Madars Kalniņš

(18.03.1964 )

Music is a language that is combined with the art of sound.

Having completed the full training for becoming a classical pianist by attending the Emīls Dārziņš Music School and graduating from the Latvian Conservatory of Music, Madars Kalniņš has for more than thirty years also been part of the world of jazz. In 1986 he began playing with Jazztett, a jazz ensemble founded by Raimonds Raubiško and Gunārs Rozenbergs that mainly played hard bop. In addition to a series of local concerts, the group also played a nightly gig for two weeks at the prestigious Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London and participated in the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in the United States. From 1989 to 1992 Kalniņš played with the Latvian Radio Big Band.

After 2000 Kalniņš played with a variety of jazz groups and projects, including Riga Groove Electro, Riga Groove Acoustic, Balticness, Colors of Brain, Resonance, Funk Therapy, Mirage Jazz Orchestra, Skygroove and Add Libitum.

In 2013 Kalniņš’ album Unsaid Words (Neizteiktie vārdi) was nominated for the Annual Latvian Music Recording Awards in the category Best Jazz and Blues Album. The album The Little Musical Fairy Tales (Mazās muzikālās pasakas), in which Kalniņš participated as a pianist and composer, was named Best Album for Children at the Annual Latvian Music Recording Awards in 2014.

Kalniņš teaches at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music and the Riga Cathedral Choir School and also continues composing.