Turning Point: Interview with Mathias Eick

I guess it’s not a controversial album, but I’ve chosen Belonging because it played a huge part in me finding my way when I was in my early 20s. As a kid, I listened a lot to traditional jazz music from the 1930s and 40s, sometimes the 50s. I played a lot of Dixieland with my dad’s band, and swing stuff - almost every weekend we had gigs, and I played the bass.
 I had a brother who was 15 years older than me; and once when he came home, he brought some albums: Kenny Wheeler, who is my all-time favourite trumpeter, and also Joni Mitchell – newer music!

That started me off; and when I moved to Oslo, I went into a record store and bought lots of modern music, including Belonging. I was looking for ECM albums, because I thought that label was a good way to discover music. I knew about Keith Jarrett and Jan Garbarek, and I was surprised I hadn’t heard this album. When I put it on at home, I realised I had heard it without knowing what it was. I still have that CD; and when I see the cover, I see myself 25 years ago in the place where I had that experience.

It was a eureka moment, because it combined soul music, traditional music, rhythm and blues and jazz. The songwriting is so strong. I thought, ‘Wow - is it possible to write songs like this?!’ Then I discovered he had two Norwegian guys in the band, and a Swede! I was so in love with that album; and so in love with the saxophone playing that I actually wrote a fan letter to Jan Garbarek! We were living in the same city, so it was quite easy to find his address. I said, ‘I’m your biggest fan. Can I please have a lesson with you; but if you don’t want that, can we just meet for a coffee?’ Two weeks after, I got a letter back from him! He told me, ‘Thank you for a really nice letter and I wish you the best; but giving lessons and meeting people is not something I do. But best of luck.’ What a legend! I was deeply honoured that he’d actually checked out my music, and said 

Belonging changed me so much. I modelled my trumpet playing on his saxophone playing – all the phrasing, all the melodic ideas, all the improvisational ideas, which are out of this world, and his interactions with Keith Jarrett. It resonated for me that he has the ability to play new and personal music in such an extraordinary way.

One thing they taught us in Trondheim at the university, was that a really important way for developing as a musician was if you play one instrument, you should listen to other instruments. Because if you only find inspiration from your own instrument, you’ll be likely to walk the same path and find the same solutions as everyone else on your instrument. So apart from Jan Garbarek, I then also learned Bill Frisell solos on my trumpet! It’s really difficult to do that, but you become open to more ways of playing.
 There: now you have my secret!

Also when I was at Trondheim, I contacted Nils Petter Molvær; and he said, ‘Come over - we can play a bit’. So I did, and we listened to a Tomasz Stańko record; and we played for a short while; and he said, ‘Okay, that’s fine - let’s go and have a drink!’ And we spent the whole evening drinking and talking. I told him I was at the university and they would pay for the teaching session; and he said he didn’t want any money. To me, that was an inspiring attitude.

It was my childhood dream to make records for ECM, and especially after Belonging – to meet Manfred Eicher, to go to Rainbow Studio, to record with Jan Erik Kongshaug, the legendary engineer, the mastermind of the studio. It was almost like a mythical thing: no one knows how to get into this record label, they don’t accept demos. And in fact, it was the meeting with Nils Petter that did it for me. He had just had a big success with Khmer, and was quitting all his roles as a sideman; and he proposed me to take over with Jacob Young’s band.
 I was 23; and I realised that was exactly the same age that Pat Metheny met Manfred Eicher ....

This feature originally appeared in the April 2025 issue of Jazzwise – Subscribe to Jazzwise today