Musician, composer, bandleader and arranger Dag Arnesen has had a lifelong relationship with the music of Edvard Grieg. Together with his trio he has enjoyed...

Musician, composer, bandleader and arranger Dag Arnesen has had a lifelong relationship with the music of Edvard Grieg. Together with his trio he has enjoyed extraordinary success with his “Norwegian Song” recordings, where treasures from the Norwegian song heritage have been interpreted with a jazz flavor. On the fourth record in this series the trio has been replaced by Bergen Big Band, and this time Arnesen has written entirely new arrangements for Grieg’s music and a selection of Norwegian folksongs. Dag Arnesen, pianist and composer, was born and raised in Bergen. He started classical piano lessons when he was seven-years-old, and at the age of sixteen appeared as a soloist with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra playing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No.1. He was educated at the Music Conservatory in Bergen where he studied classical piano. However, as time passed, jazz became his main interest. Dag started his professional career as a musician at Bergen’s main theatre, Den Nationale Scene. Since the mid-seventies, he has led many jazz groups. He has also led larger constellations including a nine- and a thirteen-piece band. Almost all of the music performed by these groups was composed and arranged by Dag. He has often been commissioned to write music for big band, choirs and various ensembles and has composed music for three films.