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João Hasselberg

I am a doublebass/electricbass player currently living in Lisbon, trying to learn and play as much as I can. I’m teaching doublebass at the “Villas-Boas Jazz School” from the Hot Clube de Portugal.

Just released my first album as a leader called “Whatever It Is You’re Seeking, Won’t Come In The Form You’re Expecting” for Sintoma Records. Some of my projects are:

•My own band feat. Luis Figueiredo piano ; Bruno Pedroso drums ; Ricardo Toscano sax ; Diogo Duque trumpet ; João Firmino and Afonso Pais guitar ; Luisa Sobral and Joana Espadinha vocals •Nuno Ferreira feat. Nuno Ferrira guitar ; Chris Kase trumpet ; João Mortagua alto sax ; Luis Cunha trombone ; Abe Rabade piano ; Joel Silva drums •André Santos feat. André Santos guitar ; Ricardo Toscano sax ; João Pereira drums •João Firmino Trio feat. João Firmino guitar ; Luis Candeias drums •Luisa Sobral feat. Luisa Sobral vocals ; João Salcedo piano ; Carlos Miguel drums •Spyros Manesis Trio feat. Spyros Manesis piano ; Kaspars Kurdeko drums •João Firmino 5tet feat. João Firmino guitar ; Desiderio Lazaro sax ; Oscar Graça piano ; Luis Candeias drums •Mariana Norton feat. Mariana Norton vocals ; Bruno Santos guitar ; Oscar Graça piano ; Luis Candeias drums •Bruno Santos Ensemble feat. Bruno Santos guitar ; Rodrigo Gonçalves piano ; Luis Candeias drums ; Jorge Reis alt/soprano sax ; Cesar Cardoso tenor sax ; Paulo Gaspar bass clarinete ; Gonçalo Marques trumpet ; Luis Cunha trombone ; Mariana Norton vocals.

photo by Vera Marmelo photo by Vera Marmelo I was born on a cold January 1986 morning in Lisbon… Piano was my first try to get in touch with music when I was a kid living in the countryside of Alentejo but soon I found out that this was not my instrument but something else. It wasn’t until my 16th easter that I got my first electric bass as a gift. A gift that changed my future as nothing else did before.

During this period I studied with Gregg Moore and Miguel Amado who taught me the fundamentals of electric bass playing as well as the masters of this instrument, but as soon as I finished High School I moved back to Lisbon to study jazz in the Hot Clube de Portugal “Luis Villas-Boas Jazz School”. When I turned 20 I found out that I couldn’t express what I wanted with an electric bass and so I decided to learn double bass with Nelson Cascais as a teacher.

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Album Review

João Hasselberg & Pedro Branco: Dancing Our Way To Death

Read "Dancing Our Way To Death" reviewed by Mark Sullivan


Portuguese bassist João Hasselberg and guitarist Pedro Branco both hail from Lisbon, but are currently living and studying elsewhere--Hasselberg in Copenhagen, Branco in Amsterdam. They each contribute compositions to this co-led project, as well as play the core instrumental tracks, aided by additional players and vocalists. First, it must be said that the music is not nearly as bleak as the album title implies. It's contemplative and sometimes atmospheric--so there's not much dancing, but there's not much death either.

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"Expect the unexpected, a lyrical bassist floating effortless above an almost autobiographical tale of lyrical delight. Organic, eclectic, and pure are all apt descriptions of a release that is free from compromise, pressure and all the undo influences that can divert the artistic focus. This is a look at the harmonic makeup of a brilliant global artist with more than enough talent to crack the isolationist American marketplace." by Brent Black / Bop-N-JAzz

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