Martin Wind

Bassist and composer Martin Wind was born in Flensburg, Germany in 1968 and moved to New York in 1996 to study at New York University (NYU) with a scholarship by the German Academic Exchange Service. In 1995 he earned himself a diploma as Orchestra Musician at the Music Conservatory in Cologne, Germany while studying with Prof. Wolfgang Guettler, former bassist with the Berlin Philharmonics. In 1998 he earned his Master’s degree in Jazz Performance and Composition studying with Mike Richmond, Jim McNeely, Tom Boras, Mike Holober and Kenny Werner.

Since his move to New York Martin has become a regular at all major jazz clubs and is also in demand as a session player; his credits include movies such as “The Alamo”, “Intolerable Cruelty”, “ Mona Lisa Smiles” and “Fur”. In 1995 Martin came in third at the International Thelonious Monk Bass Competition in Washington, D.C. In 1996 Martin Wind won the first Cognac Hennessy/Blue Note Jazz Search in Germany with his trio “Dreikland” and got to record an album for Blue Note Records. In 2000 he was the first Jazz musician to win the Cultural Award of his home state Schleswig-Holstein.

Bassist and composer Martin Wind was born in Flensburg, Germany in 1968 and moved to New York in 1996 to study at New York University (NYU) with a scholarship by the German Academic Exchange Service. In 1995 he earned himself a diploma as Orchestra Musician at the Music Conservatory in Cologne, Germany while studying with Prof. Wolfgang Guettler, former bassist with the Berlin Philharmonics. In 1998 he earned his Master’s degree in Jazz Performance and Composition studying with Mike Richmond, Jim McNeely, Tom Boras, Mike Holober and Kenny Werner.

Since his move to New York Martin has become a regular at all major jazz clubs and is also in demand as a session player; his credits include movies such as “The Alamo”, “Intolerable Cruelty”, “ Mona Lisa Smiles” and “Fur”. In 1995 Martin came in third at the International Thelonious Monk Bass Competition in Washington, D.C. In 1996 Martin Wind won the first Cognac Hennessy/Blue Note Jazz Search in Germany with his trio “Dreikland” and got to record an album for Blue Note Records. In 2000 he was the first Jazz musician to win the Cultural Award of his home state Schleswig-Holstein.

Martin has released about 10 albums so far as leader/co-leader including his debut album “Gone with the Wind” (1993), “Tender Waves” (1996), “Dreiklang”(1997), “Family” (1999), and “The Soccerball” (2002). Currently Martin is member of the trios of Bill Mays, Dena DeRose, Don Friedman, James Gordon Williams and Russ Kassoff. He also appears frequently with Matt Wilson’s Quartet and “Arts and Crafts”, and Bill Goodwin’s Orntette. With Bill Mays, Martin has been playing for more than a dozen years and they’ve released many albums together, notably Bill’s three recordings for the Palmetto Label.

Martin Wind has recorded and/or performed with the following artists: Guidon Kremer, Christoph Eschenbach, Mstislav Rostopowitch, Lalo Schifrin, Monty Alexander, Pat Metheny, Clark Terry, Mark Murphy, Slide Hampton, Toots Thielemans, Jim McNeely, Buddy DeFranco, The Metropole Orchestra, Radio Big Bands Cologne, Hamburg, Frankfurt and Berlin, Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Eddie Daniels, Curtis Fuller, Phil Woods, Bud Shank, Johnny Griffin, Bucky Pizzarelli, Mike Stern, Terell Stafford, Larry Goldings, Village Vanguard Orchestra and others.

Martin Wind has been on the faculty at New York University for close to 10 years and is also a faculty member at the National Youth Jazz Orchestra Germany and at the Neuburg Summer Jazz Camp.

In 2005 Martin was commissioned to write the music for an American Place Theatre production of Tim O’Brien’s novel “The things they carried”.