Rolf Billberg (22 August 1930 – 17 August 1966) was a Sweden alto saxophone player active during the 1950s and 1960s.
Biography
Rolf Billberg was born in Lund, Sweden on 22 August 1930 and was raised by his mother in
Gothenburg. At age 17, Billberg began playing
clarinet and performed with an
Uddevalla military band for four years. He then made the switch to the
tenor saxophone and worked with local bands in
Visby, Borås and
Gothenburg, going to
Stockholm in 1954 to join the
Simon Brehm orchestra. From 1954–1955, Billberg worked with
Lars Gullin and recorded with him. In 1955, he worked in Copenhagen, Denmark with the
Lasse Wanderyd orchestra and later for the
Ib Glindemann orchestra in 1956. From 1956–1957, Billberg was performing in various
United States clubs located in
Germany and
France with
vibraphonist Vera Auer. It was during this period that Billberg switched to
alto saxophone.
In 1957, he began working with the Carl-Henrik Norin orchestra in Stockholm. Over the coming years, he would work frequently in Copenhagen with groups such as the Jazz Quintet 60 and the Danish Radio Jazz Orchestra. Back in Sweden, he continued his work with Gullin and also worked frequently with trumpet player Jan Allan. In 1966, he joined the Danish Radio Big Band (led by Ib Glindemann), spending the summer in Gothenburg helping to look after his mother's hotel in the city. There he became seriously ill and died on his way to the hospital on 17 August 1966.
The liner notes to the CD Rare Danish Recordings 1956-1957 states that:
According to the most credible jazz witnesses in Denmark and Sweden...Billberg was an extroverted artist with a gluttonous appetite for life and all it has to offer – including intoxicants, which came to affect both his emotional and physical health - but never stopped his love of playing in all tempos and keys.[*]
Music Broadcasting Peter H. Larsen has drawn comparisons between Billberg's lyricism and that of Lee Konitz.
Discography
-
1955-1956: Lars Gullin with Chet Baker, Vol. 1 (1955) Dragon Records
-
Great Lars Gullin, Vol. 1 (1955) Dragon Records
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Sax Appeal & Trisection (1963) by Nils Lindberg (Dragon Records)
-
1944-1955, Vol. 3: Late Summer (1995) by Lars Gullin (Dragon Records)
-
Symphony No. 1 & Jazz From Studio A (1998) by Nils Lindberg (Dragon Records)
-
50 Years on Stage (2002) by Ib Glindemann (Edel Mega)
-
Stan Kenton with the Danish Radio Big Band (2003) Storyville Records
-
Darn That Dream (2002) Dragon Records
-
Brand New! Swedish Jazz, Vol. 9: 1960-1964 (2004) Caprice Records
-
Rare Danish Recordings 1956-1957 (2005) Storyville Records
-
Altosupremo (2007) Anagram Records
Notes
