guitar, ranging from avant-garde to lyrical. In June 2022, Šalamon released Pure and Simple, a collaborative trio album featuring Norwegian bassist Arild Andersen and American drummer Ra-Kalam Bob Moses. The album was followed by a European tour in October 2022.

Style

Šalamon's guitar style is influenced by his studies of jazz saxophonists Ornette Coleman and Eric Dolphy, evident in his first two albums, Ornethology and Ela's Dream. His early guitar playing was influenced by guitarist John Scofield and musicians like John Abercrombie, Ben Monder, Adam Rogers, and Bill Frisell. His compositional style draws from different areas of jazz and modern classical composers such as Béla Bartók, Witold Lutosławski, and Olivier Messiaen.

Discography

Release yearAlbumLabelPersonnel 2003 OrnethologySamo RecordsAchille Succi, Salvatore Maiore, Zlatko Kaučič2005 Ela's DreamSplasc(h) RecordsAchille Succi, David Binney, Kyle Gregory, Paolino Dalla Porta, Zlatko Kaučič2005 Two HoursFresh Sound New TalentTony Malaby, Mark Helias, Tom Rainey2006 Kei's SecretSplasc(h) RecordsAchille Succi, Carlo DeRosa, Tyshawn Sorey2006 Government CheeseFresh Sound New TalentDavid Binney, Josh Roseman, Mark Helias, Gerald Cleaver2007 NanoGoga RecordsJulian Argüelles, Michel Godard, Roberto Dani2007 Fall MemoriesSplasc(h) RecordsLuciano Biondini, Michel Godard, Roberto Dani2008 Mamasaal feat. Mark TurnerDometra RecordsMark Turner, Matt Brewer, Aljoša Jerič2009 Live!Samo RecordsMichel Godard, Roberto Dani2011 Almost AlmondSanje RecordsDrew Gress, Tom Rainey2011 DualitySamo RecordsTim Berne, Achille Succi, Tom Rainey, Roberto Dani2012 Eleven StoriesSamo RecordsMichel Godard, Roberto Dani2013 Stretching OutSamo RecordsDonny McCaslin, Dominique Pifarély, Bruno Chevillon, John Hebert, Gerald Cleaver, Roberto Dani2014 OrchestrologyKGOSF RecordsRoberto Dani, Slovene Philharmonic String Chamber Orchestra2014 2 AltoSteepleChase RecordsLoren Stillman, John O'Gallagher, Roberto Dani2014 IvesSamo RecordsManu Codjia, Mikkel Ploug2015 Little RiverSamo RecordsPaul McCandless, Roberto Dani2016 UnitySamo RecordsJulian Argüelles, John Hollenbeck2016 windSKlopotec RecordsStefano Battaglia2017 The Colours SuiteClean Feed RecordsJulian Argüelles, Achille Succi, Pascal Niggenkemper, Christian Lillinger, Roberto Dani2017 Free Sessions Vol. 1: Planets of KeiNot Two RecordsAchille Succi, Szilard Mezei2018 Traveling Moving BreathingClean Feed RecordsTony Malaby, Roberto Dani2018 Peaks of LightSamo RecordsHoward Levy2018 Pure MagicAlessa RecordsStefano Battaglia2019 Free Sessions Vol. 2: FreequestraKlopotec RecordsMatija Krecic, Bostjan Simon, Achille Succi, Ziga Murko, Domen Gnezda, Vitja Balzalorsky, Marko Crncec, Goran Krmac, Bojan Krhlanko, Jaka Berger2019 Swirling Blind UnstilledKlopotec RecordsSzilard Mezei, Jaka Berger2019 Punk YouSamo RecordsEva Poženel, Achille Succi, Bojan Krhlanko2020 Rare EbbSamo RecordsIgor Matković, Kristijan Krajnčan2020 Common FlowSamo RecordsIgor Matković, Kristijan Krajnčan2020 Almost Alone Vol. 1Samo RecordsAlex Machacek, Rafal Sarnecki, Cenk Erdogan, Andre Fernandes, Kalle Kalima, Jacob Young, Albert Vila, Dušan Jevtović, Lorenzo Di Maio, Philipp Schaufelberger, Spiros Exaras2020 Free Distance, Vol. 1: Love is More ThickerSamo RecordsEmanuele Marsico, Alberto Mandarini, Mirko Cisilino, Luís Vicente, Emanuele Parrini, Marco Colonna, Achille Succi, Albert Cirera, Fredrik Ljungkvist, Christoph Irniger, Alberto Pinton, Beppe Scardino, Martin Küchen, Marcelo Dos Reis, Silvia Bolognesi, Vasco Trilla2021 TimelessnessSamo RecordsCene Resnik, Bojan Krhlanko2021 String DancersSamo RecordsHasse Poulsen2021 Unobservable MysteriesAfterday RecordsFrancois Houle2022 Joy and SorrowKlopotec RecordsSabir Mateen2022 Free Distance, Vol. 2: Poems are OpeningFundacja SluchajEmanuele Marsico, Alberto Mandarini, Mirko Cisilino, Luís Vicente, Emanuele Parrini, Marco Colonna, Achille Succi, Albert Cirera, Fredrik Ljungkvist, Christoph Irniger, Alberto Pinton, Beppe Scardino, Martin Küchen, Marcelo Dos Reis, Silvia Bolognesi, Vasco Trilla2022 DolphyologySamo Records(solo album)2022 Pure and SimpleSamo RecordsArild Andersen, Ra-Kalam Bob Moses2022 Before It RainsSamo RecordsCene Resnik, Jost Drasler, Bojan Krhlanko2023 Rainbow BubblesSamo RecordsAsaf Sirkis2023 Eating PoetryClean Feed RecordsEmanuele Parrini, Vasco Trilla2023 Electric DuoSamo RecordsMartin Speake2023 State of GraceSamo RecordsBruce Saunders2024 Dances of FreedomSamo RecordsVasil Hadžimanov, Ra-Kalam Bob Moses2024 Unlocking the CodeSamo RecordsKevin Miller2024 For the Listener Who ListensSamo RecordsRonan Guilfoyle, Rafal Mazur2024 The ThinkersSamo RecordsCene Resnik, Samuel Ber2025 Acoustic DuoSamo RecordsMartin Speake2025 Dream Suites Vol. 1Samo RecordsDave Ballou, Russ Johnson, Tom Varner, Jeb Bishop, Curtis Hasselbring, Steve Swell, Chet Doxas, Ben Goldberg, Vinny Golia, Adam Kolker, Andrew Rathbun, Ned Rothenberg, Dan Willis, Ernst Reijseger, Rez Abbasi, Mike Baggetta, Jonathan Goldberger, Jerome Harris, Michael Cain, Steve Hunt, Jimmy Haslip, Chris Lightcap, Eivind Opsvik, Matt Pavolka, Tim Daisy, Ra-Kalam Bob Moses

References

External links